Budget feeds vs branded names

Achinghips

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Do you get what you pay for or are we paying the extra for nutritionists, helplines' and advertising?

Edited, sorry. it says video .... Typing without my glasses on
 
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Theocat

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Ultimately, the cost of advertising, websites, nutritionists and helplines comes out of the sale price, so yes, you're paying for it!

But - depending on your needs - brands might also be able to offer niche feeds or particular ingredients or quality that you won't get with the budget versions.

If all you need is a basic low calorie nut, a budget feed will be as good as a brand name. If you genuinely need a bells-and-whistles high fat and fibre, low starch competition feed, you'll need to go for a brand. I suspect far more horses will do well on a budget brand than owners believe. Conversely, if owners understand exactly what they're paying for, it does the horse no harm at all if the owner chooses to pay more than they need to for branded stuff!
 

Shay

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To an extent you are paying for advertising etc. But sometimes you are also paying for the sourcing of ingredients and guaranteed analysis. Many branded feeds participate in the NOPS scheme so competition riders can be sure there are no naturally occurring prohibited substances present. The budget feeds I have looked at only have a very basic nutritional analysis on them - and being cynical I'm not sure how accurate they are. Food labeling laws don't apply to animal feed! But theocat is absolutely right - many horses would do as well, if not better, on the basic feed than on a super flashy expensive one.
 

MuddyMonster

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I pay for a more expensive feed, as I don't want to feed all the chemicals that go into 'enhancing' other options. My horse is barefoot, so a good diet is important.

I wouldn't eat at McDonalds every day for my own health, so not prepared to feed my horse the equivalent daily!
 

tallyho!

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Depends what you mean by "budget feed" vs "branded". Some budget feeds are exactly the same as branded ones but they don't spend money on frills. E.g. mole valley/countrywide own brands do quite well matching the popular brands.... if sweet feeds are your thing.

If you're talking about specialist branded feeds such as pre-mixes like the ones Saracen do for example, well they spend lots on research so you'd expect to pay more. I do rate them for quality. Any company that spends money on research and development perks my interest. Companies that just do marketing and cover everything in molglo, are not worth it.
 

Theocat

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I pay for a more expensive feed, as I don't want to feed all the chemicals that go into 'enhancing' other options. My horse is barefoot, so a good diet is important.

I wouldn't eat at McDonalds every day for my own health, so not prepared to feed my horse the equivalent daily!

I completely get the point, but I'm not sure a cheap budget feed is a McDonald's equivalent - we're probably more in the territory of posh vs cheap baked beans. Nasty sugary feeds are junk, but there isn't a direct correlation with cheap.
 

Peter7917

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I get given feed for free which will vary greatly between cheap stuff and more expensive brands. I notice absolutely no difference in my horses when I change from one to the other.
 

ihatework

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A lot of the budget feeds are produced by the ‘named’ manufacturers anyway.
They are cheaper for a number of reasons
Packaging
Branding
Advertising
‘Nice to haves’ like paying for reps to come weigh/nutritional helplines etc
They may have a slightly lower spec on vit/min/probiotics

For the bulk of horses who are fine on standard cubes/mixes then I have no doubt that budget brand are a sensible option.

The big issue for me is quality control and NOPs compliance - critical if you are competing under rules
 

ponios

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I have had my tb for 14 years, for first 12 years I fed baileys no 4 conditioning cubes and dengie alfa-a original. 2 years ago I switched to mole valley equivalent and noticed no difference at all. I have now switched back to the dengie alfa-a as kept finding chunks of branch in the molevalley version but kept with the mole valley conditioning cubes.

When I switched I did a bit of research and found that the mole valley cubes came from a big brand manufacturer- I cant remember which now.
 

criso

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I completely get the point, but I'm not sure a cheap budget feed is a McDonald's equivalent - we're probably more in the territory of posh vs cheap baked beans. Nasty sugary feeds are junk, but there isn't a direct correlation with cheap.

I see it as comparable to cheap versus expensive ready meals. Yes there is a certain amount of marketing and packaging but higher quality ingredients or higher proportions of the expensive ingredients will push the price up too.
 

honetpot

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It depends why you are feeding and do you really need the competition compliance, which unless you are competing at a high level where the animal is likely to be tested its less likely to be needed.
UK produced feeds have to comply with strict controls for pesticides and herbicides, so your local feed company will of often buy from local sources, which will be good enough for you to eat. A large company may be importing its ingredients , which in its self is not a bad thing as long as the paperwork is in order and they are getting what they paid for.
Lets face it we mostly buy hay from local farmers, it forms the biggest part of leisure horses diet, and its good enough for the leisure horse. How many people actually need to give their horse extra feed. Really, not a lot. A lot of low energy feeds are processed pelleted straw, buy a bale of straw.

