THE PURPOSE OF THE FEEDINGSTUFFS LAW 



The chief purpose of the feedingstuffs law is to protect the consumer against the inferior 

 products which doubtless would soon appear on the market if the trade were not under state con- 

 trol. The law is primarily a correct-labeling act. It must not be assumed by the purchaser that 

 every brand which meets the manufacturer's guarantee is a high grade feed. The Commercial 

 Feed Law does not prevent the sale of a low-grade feed if it is properly licensed and tagged, and 

 is offered for sale in compliance with the law. It would not be in the public interest to legislate 

 against the sale of the lower-grade by-products. They can be fed profitably if bought at a price 

 adjusted to their feeding value. The law does prevent an inferior feed being offered for sale as a 

 high-grade product. 



The dealer, in purchasing feed from the manufacturer, and the consumer in purchasing feed 

 from the dealer, should make the specification that the feed delivered must comply with the New 

 Hampshire Commercial Feed Law. If the feed is not registered; if the protein, fat and crude fiber 

 are not guaranteed; and if the ingredients of which the feed is composed are not plainly stated on 

 the bag or on a tag attached thereto, the purchaser is not protected by the law. He has no recourse 

 under the commercial feed law if the feed he purchases is of inferior quality. If the buyer fails to 

 assure himself that the legal requirements have been met, he accepts the feedingstuffs at his own 

 risk. 



TERMS USED IN REPORTING ANALYSIS 



The terms, PROTEIN, FAT and CRUDE FIBER appear on the label of a feedingstuff and the 

 percentage shown following each term is the minimum amount of protein and fat and the maximum 

 amount of crude fiber in the feed as guaranteed. These are determined by chemical analysis. In 

 addition it may be desirable to determine the "Moisture" and "ash" content of a feed. The sum of 

 these five determinations subtracted from 100 gives a value called the "nitrogen free extract" 

 "NFE. " The "NFE" plus the "crude fiber" gives the "carbohydrate" content. 



Brief definitions of these terms follow. 



PROTEIN: A group of complex compounds, all containing nitrogen, carbon and oxygen. In 

 certain cases sulfur, phosphorus or iron are also present. Proteins are essential for life. A 

 variety of protein is insured in a feed when the feed contains both plant and animal products. Ex- 

 tensive research has shown that by a proper combination of ingredients a feed containing the pro- 

 per proteins for growth and production can be supplied. The usual analysis simply determines 

 the total protein present. To determine the type of protein present or its particular effectiveness 

 involves complex and expensive analytical procedures. Simply stated, the protein content of a 

 feed is found by determining the total nitrogen and multiplying that value by the factor 6. 25. 



FAT: Fat is determined by extracting a dried sample of finely ground feed with ether. The 

 extract contains not only the true fat but other ether soluble substances such as carotene and chlor- 

 ophyll. These other ether soluble materials are present in very small amounts in most cases and 

 so have little effect on the actual fat content as reported. 



CRUDE FIBER: This includes the cellulose and other carbohydrates that are resistant to di- 

 gestion by the animal. For this reason we are interested in the maximum amount that is in a feed. 

 It has little or no value to the animal eating the material. * 



MOISTURE: Moisture is the "water" that is in a feed. It is determined by simply drying a 

 portion of the ground sample in an oven at a constant, controlled temperature. 



ASH: Ash is the "mineral matter" present in a feed and is found by burning a portion of the 

 sample at a temperature high enough to burn all the carbon out. For comparable results this must 

 be done under controlled conditions. 



NITROGEN- FREE EXTRACT: This result includes the more soluble carbohydrates such as 

 sugars, and these materials are valuable in animal nutrition. 



The use of drugs, growth stimulants and other special purpose additives in feeds continues 

 to increase. These materials are under very careful control by the Food and Drug Administration 

 and are thoroughly tested before release for general use. Feeds containing these substances must 

 be properly labeled showing what the additive is and the amount. 



The analysis of certain drugs in feeds has been undertaken to a greater extent than in prev- 

 ious years. This part of the work is very important from the customers standpoint and more should 

 be done as time and funds permit. The number of feeds analyzed for the ingredient listed is shown 

 below. The results are published in the table indicated in this bulletin. 



