Engormix.com / Poultry Industry / Poultry nutrition - Other additives

Measurement of the nutrient and energy contents of feedstuffs: Is the adoption of the latest approaches to analysis overdue?

Published: July 13, 2026

Summary

Introduction Poultry scientists have long discussed and debated how the energy values of feed ingredients should be expressed (Zuidhof 2019). Pesti (2024) suggested that it is time for a paradigm shift in the way feed ingredient nutrient contents are described, and labeled the new categories collectively the Armidale method (see Fig. 1 for examples). He also proposed expanding the net energy (...

Related topics:

#Energy in poultry diets

#Amino acids in poultry nutrition

#Poultry nutrition - Other additives

#Feed formulation

#Feedstuffs

Authors:

Gene Pesti

University of Georgia

Influencers who recommended :

Luis Fernando Vergamini Luna

2Recommendations

6Comments

285Views

Recommend

Comment

Luis Fernando Vergamini Luna

Opta Alimentos e Insumos

22 de julio de 2026

An inspiring article, Dr. Pesti; I often wonder how to integrate the new concepts regarding soluble and insoluble fiber—and the relationship between them—into the context of more precise energy valuation.
Likewise, the correlations between metabolizable energy, net energy, and daily amino acid deposition during animal growth should help identify efficiency gains related to thermal comfort.

Recommend

Gene Pesti

University of Georgia

21 de agosto de 2026

@Luis Fernando Vergamini Luna Thank you. I also wonder about the effects of starch forms. In particular, is starch form responsible for peanut meal making incredible pellets compared to other protein sources? And I'm glad you said thermal comfort zone and not thermal neutral zone. Animals are always loosing heat to their environments as long as their body temperature is less than room temperature. They may expend some energy to keep their body temperature from raising, but that is another phenomenon. The warmer birds are kept, the less feed they will need to maintain their body temperatures until the point where they must use feed energy to cool themselves.

Recommend

Kees Geerse

F2CARE

21 de agosto de 2026

Great article but it is essential to report in the Armidale method the recommended analytical method for starch analysis. The traditional Ewers method reveals a lot of artefact values especially in non-cereal grains. The measured starch content will impact a lot of other calculated nutrients, including energy

Recommend

Gene Pesti

University of Georgia

21 de agosto de 2026

@Kees Geerse Yes, definitely. Many aspects of modern chemical techniques need discussion on the best way forward, especially starch.

Recommend