[dropcap style=”font-size: 70px; color: #052b51; font-family: ‘Droid Serif’, Arial, sans-serif;”] R [/dropcap] ecently we’ve been finding stones in Shandy Chaff. This was a big concern for us and our clients. We were worried about the dangers they possibly posed. We chatted to Milmac Feeds and received a comprehensive response which, we wanted to share, in the hope of sharing knowledge. Here’s what they had to say:

Stones do appear in Lucerne, hay etc from time to time. There is no easy way to detect them and no obvious and practical way to remove them (other than visually screening before each and every bag is filled). Generally stones are not dangerous as horses are natural foragers and will eat around stones without ingesting them.

 

We have discussed the issue of stones in Lucerne on many occasions with competent authorities including veterinarians and nutritionists. Whilst they all stress that it is not ideal to have stones in the feed chain it is a known occurrence .

 

We have very strict and high standards when procuring Lucerne. These include minimum protein levels, maximum moisture levels, visual appearance (due to exposure to sun, rain and wind), mould etc. Suppliers are regularly evaluated . Stones when detected are normally harvested together with the lucerne. Where possible we do not procure from areas where the ground is known to be stoney.

 

The chaffing process requires that the cut Lucerne is sieved –with the sieve hole diameter of up to 30mm to allow the chaff Lucerne to pass through it. Unfortunately stones of this size do so to!

 

Given these circumstances it is not possible to guarantee that the chaff will be free of stones –a guarantee that no Lucerne supplier can give. I have discussed this with Doctor Rissa Parker (a highly respected vet specialising in nutrition) who will contact Jan Simes and give her some further insight into the issue. I wish to stress that the chaff is of a high quality. Stones will occur from time to time despite our very best efforts to prevent this.