Optimization of the process of compound feed pelleting for fur animals

Currently, fur farming products are becoming more and more in demand. With the increase in the number of fur-bearing animals, it is necessary to produce compound feeds that provide high quality furs with minimal feed costs. Compound feed recipes with a fat content of 20% and higher were developed for fur animals. Feeding fodder in the form of granules produced by the technology, one of the stages of which is the process of granulating compound fodders with a high fat content with reasonable operating parameters of the granulator press, is expedient. Process studies using the method of statistical planning of a multivariate experiment were carried out to determine the optimal granulation parameters. The following factors influencing the process under consideration were chosen: the amount of added fat, the steam consumption, the gap between the roll and the press die. Specific energy consumption and crumbling served as criteria for assessing the influence of the selected parameters, which make it possible to assess adequately the efficiency of the process. The data obtained showed that the process of pelleting compound feed at optimal parameters makes it possible to obtain pellets, the quality of which meets the requirements of the standard. All the data obtained were within the calculated confidence intervals of the optimization parameters. The change in the quality indicators of the obtained granulated compound feed during storage was also investigated in the work. Changes in the quality of granulated compound feed during storage testified that the values of total acidity and acid number of fat increased significantly after two months of storage due to hydrolysis of fat in conditions of free oxygen access. The value of the peroxide number of fat, which reflects the depth of oxidative changes in the compound feed, increased sharply after two months of storage. The content of vitamins A and E during the storage of compound feed for 45 days in summer was 12.3% and 10.5% of the initial values, respectively. The recommended shelf life of granulated feed with a high fat content in winter-spring period is 60 days, in summer - 45 days.