Hay Meal

meal obtained from high-quality hay that has been dried on frames or in drying barns with good ventilation, chopped up by a straw cutter, and mashed by general-purpose mills, hammer mills, or grain mills.

The quality of the hay meal depends on the species of grass, the time of its harvest, and the drying method. The best hay meal is made from leguminous herbs cut during budding or at the onset of flowering. Legume-cereal and legume-cereal-forb mixtures can be used in hay meal. One hundred kg of clover-meal contains 70.2 feed units and 8.3 kg of digestible protein; 100 kg of hay meal made from a vetch-oats mixture contains 65.7 feed units and 9.7 kg of digestible protein. Hay meal is rich in carotene, containing 100–150 mg per kg. Hay meal is used during the winter as a diet supplement for hogs and poultry; less frequently, it is fed to cattle as a source of complete protein and vitamins. It is fed in loose, briquette, and granule form.