By Shelby Shank
Field Editor

The soy checkoff collaborated with animal nutritionists to bring additional value opportunities for U.S. soybeans that benefits both animal agriculture and farmers.

Industry leaders came together as part of the checkoff’s Animal Nutrition Working Group to advise research investments with soybean farmers in mind.

The United Soybean Board’s (USB) new strategic plan consists of three priorities for soybean meal—overall nutrient composition, improved measurement of anti-nutritional factors and resulting benefits to animal production, performance and health.

“Animal nutritionists formulate feed based on digestible amino acids and net energy content, as well as best cost,” said R. Dean Boyd, adjunct professor of nutrition at Iowa State and North Carolina State universities and a member of the working group. “On the other hand, farmers can make more income by maximizing yield. Over time, this has led to seed varieties that are high yielding but slowly declined in crude protein concentration. This is a global problem that USB is actively working on to correct and highlight for other partners in the value chain.”

The working group’s team of nutritionists examined how soybean meals are properly used beyond protein content as soybean meal continues to be the standard for all other protein feedstuffs. This research impacts the poultry, pig, dairy and aquaculture sectors.

“Our hope is to improve awareness and understanding of U.S. soybean meal’s benefits to overall animal health and encourage a shift toward total value-based ingredient decisions on the production and processing side of the supply chain,” said Mamduh Sifri, Sifri Solutions LLC, retired director of poultry nutrition at ADM and a member of the working group.

Studies supported by the checkoff reveal that elevated nutrient content can enhance animal well-being, optimize feed efficiency and increase the value of soybean meals.

Collaboration between USB and the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research in The Soybean Nutrition Enhancement Project united cutting-edge technologies and specialized knowledge in areas such as breeding, genomics, physiology, agronomy, food and nutritional sciences, and engineering. With the primary objective to enhance the protein and amino acid composition of soybeans, ultimately boosting the financial gains for soybean farmers and the broader U.S. soybean sector.

Additional studies validate a clear economic benefit, establishing a direct and favorable correlation between soybean meal and enhanced performance and efficiency in pigs, broilers and laying hens. These investigations have determined that soybean meal offers supplementary nutritional elements, exhibiting antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties that mitigate the adverse effects of swine health issues.

Research also found increasing soybean meal crude protein by 1% increase soybean meal value by $10.27 for swine and $12.62 for poultry per metric ton of complete feed.

In the U.S., animals consumed $16.6 billion in soybean meal value in the 2021-22 marketing year. Animal agriculture’s strong and growing demand for U.S. soybean meal ensures reliability as the checkoff’s most vital customer and partner for U.S. soybean farmers.

“As global demand for nutritious, sustainable animal protein continues to rise, the checkoff will continue to prioritize research that ensures we deliver a comprehensive and valuable product to the animal agriculture industry,” said Keenan McRoberts, vice president of strategic alignment for USB. “We will work with nutritionists and other animal scientists from pertinent disciplines to communicate and activate market incentives for U.S. soy around product value, which extends to health benefits, sustainability benefits and other factors beyond cost and crude protein.”

For more information about the soy checkoff and uses of soybeans, visit unitedsoybean.org.