Steam Flaking Grains for Feedlot Cattle: a Consultant’s Perspective

For simplicity, “steam flaking” hereafter will be called “flaking.” For this discourse, flaking is considered the process of steaming whole grain at atmospheric pressure, typically for 20 to 40 minutes, and then rolling it to a flake density from 24 to 32 lb/bushel. This causes sufficient disruption of the starch-protein matrix to result in starch digestibility of 80% to 90% in the rumen and 98% to 99% in the total tract. Consequently, one might expect a greater response to flaking with grains that contain more starch; also, response to flaking should be more consistent for grains that are less variable in starch content. The mean and standard deviation for starch content (% of DM) for various cereal grains from DairyOne (2007) were: corn 70.5 + 5.1; sorghum grain 64.5 + 14.2; wheat 62.7 + 9.6; and barley 54.6 + 9.5%.