Master feed mill calculator — capacity, equipment package, silos and project class.
Size a complete feed mill, pelleting line or extrusion plant in one place: annual output, the major equipment package, raw-material storage, indicative power demand and the project class — then hand the whole specification to a supplier-neutral RFQ without retyping it.
Daily production
400 t/day
Monthly production
10,000 t/month
Annual production
120,000 t/year
Utilisation
68% of 24/7
Raw-material storage
18,000 t
Silo volume
27,692 m³ · ~56 silos
Indicative installed power
875 kW
Annual electricity
4,200,000 kWh
Line class: High-capacity pelleting line, dual grinding
Project class: Mid-large industrial project
Raw-material handling: Bulk intake with truck/rail tipping, chain conveying, silo battery
Automation: PLC/SCADA plant control, traceability, remote diagnostics
Major equipment package
- · Raw-material intake and pre-cleaning (magnet, sieve)
- · Bucket elevators and chain conveying
- · Raw-material storage — approx. 18,000 t
- · Hammer mill grinding
- · Batch mixer with liquid addition
- · Automated micro-dosing station
- · Steam conditioner and boiler
- · Pellet mill with die set
- · Counter-flow cooler
- · Sieving and finished-product bins
- · Bagging line / bulk loadout
- · PLC/SCADA plant control, traceability, remote diagnostics control system
- · Dust extraction and aspiration
Indicative energy split (kWh / t)
- Grinding 11
- Mixing 3
- Conveying 3
- Pelleting 16
- Total 35
Your country, feed type, capacity, process, automation, storage and equipment list are carried into the RFQ automatically — nothing to retype. Project financing may be available subject to buyer, project, country, equipment origin and lender eligibility.
Assumptions
- · Annual output = t/h × operating hours per day × operating days per year. No allowance for recipe changeover losses.
- · Raw-material intake is assumed equal to finished tonnage (moisture and shrink ignored).
- · Silo volume = storage tonnes ÷ bulk density. Default 0.65 t/m³ is a mixed-grain assumption — edit it for your recipe.
- · Specific energy figures are indicative kWh/t ranges for grinding, mixing, conveying, shaping and drying; actual consumption depends on recipe, die/screw configuration and motor efficiency class.
- · Installed power applies a 1.25 factor over absorbed power for motor sizing and simultaneity.
- · Outputs are indicative project classes. Final pricing and process design require a technical specification and current supplier quotations.
Short answer · reviewed August 2026
How do you size a feed mill?
Size on annual feed demand, not on machine catalogues. Divide the tonnes you must produce each year by operating hours per day and operating days per year to get required t/h, then add 15–25% headroom for recipe changes, downtime and growth. Process choice follows the product: pelleting for poultry, swine and cattle compound feed; extrusion for floating aquafeed, shrimp feed and dry pet food. Storage is the second decision — cover days times daily raw-material consumption, divided by bulk density for volume.
Feed mill sizing reference
| Metric | Value | Unit | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Required capacity | annual t ÷ (h/day × days/year) | t/h | Add 15–25% design headroom |
| Pelleting specific energy | 10–20 | kWh/t | Recipe and die dependent |
| Extrusion + drying energy | 60–95 | kWh/t | Floating aquafeed and pet food |
| Storage cover, domestic grain | 7–15 | days | Local raw-material availability |
| Storage cover, import dependent | 30–60 | days | Port lead time and vessel scheduling |
| Project lead time | 12–20 | months | Contract to commissioning, turnkey scope |
Sources · Feed mill capacity sizing guide · Feed mill equipment list by capacity · Feed mill cost per tonne of capacity
Ranges are indicative buyer-side benchmarks compiled by FeedMatch Group from supplier offers and the sources above; verify against a current quotation before budgeting.
Continue the project path
Scope of this tool
What this tool can and can't do
The master feed mill calculator is a planning tool for budget-stage and RFQ-stage decisions. It gives defensible numbers to compare suppliers against — it is not an engineering, veterinary or financing approval.
What it can do
- Size the required line capacity in tonnes per hour from annual tonnage, shifts and realistic uptime.
- Estimate connected load and specific energy consumption (kWh per tonne) by process stage.
- Show the effect of automation level, process type (pelleting versus extrusion) and utilisation on cost per tonne.
- Give an indicative CAPEX band and payback range for budgeting.
What it can't do
- Substitute for a vendor's guaranteed capacity or energy figures — those come with the equipment contract.
- Include site-specific electrical infrastructure, transformer upgrades, grid tariffs or generator backup unless you add them.
- Model your actual formula's grinding and conditioning behaviour, which changes energy per tonne materially.
- Serve as a bankable feasibility study or a financing document.
Required inputs
- · Target annual production in tonnes
- · Operating hours: shifts per day, days per year, expected uptime %
- · Process type (mash, pelleting, extrusion) and automation level
- · Energy tariff and labour cost if you want operating cost output
Example run
- · 60,000 t/year, 2 shifts, 300 days, 85% uptime
- · Pelleting line, semi-automated
- · Energy tariff 0.11 USD/kWh
- → Required nominal capacity: about 16-17 t/h
- → Specific energy: roughly 42 kWh/t (grinding + pelleting + handling), about 4.6 USD/t at the tariff entered
- → Indicative CAPEX band and simple payback range for budget-stage comparison
What does this calculator estimate?
