Barley Sprouts and the

FEEDGROW® System

Backed by Science. Built for Modern Farming.

At FEEDGROW®, we believe that better nutrition starts with better science.

Our hydroponically grown barley sprouts were independently analysed by Cornell University (New York) to evaluate their nutritional composition and feeding value for livestock.

The analysis confirms that FEEDGROW® barley sprouts provide a highly nutritious fresh feed source containing:

  • 20% Crude Protein (Dry Matter Basis)
  • 56% Soluble Protein (as a percentage of Crude Protein)
  • Valuable energy
  • Digestible fibre
  • High moisture content

The result is a fresh feed that complements existing feeding programmes while supporting efficient rumen function and animal performance.

Watch the Cornell University overview to learn more.

DOWNLOAD CORNELL UNIVERSITY REPORT

MOIST IS NOT WATER!

Understanding Moisture vs Dry Matter

Many people see that barley sprouts contain approximately 80–85% moisture and assume the feed is “mostly water.”

This is one of the biggest misconceptions about hydroponic barley sprouts.

Moisture simply refers to the natural water contained within the living plant.

It does not mean the nutrients have been diluted or replaced by water.

When laboratories such as Cornell University analyse feed, they remove the moisture first and then measure the nutrients that remain.

This remaining portion is called Dry Matter (DM).

What is Dry Matter?

Imagine placing fresh barley sprouts in an oven until every drop of water has evaporated.

Everything left behind is the Dry Matter.

That Dry Matter contains the feed’s:

  • Protein
  • Fibre
  • Energy
  • Minerals
  • Vitamins
  • Sugars

These are the nutrients your animals actually utilize.

Why Feed Analyses Use Dry Matter Basis (DMB)

Because every fresh feed contains different amounts of moisture.

For example:

  • Fresh grass contains moisture.
  • Silage contains moisture.
  • Lucerne contains moisture.
  • Barley sprouts contain moisture.

Using Dry Matter Basis (DMB) removes the water from the calculation, allowing feeds to be compared fairly and accurately. That’s why Cornell University reports the crude protein as 20% on a Dry Matter Basis rather than on a fresh-weight basis.

Why Moisture Is Actually Beneficial

Instead of being a disadvantage, moisture provides several benefits:

  • Improves animal hydration
  • Increases palatability
  • Supports rumen function
  • Delivers nutrients in a fresh living plant
  • Reduces dust compared to dry feeds

Advantages of SPROUTED Barley

  1. Regular grains fed to animals has a digestibility of 40% while sprouted grain has a digestibility of 78%
  2. The starches in regular grains cause acidosis while the sprouting process changes the starches into plant sugars and amino acids which are the building blocks of production.
  3. The starch in non-sprouted grain lowers the pH in the rumen which renders the flora ineffective and inhibits their functions.
  4. During the FEEDGROW® soaking cycle which is the first step of the sprouting process the inhibitors in the seeds is dissolved and renders more vitamins and minerals available and assimilable to the animals.
  5. Of all the grains Barley has the highest percentage crude protein of 20.4%, with sprouting 56% of the crude protein is changed to bypass protein which is immediately available for production.
  6. Barley sprouts is not just an economical feed but is very effective as well. The Barley sprouts is fed as a live plant when the fibre to nutrient relation is at its optimal advantage to the animals.
  7. Barley sprouts has the highest enzyme content of all feeds ,which enables a high digestion level This factor enables animals to digest low-grade feeds very effectively by means of
    cellulolycis.
  8. Urea and molasses syrup is usually included in low-grade feed rations to break down the feed which is not necessary when feeding in combination with barley sprouts.
  9. The Barley sprouts is a soft and high moisture content feed and will totally digest in the rumen .We strongly advice that you feed some roughage with the barley sprouts to enable rumination and to transport the feed through to the lower intestines where the nutrients gets taken up into the blood stream.
  10. The highest nutrition value of sprouts is situated in the germinated seed and root mass while the green sprouts contain most of the fibre and moisture. FEEDGROW® sprouts the Barley at a lower temperature to facilitate and ensure a stronger developed root mass.
  11. Higher production is optimally realised by breaking the feeds down to volatile sugars, fatty acids, amino acids and bypass proteins. A further advantage is that there is no wastage
    whatsoever when feeding Barley sprouts.
  12. The high moisture content of the feed enables a good hydration factor. Due to this fact the animals can eat more feed and drink less water resulting in a higher production level.
  13. Production can be achieved on a profitable level without the inclusion of medicaments, ionofore and hormone stimulants which only makes the meat less palatable and is detrimental to the end users health.
  14. By feeding animals on Barley sprouts you are producing healthy organic meat with good marbling and omega 3 fats which are of the healthy fat spectrum and a premium on the meat can be negotiated with higher profits for the producer.
  15. Specially formulated probiotics like Bac -T- Grow can be given to the animals with advantages to digestion and the general health of the animals.