Do you know how to decode feed bags?

As part of British Equestrian Trade Association’s (BETA) Feed Fact Fortnight, Red Mills nutrition expert Louise Jones explains how to decode your horse’s feed bag

Have you ever taken the time to read the small print on your horse’s feed bag? Or been too afraid to because you don’t understand it? The information is there to help you make an informed decision about which product is most suitable for you horse, so you shouldn’t shy away from it.

But did you know that some details are legally required, while others are at the discretion of the manufacturer? Let’s find out more with the help of Louise Jones, a nutritional expert from Connolly’s Red Mills as part of BETA’s Feed Fact Fortnight – a campaign created to help promote better feeding of horses through knowledge and the sharing of information.

The legal side

The ‘Statuary statement’ is information that must be included on the label by law and includes…

• product name – what type of horse the feed is for
• company details – name, address and the manufacturer’s establishment number
• product description – whether it’s a ‘complete’ feed to be fed alone or a ‘complementary’ feed to be fed with forage and other feed
• composition & additives – only some ingredients can be legally included in equine feeds and supplements. These are split into two categories:

1. Composition – the ingredients are listed order of inclusion with the greatest first and the least last.
2. Additives – these include nutritional additives (vitamins, minerals and amino acids), zootechnical additives(yeast), sensory additives (flavourings) and technological additives (preservatives).

• analytical constituents (nutrient analysis) – in many cases this will include crude protein, fibre, oil, ash, copper. Vitamins and minerals may also be listed here. They must also mention if the product is low in something for example low in starch
• best before date and batch number – this facilitates traceability
• bag or container weight
• feeding and storage directions

Did you know?

The company may include information such as the digestible energy but must never make claims that they’re medicinal, for example by suggesting that it can ‘treat joint pain’.

What to look out for
There are two extra things you might want to look out for when it comes to analysing your horse’s feed or supplement label.

1. The BETA NOPS logo – this identifies whether a manufacturer is a member of BETA and that they follow manufacturing codes to minimise the risk of naturally occurring prohibited substances (NOPS) getting into the feed.
2. The BETA EGUS mark – this helps owners identify feeds suitable for horses prone to gastric ulcers. Feeds displaying this mark will have undergone independent laboratory analysis, an examination of ingredients as well as analysis of labelling and marketing claims

Jargon buster

There might be some words on labels that you’re unfamiliar with, so let’s take a look and what they mean…

• ash – this indicates the mineral content of the feed
• micronised/steam-flaked/extruded – these are different cooking techniques that manufacturers use to improve the digestibility of the feed
• crude – a method used to measure certain nutrients
• additives – often wrongly perceived as bad or unnatural. However, it’s a legal term used to describe certain types of ingredients, some of which are critical for your horse’s health
• chelate – chelated minerals are those that have been attached to other molecules such as an amino acid to improve their bioavailability
• Saccharomyces cerevisiae – the scientific name for the species of yeast used in equine products

For more information on BETA and Feed Fact Fortnight visit beta-uk.org