1. UBC Abacus
A software program developed at the University of British Columbia (UBC), Vancouver, Canada to assist farmers in formulating feed mixtures for use in the production of organic poultry and pigs.

2. UBC Abacus The program is designed to:
produce feed mixtures that meet the nutrient needs of organic poultry and pigs
maximize the use of home-grown feed ingredients
be simple to use on a computer

3.
UBC Abacus: a computerized system for the on-farm formulation of organic feed mixtures for pigs and poultry  
Producers who want to formulate feed mixtures using home-grown or purchased cereal grains have 2 main options:
Cereals only available: purchase a Supplement and mix on-farm
Cereals + proteins available: purchase a Premix and mix on-farm
Option 2 allows complete control over the mix and usually is the lowest-cost option. Also it maximizes the use of home-grown feeds and promotes greater sustainability.

4.
ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS
All feed ingredients used must meet the organic standards.
Local ingredients are preferred.
Cereal Grains and By-products
primary sources of energy in pig and poultry diets
low in protein but high in carbohydrate (starch)
palatable and well-digested
nutrient composition is variable (test periodically if possible)
organic cereals tend to be slightly lower in protein content
barley, wheat, oats and corn (maize) are the main cereals used in livestock feeding

5. ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS Cereal Grains
ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS
Cereal Grains
Barley: medium-energy grain, with more fibre than corn
Wheat: higher in energy and protein content than barley
Wheat middlings: by-product of flour milling, contains the germ
Oats: higher in fibre and lower in energy than other main cereals
Corn: high energy value but low in protein.

6. Supplementary Protein Sources
ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS
Supplementary Protein Sources
Main protein sources used in livestock feeding are soybean and canola meals after oil extraction from the seed
Soybean meal: regarded as best plant protein source for livestock feeding
available in two forms: meal with 440 g protein/kg and dehulled meal with g protein/kg
energy content of soybean meal is higher than in other oilseed meals (lower in fibre)
excellent amino acid profile, complementing the amino acids in cereal grains
amino acids in soybean meal are highly digestible.

7. Supplementary Protein Sources
ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS
Supplementary Protein Sources
Full-fat soybeans
complete soybeans after dehulling, containing the original content of oil
excellent source of both energy and protein
raw beans contain anti-nutritive factors which impair protein digestion
factors are inactivated by proper heat treatment (steaming, toasting or extruding).

8. Supplementary Protein Sources
ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS
Supplementary Protein Sources
Canola (rapeseed)
improved type of rapeseed that is suitable for livestock feeding
crop belongs to the mustard family and is not as palatable as soybeans
good alternative oilseed crop to soybeans in regions not suited for growing soybeans
raw seed contains factors which impair digestion
factors are inactivated by proper heat treatment (steaming, toasting or extruding)

9. ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS Supplementary Protein Sources
ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS
Supplementary Protein Sources
Canola meal: protein and energy contents, also digestibility lower than in soybean meal
Full-fat canola (canola seed)
can be used to provide supplementary protein and energy
maximum utilization only when the product is mechanically disrupted and heat-treated
once ground, the oil is highly susceptible to oxidation

10. ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS Supplementary Protein Sources Faba (field) beans
ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS
Supplementary Protein Sources
Faba (field) beans
annual legume that grows well in regions with mild winters and adequate summer rainfall
beans store well for use on-farm
beans are often regarded nutritionally as high-protein cereal grains
like most legume seeds are low in methionine and cystine (amino acids)
similar in energy content to barley or wheat
grind before use in livestock diets

11. Supplementary Protein Sources
ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS
Supplementary Protein Sources
Field peas
like field beans a good cool-season alternative crop for regions not suited to growing soybeans
can be grown in conjunction with barley
similar in energy content to high-energy cereals (high in starch)
higher in protein content than cereal grains
grind before feeding
Fish meal
excellent protein source (used mainly in fish farming)
acceptable if certified organic
usually too expensive for on-farm use

12. ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS Minerals
ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS
Minerals
Sodium: mainly sodium chloride, also sea salt etc.
Calcium: mainly ground limestone, also ground sea-shells etc.
Phosphorus: mainly dicalcium phosphate.
The approved products to supply trace elements include:
Iron products: ferrous carbonate, ferrous sulfate monohydrate and ferric oxide.
Iodine products: calcium iodate, anhydrous calcium iodate hexahydrate and potassium iodide.
Copper products: copper oxide etc.
Zinc products: zinc carbonate, zinc oxide etc.
Selenium products: sodium selenate and sodium selenite.

13. ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS Vitamins
ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS
Vitamins
Approved vitamins should be derived from vitamin compounds occurring naturally in feeds, or synthetic vitamins identical to natural vitamins.
When the organic feed or organic animal product is to be exported to the USA, the vitamins and trace minerals have to be FDA-approved.

14. Yeasts and other additives
ORGANIC FEEDSTUFFS
Yeasts and other additives
Brewers’ Yeast (inactivated)
used traditionally as a source of nutrients: other yeasts may be acceptable.
Certain additives for use in ensilage, as processing aids, pellet binders etc. are permitted.
Some enzyme supplements such as proteases and carbohydrases are permitted (check with certifying agency).
Pure forms of amino acids are not allowed Except:
L-lysine produced by biofermentation and not GM may be permitted
DL-methionine (and related compounds) may be permitted in poultry feeds

15. NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS
NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS
ENERGY
accounts for the greatest percentage of feed costs
produced when the feed is digested in the gut
either released as heat or absorbed into the body for metabolic purposes
can be obtained from carbohydrates (mainly), fats or proteins in the feed
fats yield about 2.25 times the energy provided by carbohydrates or proteins
energy in excess of requirement is converted to fat and stored in the body

16.
Energy evaluation
total energy (gross energy: GE) - measured chemically
GE does not indicate amount of energy useful to the animal
a more precise measurement of energy is digestible energy (DE)
large database of DE values for feedstuffs - used in formulating PIG diets
DE values may be predicted from chemical composition
a more accurate measure of useful energy is metabolizable energy (ME)
takes into account energy lost both in feces and urine
large database of ME values for feedstuffs - used in formulating POULTRY diets

17. NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS
 NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS
PROTEIN
The term protein usually refers to crude protein (CP; measured as nitrogen content × 6.25) in tables of feedstuffs composition and requirements
required in the diet as a source of amino acids (AA), building blocks for the formation of muscle tissue, eggs, etc.
over 20 different AA in the body of the pig or bird
10 are essential (EAA; arginine, methionine, histidine, phenylalanine, isoleucine, threonine, leucine, tryptophan, lysine and valine), i.e. cannot be made by the body and must be derived from the diet. Cystine can supply part of the methionine requirement

18. NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS
  NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS
SUMMARY
For optimal performance the diet must provide:
adequate and balanced levels of EAA
adequate energy, balanced in relation to AA
adequate amounts of other essential nutrients
all of these should be of high digestibility (bioavailability)
the target nutrient values used in UBC Abacus for the feed mixtures are designed for heritage-type organic stock. NRC values or values recommended by the breeder company should be used with conventional stock.

19. FORMULATING A FEED MIXTURE
  FORMULATING A FEED MIXTURE
STEPS 1. Select the appropriate worksheet for the type of feed to be mixed – sow lactation, laying hen etc. Copy and download the worksheet to your computer. 2. Decide on which feed ingredients are to be used. 3. Adjust the nutrient levels in ingredients if analysed data are available. 4. Run UBC Abacus to calculate which combination of ingredients provides the target nutrient levels. 5. Prepare a feed mixture using the amount of each ingredient obtained in step 4.

20. Worksheets based on MS Excel for the formulation of organic feed mixtures for pigs and poultry are shown in the following sections
Worksheet
Matrix
Species
Feed type 1
Pig
Dry sows and boars 2
Lactating sows 3
Starting pigs 4
Growing pigs 5
Finishing pigs 6
Chicken
Laying stock chicks 7
Laying stock growing pullets 8
Laying stock layers/breeders 9
Meat birds (roasters) starting chicks 10
Meat birds (roasters) growing chickens 11
Meat birds (roasters) finishing chickens

21. The author: Dr Bob Blair
PhD University of Aberdeen (Rowett Research Institute) Scotland (Animal Nutrition)
Scientist ARC Poultry Research Centre, Roslin, Scotland
Director of Poultry and Livestock Nutrition, Swift Canadian Company, Toronto
Professor of Animal Science, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, and Director Prairie Swine Centre
DSc University of Saskatchewan (Animal Nutrition Research)
Professor and Head, Animal Science, UBC
Professor Emeritus, UBC

22.
RELATED PUBLICATIONS
Nutrition and Feeding of Organic Pigs, 2nd Edition (CABI, 2018)
Nutrition and Feeding of Organic Poultry, 2nd Edition (CABI, forthcoming)
Nutrition and Feeding of Organic Cattle (CABI, 2012)
Pig Farming, Canadian Encyclopedia (2015)
A Practical Guide to the Feeding of Organic Farm Animals (5M Publishing, UK, 2017)