Residual oil and drying influence value of DDGS in poultry feeds

Corn distillers dried grains with solubles is sometimes purchased as if DDGS were one standard ingredient. It is not. The product reflects the corn entering the ethanol plant, the amount of oil removed, the proportion of solubles added back and the drying conditions used. That variability does not make DDGS a poor ingredient. It makes an accurate specification more valuable.

We still see purchasing specifications built around crude protein and moisture alone. Those numbers matter, but they do not tell a poultry nutritionist enough about energy value or amino acid quality. Two loads can meet the same basic specification and perform differently in the formula.