Feed production trends and technology selection
11 October 20136 min reading
Yemtar, Abdullah Çolak: “Selection of equipment and machinery to be used in feed facilities is very important. The selections should be suitable for the targeted capacity, feed type to be produced. Wrong choices cause capacity loss and/or unnecessary energy consumption. In order to make these selections properly, engineering services should be taken from specialist companies.”
As one of the leading feed technologies producers of Turkey, Yemtar Makine Sanayi has an experience over 30 years in its field. Making dozens of turnkey feed mill installations around the world, company’s Board Chairman Abdullah ÇOLAK told both the use of technology in Turkish feed sector and trend technologies in world feed market for our readers.
He stated that feed mills use new technologies with a fairly high level in Turkey but they haven’t switched to the changing trends in the world. Stating the points that feed mills should take into consideration while making technology investments, ÇOLAK emphasized that working with expert companies in medium-and long-terms is much more advantageous for the feed companies.
Mr. Çolak could you give some information about technologies used in feed industry and important dynamics in this process?
There are 3 main elements in facilities producing mixed feed; cracking, mixing and pelletizing.
Cracking aims to downsize the particle sizes of the raw materials used in mixed feed homogenously and thus increase the productivity of mixing and pelletizing processes. Hammer mills have been used in this sector for a long time. With the improvements in the design of roller mills, these mills are started to be used in feed industry.
Another main element is mixing. Proper nutrition is realized by consuming various types of foods for animals just like for humans. In order to make the feed have these proportions, the raw materials should be mixed homogenously. Various mixers are used for this process. Featured mixer types are horizontal ribbon mixers and paddle mixers. The homogeneity of the mixtures made by these machines should be checked with various tests.
Pelletizing is the final product that is presented to the animal consumption after mixing. It is the only way that animals can consume the raw material they like. Pelletizing is done by pressing the feed after applying heat treatment with steam. After this heat treatment, feed has a cylindrical form and ration becomes inseparable. Besides, digestibility increases as a result of starch gelatinization inside the raw material with heat treatment. Many harmful bacteria and germs will be killed as a result of heat treatment.
What can you say about the newest developments and current trends in feed technologies?
Food and feed are associated with each other in the world now. The relation between food and feed in international scale is sloganized with “Feed to Food” phrase. This should be valid and compulsory for our country. In the last period, mixed feed has come to the forefront in livestock improvement studies. In the “from field to the fork” system; as the 70 % of the inlets in livestock businesses is feed, the idea of that mixed feed constitutes a potential risk becomes widespread. Based on the idea that it becomes widespread; besides making other necessary arrangements related with food safety, eliminating the problems in mixed feed production has a vital importance.
It can be said that feed mills in Turkey use the new technologies with a fairly high level in terms of using advanced tools and equipment and switching to computerized production. But the subjects like improving the quality of the feeds produced, regular calibration of the production equipment that ensures usage of feed efficiently in terms of nutrition, renewal and / or adaptation of the technology according to the results of the field tests of the feed are also very important.
Besides, not to use the feed raw materials that preprocessed with physical and chemical processes like blasting, roasting, micronization and expansion and not to do R&D studies that encourage usage of these raw material in the field constitute the most important deficiencies in technology usage in this sector. Furthermore; failure in realizing the technological applications that prepare intense feed mixtures with different quality by taking into account the differences especially in ruminant animals’ feed on regional basis.
What is the importance of concepts such as efficiency, automation and energy saving in feed production? What should be taken into consideration for economic and efficient production? What is the role of new technologies in this process?
Selection of machinery and equipment to be used in feed mills is very important. The selections should be suitable for the targeted capacity, feed type to be produced. Wrong choices cause capacity loss and/or unnecessary energy consumption. In order to make these selections properly, engineering services should be taken from specialist companies.
Automation is the most important factor that increases efficiency. Control/automation system technology of the facility is really important in terms of both followability and efficiency. Facilities installed by expert companies can run fully automatically and any report related with production can be obtained from the computer system. This is important in terms of both internal tracking and efficiency control.
For the investors who want to develop their mills or establish a new feed mill; what should be taken into consideration in technology selection and how should they direct their investments when today’s conditions are taken into consideration?
We have emphasized the importance of working with expert companies in equipment selection above. In addition to these; when a new project is built, it should be evaluated in terms of raw material supply and distribution of the sold products. Logistic possibilities should also be evaluated in selecting location.
Working with expert companies is really important after the facility is activated. Faults due to the deficiencies in periodical maintenance cause unplanned and untimely stop at the facility. Stopping of the facility due to faults causes serious financial losses. Periodical maintenances done by scheduling of the expert companies both increase the efficiency as they ensure continuous production and provide longer working life for the machines.
Reducing the unit costs is as much important as selling the production. In this sense, working with expert companies due to the advantages above means making profit in middle and long terms.
Articles in Interview Category