Aside from Greg's comment on treating beans before feeding with them,
legumes tend to be around 35% protein, and chicks, growers and layers need
protein value declining form about 17 to 13% or so, so soy beans would be a
good protein lift. Generally, our birds have a great preference for variety.
They go crazy over the occasional treat of what is sold here as pigeon mix,
with a protein content around 25%, and with big variety of seeds. With some
chicken breeds, e.g. Isa Brown, you have to be careful, as high protein
diets tend to produce bird-busting big eggs. Hence my thought that the
highest value of the soy beans might be to feed them to the soil, allow them
to help strengthen fallow ground with their strong growth and nitrogen
fixing, before running the chickens through as clean-up and manuring
tractors.
Dennis
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