Chicken feed, whether it be laying pellets or layer crumbles, provides the necessary nutrients and energy that chickens require to lay eggs, maintain their health and vitality, and grow into healthy, productive adults. Most local feed stores sell 50 lb bags of chicken feed. So, just how long does a 50 lb bag of feed last?
On average, a 50 lb bag of chicken feed will last around 16 days for 12 chickens. Each chicken consumes on average .25 lbs of chicken feed per day. This can vary slightly depending on the breed and age of the chicken.
In this blog post, we will explore this question in detail, as well as the 40 lb sacks, and give you a few pointers on how to stretch that feed supply out a bit. Also, we’ll go through if you may be overfeeding your chickens!
How Long Will a 50 lb Bag of Chicken Feed Last?
In total, a 50 lb bag of chicken feed will last around 16 days for 12 chickens. Why is this the best answer? I’ve noticed that most chicken farmers tend to acquire around 12 chickens to get that magic number of a dozen eggs a day. However, you may have more or less than that depending on what kind of chicken operation you have going. The general rule is that a chicken will consume about .25 lbs of feed per day.
Table: How Long Will Your 50 lb Sack of Feed Last?
To assist with this, I’m going to include a table here so you can quickly look up how long a 50 lb sack of chicken feed will last you and your chicken operation!
| Amount of Chickens | Days |
|---|---|
| 1 | 200 days |
| 2 | 100 days |
| 3 | 66 days |
| 4 | 50 days |
| 5 | 40 days |
| 6 | 33 days |
| 7 | 28 days |
| 8 | 25 days |
| 9 | 22 days |
| 10 | 20 days |
| 11 | 18 days |
| 12 | 16 days |
| 15 | 13 days |
| 20 | 10 days |
| 25 | 8 days |
| 30 | 6 days |
| 35 | 5 days (Almost 6 Days) |
| 40 | 5 days |
| 50 | 4 days |
How Long Will a 40 lb Bag of Chicken Feed Last?
On average, a 40 lb bag of feed will last around 13 days for 12 chickens. This total is based on 12 chickens since that’s the most common amount of chickens people tend to have. I’ve decided to include the 40 lb bag of feed because it’s becoming more and more common to see the 40 lb bags at your farm and ranch stores such as Atwood’s, tractor supply, etc.
Table: How long will a 40 lb bag of Chicken Feed Last?
Here’s another table to reference for the 40 lb bags!
| Amount of Chickens | Days |
|---|---|
| 1 | 160 days |
| 2 | 80 days |
| 3 | 53 days |
| 4 | 40 days |
| 5 | 32 days |
| 6 | 26 days |
| 7 | 22 days |
| 8 | 20 days |
| 9 | 17 days |
| 10 | 16 days |
| 11 | 14 days |
| 12 | 13 days |
| 15 | 10 days |
| 20 | 8 days |
| 25 | 6 days |
| 30 | 5 days |
| 35 | 4 days (4.5 days) |
| 40 | 4 days |
| 50 | 3 days |
Where to get 50 lb Sacks of Chicken Feed
To get 50 lb sacks of chicken feed, you’ll need to go to one of your local farm and ranch stores or buy through an online retailer such as Amazon. Local feed stores are sure to have 50 lb bags of feed as well. This is also true for 40 lb bags, however, I’ve noticed that the local farm and ranch stores carry more of the 40 lb bags.
How to Make Chicken Feed Last Longer
To help make your chicken feed last longer, consider letting them free-range. While free-ranging your chickens are going to fill up on lots of juicy bugs. You can also consider supplementing your chicken’s diet with other sources such as kitchen scraps, such as vegetable peels, fruit scraps, and leftover grains. You can also purchase a few items at your local feed stores such as mealworms or boonworms, which are a great source of protein, but are usually quite expensive to purchase.
It’s also a good idea to make sure your chicken feed is stored in a cool dry place in an airtight container if possible. If you have mice, you may notice that you’re running out of chicken feed quite frequently. Mice don’t just take what they need, they store it up for winter! I once had a hollowed-out Santa Claus that’s about three feet tall stuffed completely full of laying pellets!
By providing your chickens with these supplemental sources of nutrition and keeping your feed locked up tight, you can help stretch out your supply of chicken feed.
Do You Have to Feed Your Chickens Chicken Feed?
While you may be thinking you can just let your chickens free range and feed them table scraps, you must also feed your chickens laying pellets or crumbles in order to provide a balanced diet. While table scraps and bugs are great sources of protein and nutrients, chicken feed is formulated to meet the specific nutritional requirements of different types of chickens, such as chicks, laying hens, or broilers, depending on their age and purpose. For an in-depth look at chicken feeds, I recommend you check out my article on Laying pellets vs Crumbles!
How to Tell if You’re Overfeeding Chickens
As a general rule of thumb, if there’s feed left over from the day before then you could be overfeeding your chickens. Gradually reduce your feed daily to figure out exactly the right amount of feed for your chickens! I usually tend to see how many pellets are left on the ground and guesstimate how much to reduce for the next day.
Conclusion
In conclusion, a 50 lb bag of feed is going to last you about 16 days for 12 chickens. A 40 lb bag of feed will last you about 13 days for 12 chickens. I’ve included a few tables that hopefully helped you to determine just how long you’ll have for the number of chickens in your backyard operation! While stretching your feed out is a great way to save money and get the chicken some extra nutrition, be careful to not feed them too many snacks that would prevent them from getting the nutrition they need from the laying pellets or crumbles.