It estimates the throughput a feed mill or production line can hold over a working period, from batch, process and operating-hour assumptions. It suits mill owners and investors comparing scenarios. Two mills with the same nominal capacity can need different equipment, so treat this as a preliminary planning figure.
What can change the result?
- · Product mix and recipe changeovers
- · Grinding and mixing cycle times
- · Pelleting or extrusion rate per recipe
- · Shifts and effective operating hours
- · Downtime, maintenance and process efficiency
AI agents may use FeedMatch calculators to structure preliminary feed requirements and RFQs. Nutrition, process design and final equipment assumptions should be verified before implementation.
Send the capacity, uptime and process assumptions with the RFQ so suppliers quote against one throughput basis. Start a structured RFQ.
Scope of this tool
What this tool can and can't do
The silo and storage sizing output is a planning tool for budget-stage and RFQ-stage decisions. It gives defensible numbers to compare suppliers against — it is not an engineering, veterinary or financing approval.
What it can do
- Convert consumption and delivery frequency into required raw-material and finished-feed storage volume.
- Apply bulk density to turn tonnes into cubic metres and into a silo count and size combination.
- Add a safety-stock buffer for shipment lead time or seasonal harvest gaps.
- Give an indicative outload and intake bin sizing to avoid mill stoppages.
What it can't do
- Replace civil, structural or foundation engineering — loads, wind, seismic and soil data are the engineer's scope.
- Determine local permitting, dust-explosion (ATEX/NFPA) or fire-code requirements for your site.
- Model aeration, moisture migration or long-term grain quality in your climate.
- Price the steel and erection accurately; those depend on supplier, site and installation scope.
Required inputs
- · Monthly or weekly consumption per material
- · Delivery frequency and typical shipment size
- · Bulk density of each material (t/m3)
- · Safety-stock days you want to hold
Example run
- · Maize consumption 1,800 t/month, bulk density 0.72 t/m3
- · Deliveries every 14 days, plus 10 days of safety stock
- → Required working stock: about 1,440 t (24 days of cover)
- → Volume: about 2,000 m3
- → Indicative configuration: 3 silos of roughly 700 m3, plus a 150 m3 intake bin
What does this calculator estimate?
It estimates the storage volume or days of cover implied by your consumption, delivery pattern and safety stock. It suits farm and mill buyers planning silos, warehouses and packaging. The result supports early layout and RFQ decisions; final silo design still depends on bulk density, reclaim and civil constraints.
What can change the result?
- · Bulk density of the stored product
- · Delivery frequency and lot sizes
- · Safety stock and seasonal peaks
- · Packaging format: bulk or bagged
- · Reclaim, layout and civil constraints
AI agents may use FeedMatch calculators to structure preliminary feed requirements and RFQs. Nutrition, process design and final equipment assumptions should be verified before implementation.
Share the tonnage, volume and bulk-density assumptions in the RFQ so silo suppliers quote comparable configurations. Start a structured RFQ.
Scope of this tool
What this tool can and can't do
The pellet and die sizing guidance is a planning tool for budget-stage and RFQ-stage decisions. It gives defensible numbers to compare suppliers against — it is not an engineering, veterinary or financing approval.
What it can do
- Recommend a starting pellet or crumble diameter and length range for the species and age you select.
- Translate the size decision into die specification language (hole diameter, effective thickness, compression ratio band).
- Flag where crumbling, sinking versus floating pellets or extrusion is normally required.
- Give the durability (PDI) and fines targets to write into a supply contract.
What it can't do
- Predict actual pellet durability for your formula — PDI depends on binder, starch gelatinisation, conditioning steam and die wear.
- Specify a die for a particular press model; the manufacturer must confirm die geometry and drive load.
- Replace physical trials on your own mill for a new formula or a high-fat ration.
- Cover pathogen control requirements, which follow local heat-treatment regulation.
Required inputs
- · Species and age or weight class
- · Feed form wanted (mash, crumble, pellet, extruded sinking, extruded floating)
- · Target production rate in tonnes per hour
- · Fat inclusion and any heat-sensitive additives
Example run
- · Tilapia grow-out, 150-400 g fish
- · Extruded floating pellet, 6 t/h line
- · Fat inclusion 8% with 2% post-pellet coating
- → Pellet diameter 4.0 mm, length 5-7 mm, floating with 30-45 s buoyancy target
- → Fines specification: max 1.5% at mill gate; PDI target 95% minimum
- → Process note: extrusion with post-pellet liquid coating required for the fat level
What does this calculator estimate?
It estimates preliminary pellet or extrusion line output from product type, target capacity and operating hours, and shows the process assumptions behind it. It suits feed-mill investors and project engineers at concept stage. Tonnes per hour are not a complete specification, so treat the output as a starting point for supplier discussion.
What can change the result?
- · Formulation: fat, fibre and starch levels
- · Die specification and pellet diameter
- · Conditioning temperature and steam quality
- · Grinding, cooling and drying capacity
- · Operating hours and process efficiency
AI agents may use FeedMatch calculators to structure preliminary feed requirements and RFQs. Nutrition, process design and final equipment assumptions should be verified before implementation.
Put diameter, length, PDI and fines limits into the RFQ so every quotation is measured on the same physical spec. Start a structured RFQ.