My rant is can people learn what the DE/calories there are in the feed they are giving per kg.!!!
A kg of alfalfa my have a DE/calories 10Mj/kg
A high fibre nut may have the same 10MJ/kg , so if you feed a kg of each the horse should get the same energy from it.
BUT , the kg of chaff will have more volume, just because the bucket looks fuller its not getting more.
I get so fed up with people saying my horse is losing weight I have put on XYZ chaff and it losing weight. Yes, because the bucket is half full of air.
If you want to pay extra money for chopped feed fine, but give the b***gers enough. The pretty picture on the bag does not keep them warm. Alternatively support you local farmer and feed them an extra bale of hay.
 

supsup

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I think the biggest difference is probably that the budget brands offer less choice and fewer "specialist" options. If you compare like for like (e.g. standard molassed chaff), the difference between brand and budget is probably going to be small. If you're looking for something special (no/low sugar, non-molasses, without ingredient xyz), then you're more likely to find it with a brand that offers a wider choice.
It is quite obvious that all brands, in an effort to sell their own product, will try to emphasise how their particular version differs from their competitors. I think it's down to the owner/buyer to decide whether those differences are worth the higher price. Chaff coated with linseed oil rather than rapeseed oil? Sugar level in grass chaff 10% or 8%? For most horses who get a handful or two of chaff thrown in the bucket, it likely doesn't matter. The nice thing is, we have the choice!
 

HeyMich

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I am currently researching a new feeding regime for my mare (scoped positive for ulcers but is a very good doer - low cal diet but need added ulcer-friendly bits and bobs) and have e-mailed all the feed companies I can think of. Funnily enough, it's the more pricey brands that are quicker to reply to my queries, and also the pricier ones that will gladly say their product is not suitable, if that is the case! It's the cheaper brands that push their products, even if not 100% suitable. Quite telling I think!
 

honetpot

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Its nice for people to have choice, if they understand the choices they are making.
|If the DE Mj/kg was on the front of the bag with ingredients listed in order like they do on human food there may be a chance, but I have found most people have no idea what they are feeding. Usually straw, pelleted hay, and grain by products and paying £££ for the privilege.
 

tallyho!

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I am currently researching a new feeding regime for my mare (scoped positive for ulcers but is a very good doer - low cal diet but need added ulcer-friendly bits and bobs) and have e-mailed all the feed companies I can think of. Funnily enough, it's the more pricey brands that are quicker to reply to my queries, and also the pricier ones that will gladly say their product is not suitable, if that is the case! It's the cheaper brands that push their products, even if not 100% suitable. Quite telling I think!

You probably should go back to straights rather than enquiring about premixes from these companies. What you may find is that companies that sell straights are less "popular" but have what you want in terms of purity, quality and without unnecessary additives that exacerbate ulcers.

Furthermore, you may find that one horse may react to particular ingredients which are popular in feeds marketed as suitable. Ulcers were a learning curve for me many years ago and started me on the road of going back to high quality straight feeds - which work out cheaper in the long run .

I hope you find something suitable though, the more popular companies are starting to "manufacture" more gut friendly feeds though and I'm pleased to see that molasses free options are available but many still don't address sugar/starch as the main cause.
 

Orangehorse

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Agree. For an ordinary horse doing an ordinary job then most will do pretty well on grass or hay mostly with just a bit of feed added, and a bit more if they are working harder.

I saw the owner of the local point to point yard loading up with the local feed merchant's budget pony nuts so I thought if its good enough for their horses it is good enough for mine.

If you are doing affiliated, or where you must know that the feeds are competition "safe" then it would be worth paying extra to get that guarantee, plus the choice of specialist diet if necessary.
 

milliepops

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The big issue for me is quality control and NOPs compliance - critical if you are competing under rules

^^ this

I was using a budget brand for part of the ration which I was very pleased with but they couldn't (wouldn't?) answer me when I asked about NOPS and having been pulled for a random drug test at an area festival this year, I am very keen to be compliant! I had to swap to another brand that were part of the scheme... not worth the risk even at my lowly level, I saw in the latest BD mag that someone was done at the AFs this year and the fine was £1250 :eek3:

the retirees get bargain basement nuts though, they look super and don't need anything fancy :D
 

HeyMich

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You probably should go back to straights rather than enquiring about premixes from these companies. What you may find is that companies that sell straights are less "popular" but have what you want in terms of purity, quality and without unnecessary additives that exacerbate ulcers.

Furthermore, you may find that one horse may react to particular ingredients which are popular in feeds marketed as suitable. Ulcers were a learning curve for me many years ago and started me on the road of going back to high quality straight feeds - which work out cheaper in the long run .

I hope you find something suitable though, the more popular companies are starting to "manufacture" more gut friendly feeds though and I'm pleased to see that molasses free options are available but many still don't address sugar/starch as the main cause.

Yes, you're probably right. The amount of information that I've been told over the past wee while is mind boggling! I have actually started a spreadsheet today as my brain can't hold all the facts and figures ��
 

npage123

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A vet told me once that the cheaper brands of dog food may contain exactly the same ingredients as more expensive brands, but (can't remember exactly what he said the reason for it was) the ingredients in cheaper foods are not always as easily absorbed as those in more expensive foods, so you should always buy the best food you can afford. I don't know if there's any truth to that?

(It was very long ago and iirc they weren't even selling any particular brand of food at their surgery. He also wasn't recommending a specific brand of food.)

Maybe it's like comparing human budget food to organic/free range food?
 
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