188 DESCRIPTION OF FEEDING STUFFS 
II, BREWERY AND DISTILLERY FEEDS 
The main feeds of this class met with in the trade are wet and 
dried brewers’ grains, malt sprouts, and dried distillers’ grains. The 
first three feeds are essentially barley products, while the last feed 
is made from mixed grains, largely rye and corn. 
Brewers’ grains are the by-product obtained in the manu- 
facture of beer. The barley is steeped in warm water and held 
at a warm temperature until it begins to sprout; by this process 
the starch content in the grain is converted into sugar (imaltose), 
through the action of the ferment diastase found in barley. When 
the malted barley contains a maximum amount of sugar it is quickly 
dried. The tiny dry sprouts are then separated and form the feed 
called malt sprouts, while the remaining dried grains make what 
is known as malt. This is treated with large quantities of water 
to extract the sugar, ash, and other soluble components; the ex- 
tracted malt makes wet brewers’ grains, and these, on drying in 
vacuum, are changed into dried brewers’ grains. 
On account of their large water content (70 to 80 per cent), 
the wet. brewers’ grains must be fed in the vicinity of breweries and 
within a short time after they have been made. As the starch of 
the barley has been largely removed by the processes of malting and 
brewing, the brewers’ grains are considerably richer in protein than 
the original grain and may be considered fully as valuable a feed 
for farm animals as these. Their digestibility is somewhat lower 
than that of barley, for reasons easily seen; but fed either wet or 
dry, the brewers’ grains form a valuable feed for farm animals, 
wet grains being especially adapted for milch cows, brood sows, and 
fattening swine, and dried grains for cattle and horses. When fed 
in a sound, fresh condition and in moderate quantities, say twenty 
to thirty pounds per head daily, with dry roughage and concentrates, 
wet brewers’ grains make an excellent feed for dairy cows, and can 
often be contracted for from local breweries at a low price; they may 
be considered worth about one-fourth as much as the dried grains 
for feeding stock. 
Brewers’ grains have been brought into disrepute by being fed 
in excessive quantities, without dry roughage and under unsanitary 
conditions, and their use as a stock feed under such conditions is. 
prohibited in most States. When the wet grains are fed to dairy 
cows, care must be taken to keep the mangers and stable scrupu- 
lously clean, so as,to avoid filthy conditions and foul odors around 
