Feather meal is produced from poultry feathers through a process of grinding, hydrolysis under heat and pressure, dewatering, drying, and grinding. It contains around 85% crude protein but the bioavailability of nitrogen may be low. The key steps are procurement of raw feathers, hydrolysis to break down keratin proteins, dewatering, steaming and drying, final grinding and sieving to produce the final product which is then packaged and stored. Feather meal is a good source of protein for animal feeds as the amino acids are readily available, and it can replace up to 8% of protein sources in poultry diets.

1. Feather meal

2. Feather meal

3. Introduction
• Feather meal is a byproduct of processing poultry; it is made from
poultry feathers by partially grinding them under elevated heat and
pressure, and then grinding and drying. Although total nitrogen levels
are fairly high (up to 12%), the bioavailability of this nitrogen may be
low.

4. Common names
• Feather meal
• Hydrolyzed feather meal
• Poultry feather meal
• Hydrolyzed poultry feather meal

5. Processing
• 1. Procurement & purchase of raw feather
• 2. Storage bins
• 3. Hydrolyzing
• 4. Dewatering Press
• 5. Steaming & Drying
• 6. Grinding
• 7. Sieving
• 8. Packing
• 9. Storage

6. 1- Purchase of raw feathers:
• Purchase raw feathers from the local market or slaughterhouses.
• 2- Storage bins:
• For storage of raw feathers, raw feathers truck dump bins are used.
Their number depends upon the capacity of mill.
• It has circulating rods with spins which will move the feathers out
when required.

8. Hydrolyzing:
• First & most important step of feather meal processing plant.
• 10ton capacity of hydrolyzer uses 7000 pounds of steam.
• Processing for 15-30 mint with steam pressure of 60-65 psig (Pounds
per square inches gauge) set on pressure gauge.
• The temperature of hydrolyzer is 140°C.
• Feather meal quality depends on the hydrolysis time, temperature,
pressure.
• If CP = Less than 75% in final product, it means Hydrolization was
incomplete & protein quality was reduced.

11. 4- Dewatering Press:
• Automated pressure choke is installed with it which will maintain the
pressure to dewater the hydrolyzed feathers & will remove water by
pressing the feathers under pressure.

12. 5- Steaming & Drying:
• Steam dryer is used to dry the dewatered feathers at the temperature
of 300°F for 90-120 mint.
• There are steamed plates inside it where the feathers are dried.
• At the dryer exit temperature moves downward up to 200°F
• Then cooled at the end.

13. 6- Grinding:
• After drying the hydrolyzed feather is grounded
with the general hammer mill.

14. 7- Sieving:
• A sieve of 5mm size is used to sieve feather meal after grinding. If the size
of some feathers is still over 5mm, those are grinded & sieved again.
• 8- Packing:
• The final product is then packed into 25 or 50Kg bags.
• 9- Storage:
• Stored product is kept in a clean, dry, cool environment at room
temperature. Avoid direct sunlight also

15. PROCESSING DIAGRAM:

16. Nutritive Profile
• Moisture= 7-8%
• DM = 92-93%
• Fat= 11-12%
• CP= 85%
• CF= 0.3-0.5%

17. Functions of Feather Meal:
• Improve the protein and amino acid nutrition in animal.
• It contains Glutamic acid, which can adjust the taste and flavor of
feed to promote the appetite of animals. Glutamic acid is an amino
acid.
• Enhance the utilization rate of feed. It contains rich and various free
amino acids which can be absorbed and digested by animals very
quickly and completely

18. Some Important points:
• Hydrolyzed feather meal is a good source of natural protein for most animal diets.
• Feathers are made by an element known as keratin (a type of protein)
• Keratin has same characteristics as of cellulose which the starch.
• Hydrolyzed feather meal can be used up to maximum 8% of the poultry diets, over this
limit it may cause amino acid imbalance & rancidity along with poor palatability.
• With the rising cost of fish meal, hydrolyzed feather meal is a valuable alternative,
especially in high protein and energy diets.
• By his Hydrolization processing of feathers, 1000 Kg feathers are converted into almost
450 Kg feather meal.
• In Pakistan, feathers of broiler are used, while in Europe Turkey’s, Hen’s & of other birds
too.