Laying hen feed: buying against cost per dozen, not price per tonne
Laying hen feed is the largest and longest feed commitment in egg production, typically 42–48 kg per hen housed over a 52-week cycle. Because feed is the majority of egg cost, buyers compare offers on feed cost per dozen, not on price per tonne alone.
Who buys at this stage
- Egg producers contracting an annual layer feed volume with a delivery schedule
- Buyers comparing two mills on cost per dozen rather than price per tonne
- Operations sizing silos and delivery cadence for a large laying flock
Form and packaging
- Mash, crumble or pellet, stated clearly with particle-size expectations
- Bulk delivery at commercial scale; bagged for smaller or multi-site flocks
- Vehicle access, tipping or blowing capability at each house
Commercial feed types
Layer mash
Common commercial form; particle size and calcium source presentation are specification points.
Layer crumble or pellet
Used where the feeding system suits it; wastage behaviour differs from mash.
Phase-specific layer diets
Where the programme changes diet through the cycle, price each phase as its own line.
What the RFQ must specify
- Hens housed, laying cycle length and expected average lay rate
- Daily intake assumption and monthly tonnage that follows from it
- Form and particle-size requirement
- Phase changes during the cycle, if any
- Quantity per shipment and committed annual volume
- Delivery point, port and preferred Incoterm
- Delivery schedule and acceptable lead time
- Packaging and pallet or bulk handling constraints
- Certifications and documents required with each shipment
- Currency, price basis and how long the price must hold
What moves the cost
- Cereal and soybean meal prices, the bulk of the formula
- Calcium source and premix cost
- Delivery frequency and distance
- Daily intake, which moves tonnage as much as price moves cost
- Average lay rate, which sets the denominator in cost per dozen
Storage and shelf life
- Size silos around delivery size plus a buffer, not monthly volume
- Mash segregates in storage and handling — plan for it
- Keep turnover fast in hot, humid conditions
Certifications and documents to ask for
- GMP+ B1 / FAMI-QS or an equivalent feed safety scheme
- HACCP plan and the mill's own quality manual
- Certificate of analysis per batch (proximate analysis, moisture)
- Mycotoxin, salmonella and heavy-metal testing regime
- Traceability of raw materials and batch numbering
- Non-GMO, halal or organic certification where your market requires it
- Country-specific feed registration and import documentation
Supplier evaluation checklist
- Installed capacity against your monthly tonnage, not just the annual total
- Evidence of supplying the same stage and pellet form commercially
- Batch consistency record and how out-of-spec batches are handled
- Lead time from order to delivery, and behaviour during raw-material volatility
- Price basis: fixed, indexed to a named raw material, or reviewed periodically
- Delivery capability to your point, Incoterm and vehicle or vessel constraints
- Technical support available on-site and the escalation route when results slip
Size the volume first
Other layers stages
Questions buyers ask
How do I compare two layer feed offers?
How much feed does a laying flock need per month?
Does FeedMatch guarantee lay rate or egg cost?
How the request is handled
You submit the requirement, a person at FeedMatch reviews it, and only then are qualified suppliers approached on your behalf. Offers come back normalised to the same delivered basis so they can actually be compared. No supplier receives your details automatically and no introduction happens without that review.
Submit a feed project requestFeedMatch Group is an independent, supplier-neutral procurement platform. We are not a feed manufacturer, trader, nutritionist, veterinarian or lender, and we do not guarantee prices, supply, FCR or animal performance. Figures on this page are indicative commercial planning ranges, not specifications. Every requirement is reviewed by a person before any supplier is approached, and no supplier receives your details automatically. Last reviewed 16 September 2026.