iy6 maine agricultural experiment station. i908. 



Cottonseed Meal. 

 Analyses pages 161 to 165. 

 Cottonseed meal is a by-product from the manufacture of 

 cottonseed oil. After the cotton has been taken from the seed 

 in the cotton gin, the remaining down or "linters" and the hard 

 black seed coats or hulls are removed by machinery. The 

 remainder of the seed is cooked and the oil expressed by high 

 pressure. The resulting cottonseed cake is ground into the 

 bright, yellow cottonseed meal of commerce. 



GRADES OF COTTONSEED MEAL. 



The shippers of cottonseed meal up to about two years ago 

 guaranteed 43 per cent protein and 9 per cent fat. A large part 

 of the cottonseed meal is used for fertilizing purposes and its 

 nitrogen is guaranteed in the form of ammonia. Most of the 

 meal sold in Maine in 1907-8 was guaranteed 41 per cent protein 

 and 7 or 9 per cent fat. 



Two grades of meal, "choice and prime," were shipped from 

 the crop of 1907. The grade "extra prime" of the 1906 crop 

 was not shipped in 1907-8. 



Choice cottonseed meal is finely ground, perfectly sound and 

 sweet in odor, free from excess of lint and hulls and by analysis 

 shows nitrogen equivalent to at least 8 per cent ammonia, 

 equivalent to 41.15 per cent protein. 



Prime cottonseed meal is finely ground, of sweet odor, reason- 

 ably bright in color and by analysis contains nitrogen equivalent 

 to at least 7 per cent ammonia, equivalent to 36 per cent protein. 



Meal below prime in quality is classed as "Off" meal and 

 includes any cottonseed meal which is distinctly deficient in any 

 of the requirements of prime quality, either in color, odor, tex- 

 ture or analysis, or all. 



The hulls and cotton which should be removed from the seed 

 before it is crushed and pressed, have but little feeding value. 

 A little of these materials has always been present in the meal ; 

 with the present processes of manufacture, there is probably 

 more of these materials present than formerly. The demand 

 from feeders for cottonseed meal has so increased the value of 

 this by-product that the temptation to include as much of the 



