Are Chickens and Pigs Fed Corn or Soy?

This is a question we can asked quite often. The chickens and pigs, while fully pastured, have supplementation available, in small amounts, of soy and corn. There is a great reason for it! Soy rations for animals increase the quantity of pulse crops such as peas or other edible beans. This decreases the small grain used. Also, the first limiting amino acid for laying hen production is Methionine. In order to achieve target levels of Methionine, one needs to supplement with synthetic Methionine or increase the legume content to beyond 45% of the ration. The scientific name for the soybean is "Glycine Max" and Glycine is one of the amino acids that we require.  In short, chickens, and pigs for that matter, almost always consume soy in some form in commercial settings. All corn and soy is NON-GMO. All the soy is heat treated to dissolve the trypsin inhibitors that make raw soy toxic. We've tried several things additionally such as sprouting, soaking etc for this, but the heat treat works best. I hope this makes sense! 

Here is a helpful article that focuses on pork: https://practicalfarmers.org/research/fatty-acid-comparisons-of-grain-and-forage-fed-pork/