The nutritive value for ruminants of thin stillage and distillers' grains derived from wheat, rye, triticale and barley

A study was conducted to determine nutrient degradabilities of thin stillag es and distillers' grains derived from wheat-, rye-, triticale- and barley- based ethanol production. In vitro protein degradabilities of wheat, rye, t riticale and barley thin stillages were determined using a protease enzyme assay. One ruminally fistulated cow was used to determine ruminal nutrient degradabilities for wheat, rye, triticale and barley distillers' grains. Re sults of the ill vitro study showed that the soluble protein fraction was h ighest for rye thin stillage and lowest for barley thin stillage. The degra dation rate of the slowly degradable protein fraction was higher for wheat and triticale thin stillage than rye thin stillage and was higher for rye t han barley thin stillage. Effective degradability of crude protein followed the order rye (659 g kg(-1)) > triticale (632 g kg(-1)) > wheat (608 g kg( -1)) > barley (482 g kg(-1)) thin stillage. Ruminal degradability of dry ma tter was highest for rye and lowest for barley distillers' grains. Ruminal degradability of dry matter was also higher for wheat than triticale distil lers' grains. Crude protein from barley distillers' grains had a lower rumi nal degradability relative to crude protein from wheat and rye distillers' grains. Ruminal degradability of neutral detergent fibre was highest for ry e distillers' grains (470 g kg(-1)), intermediate for wheat and triticale d istillers' grains (average 445 g kg(-1)) and lowest for barley distillers' grains (342 g kg(-1)). It was concluded that thin stillage and distillers' grains derived from barley had a lower nutritive value for ruminants compar ed with those derived from wheat, rye and triticale. (C) 2000 Society of Ch emical Industry.