Rice bran constitutes about 10% of brown rice and is used as an animal
feed. There are 40-45 million tonnes of rice bran produced annually,
mainly in the Far East and South-east Asia. In these areas hull adulte
ration can occur, reducting the quality of the bran. This can now be d
etected by a simple colormetric method. Rancidity is a major problem d
ue to the high oil content of the bran. Rapid hydrolysis of the oil is
followed by oxidation with the changes being accelerated in warm, hum
id conditions. The effects on nutritive value and acceptability are un
clear. An analysis of Australian produced rice bran (on a dry matter b
asis) gives a mean crude protein concentration of 150 g/kg, ether extr
act of 220 g/kg and neutral detergent fibre of 220 g/kg. The amino aci
d profile is generally superior to that of cereal grains. Digestibilit
y of the oil is much less in young chickens than in adult birds result
ing in a 28-35% lower metabolizable energy (ME) depending on cultivar.
Equations for predicting the ME of rice bran for birds at different a
ges, and chemical components from rice hull content of rice bran are g
iven. Digestibility of amino acids in rice bran is also lower for youn
g chickens than adult birds. Inclusion of rice bran in chicken diets i
n excess of 20% frequently depresses growth, but higher levels can be
tolerated by ducklings. Results with ducklings suggest that the compos
ition of the basal diet to some extent influences the response of bird
s when rice bran is included in the diet. The inclusion of animal prot
ein elicits an improved performance compared with that of an all-veget
able based diet. Defatted rice bran (DFRB) gives the same performance
as full fat bran when equalized for ME. Laying birds can tolerate high
levels of rice bran. Although some reports indicate successful inclus
ion of well above 600 g/kg, a practical upper limit of 450 g/kg seems
to be accepted. Defatted rice bran at 250 g/kg diet resulted in leg pr
oblems, increased mortality and reduced egg output. Shell grit allevia
ted the problem. So far, attempts to improve the nutritive value of ri
ce bran through addition of feed enzymes have had limited success. Fee
d phytase has been successful in releasing phosphorus from phytate in
rice bran which is present at up to 50 g/kg dry matter. Improving the
nutritional value of rice bran by heat treatment is probably not econo
mical, although extrusion cooking will stabilize the oil before extrac
tion and is used to stabilize rice bran for human food. Feed enzymes m
ay be effective when a suitable combination is found.