& zo.n- 
M S| 4rt 
<wo. / <?- <3- 7 ■ 
C 0 p* v-^ .. . . 
Mineral Content of Southern Poultry Feeds and of Other 
Feed Mixtures and their Potential Acidity and 
Potential Alkalinity 
By B. F. Kaupp, Poultry Investigator and Pathologist, 
Animal Industry Division 
INTRODUCTION 
The mineral substances which enter into the composition of fowls 
constitute the ash. These ash constituents stand in a peculiar and 
interesting relation to the living structures and the life processes of 
animals. Through experimentation, the physiologist has determined 
the effects of many of the minerals upon function and secretion which 
will be briefly reviewed under the proper heading. The ash constituents 
are also essential to the construction of the body tissues of the fowl. 
In this field the soil chemist, the agronomist, the poultryman, the 
physiologist, and the farmer all find a common ground of interest, 
as these mineral substances required by fowls come from the soil through 
the plant to the bird. 
The force feeding of fowls for growth into broilers, as well as for egg 
production, as applies to mature hens, calls for a higher percentage of 
mineral nutrients in feed stuffs than was necessary under the old 
system of less intense production. Since it is so essential that fowls be 
supplied with sufficient amounts of each mineral element, studies should 
be conducted to determine if any of the poultry feeds are deficient and, 
if they are deficient, what is essential to make good this deficiency. 
It may not be possible to exercise a selective choice of feeds which pro¬ 
vide an abundance of the various minerals for rapidity or efficiency in 
the production of growth, or eggs. 
This publication deals with broiler production alone. 
USE OF MINERALS IN THE BODY 
The importance of the mineral salts in the vital processes of the 
animal cell lies almost entirely in their physical or physico-chemical 
properties. The chemical reactions in the body, which constitute the 
physical basis of life, take place between substances in solution. It is 
by means of the electrical charges carried by the particles in solution 
that reactions are brought about. 
(•06930 
