What factors affect the quality and yield of extruded fish feed?

 

 

Many feed mills use advanced extruders, yet they still can't produce qualified extruded fish feed-either the pellets fall apart as soon as they're soaked (poor quality), or the machines frequently clog (low output). The problem may actually lie in the raw materials: high moisture content in corn causes it to stick to the screw, and coarse fishmeal particles lead to uneven mixing. These seemingly insignificant raw material characteristics are precisely the "hidden killers" affecting both quality and yield.

 

 

Excessive Moisture Content (above 15%): Poor Quality, Low Yield

Impact on Quality: Wet raw materials such as corn and soybean meal will stick to the extruder screw and barrel walls, forming clumps. This results in uneven pellet formation (some pellets are coarse, some fine), and excessive starch gelatinization, causing the pellets to crumble easily when soaked (water resistance reduced from 2 hours to 1 hour).

 

Impact on Yield: Wet materials will clog the feed inlet and die holes, requiring a shutdown for cleaning every 2 hours on average. This reduces effective production time by 3-4 hours per day. A line that could produce 10 tons per day may only produce 7 tons.

 

Solution: Use a hot air dryer to reduce the moisture content of the raw materials to 12%-14% (a handful of raw material should easily crumble when squeezed). Sample the raw materials with a moisture meter before starting the machine each day; any substandard raw materials should not be allowed into the production line.

 

 

 Too low moisture content (below 11%): Brittle texture, high waste.

Impact on quality: If the raw material is too dry, starch gelatinization is insufficient during extrusion, resulting in low particle hardness (crushing easily by hand). During transportation and feeding, the breakage rate increases from 5% to 15%, leaving little for fish and shrimp to consume.

 

Impact on output: Excessive dry material dust easily flies around the feed inlet, causing raw material waste (0.3-0.5 tons wasted daily). The dust also clogs the extruder's exhaust vents, affecting heat dissipation and indirectly reducing production capacity.

 

Solution: Add a small amount of water during the raw material mixing process, stirring continuously to ensure uniform moisture content and avoid localized over-wetting.

 

 

 

Temperature Adjustment: High Temperature for Floating Material, Low Temperature for Sinking Material

 

1. Floating Material: The extruder barrel has a 3-section temperature control: the first section is 80-100℃ (raw material preheating), the middle section is 120-140℃ (starch gelatinization), and the last section is 140-160℃ (sufficient gas production). If the temperature is too low (below 120℃), the starch gelatinization is insufficient, the gas production is low, and the material will sink.

 

2. Sinking Material: The pellet mill barrel temperature is controlled at 60-80℃, just enough to soften the raw material (for example, fishmeal is easier to compact after softening), without allowing the starch to gelatinize and produce gas. If the temperature is too high (above 90℃), the raw material will produce slight gas, and the material may float, becoming a "semi-floating, semi-sinking material".

 

 

Particle size too coarse (above 60 mesh, such as large corn kernels): Poor quality, reduced yield

Impact on quality: Coarse particles cannot be fully mixed with other raw materials, resulting in uneven nutrient distribution (some particles have more fishmeal, some less). Coarse particles can also scratch the extruder die, causing burrs on the particle surface and reduced water resistance.

 

Impact on yield: Coarse particles increase screw wear, increasing the extruder load and necessitating a reduction in speed (from 400 rpm to 300 rpm), directly decreasing capacity by 25%.

 

Solution: Replace with a crusher using an 80-mesh screen to ensure that coarse particles do not exceed 5% after crushing. Use a vibrating screen to remove substandard coarse material after crushing.

 

 

Particle size too fine (below 120 mesh, as fine as flour): Soft quality, stable output but high waste.

Impact on quality: Fine powder is too light and easily "blown up" by the airflow generated by the screw rotation during extrusion, resulting in air bubbles inside the particles and reduced hardness (suitable for small fish fry, but prone to breakage in adult fish feed);

 

Impact on output: Fine powder has poor flowability and unstable feeding speed. Although it won't frequently clog the machine, it will cause the raw material to bridge in the feed hopper (forming voids), requiring frequent manual stirring, indirectly affecting production capacity;

 

Solution: When producing adult fish feed, mix fine powder and coarse powder in a 7:3 ratio to balance the particle size, ensuring compact particles while avoiding dust waste.

 

 

 

 

MIKIM boasts extensive experience in poultry feed pellet production lines, significantly reducing the incidence of poultry diseases. Its equipment is not only widely used across various industries domestically but also exported to Southeast Asia, Europe, Africa, and South America, earning a high reputation internationally. This global presence not only demonstrates the adaptability and competitiveness of its products, but also demonstrates the company's experience in adapting to diverse market standards and logistics conditions, enabling it to provide a stable supply chain for its overseas customers. Whether serving large domestic farms or cross-border feed companies, MIKIM can leverage its global service network to ensure a consistent, high-quality experience.

 

For more information on process flow design, equipment layout, factory construction plans, individual equipment pricing, or turnkey project proposals, please feel free to contact us!!!

 

 

 

1. What is the price of the fish feed extruder pellet feed production ?

The price ranges from approximately $11,000-$41,000

2. Do you provide maintenance services for your customers?
Yes, we offer comprehensive after-sales maintenance services to our customers.

 

 

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