Sugar chips in pellet form

Sugar or molasses chips are created as a by-product in the processing of sugarbeet and have become established as a source of energy and effective feed for horses, beef cattle, dairy cows and pigs. As a traditional, Hamburg-based distributor, August Töpfer & Co. offers high-quality feed in the form of high-sugar sugarbeet chip pellets.

What are high-sugar dried chips?

Sugarbeet is a common and well-established feed for livestock. It is typically soaked before feeding and is suitable primarily as an effective, high-energy feed for dairy cows and fattening bulls during the winter due to the high sugar content. Sugarbeet contains a significant amount of the natural fibres pectin and hemicellulose, as well as the amino acid lysin. It is low in protein and largely consists of easily digestible crude fibres. After reducing the water content, the product is easily storable and has a long shelf life.

About sugar chips available from ATCO

The Hamburg-based distributor August Töpfer & Co. has been a wholesaler and provider in the food and non-food sector since 1912. We sell and distribute high-quality, high-sugar feedfrom the import and export market that is subject to strict controls in order to ensure the best product quality. Our high-energy dried sugarbeet chip pellets are a valuable and easily digestible component of mixed feed and are a reliable source of energy for ruminants. Our certified feeds ensure supplements rich in energy for the nutrition of animals in agricultural, commercial or domestic contexts.

High-energy dried chips: production and nutritional value

Sugar chips are result from the production of sugar from sugarbeet. Sugarbeet is cut into chips and then washed and pressed at around 70 °C. Pressing removes the vast majority of the water content, increasing the dry mass to around 28 percent. Further rounds of drying in drum or evaporator stations results in chips with a dry mass of 90 percent, which gives them their excellent shelf life. The dried chips are available loose and as standardised pressed pellets.

Besides their outstanding storability, the pellets are also easily ground and mixed with other feeds. Sugarbeet chip pellets are high in sugar and therefore particularly beneficial for livestock animals that are intended to gain weight and which require lots of energy. Their high fibre content is easily digestible for ruminants and is gentle on the rumen and digestive system. Dried chip pellets are therefore ideal as a high-sugar dairy cow feed and beef cattle feed.

Molassed and non-molassed dried chip pellets

Most dried chip feeds are available to buy as pressed pellets. The small pellets are tasty for animals, and also easy to transport and store. August Töpfer & Co. offers non-molassed high-energy feed in the with a dry mass content of 90 percent and sugar content of five percent, as well as molassed with a sugar content of more than 20 percent. Molasses is created as a by-product of sugar production, just like sugarbeet chips. Dark molasses syrup contains around 60 percent sugar as well as the organic acid betaine, vitamins and inorganic salts. It is primarily used as a binding agent in feed. It is also added to dried chips to increase the sugar content and nutritional value. Molassed dried chip pellets – known as molasses chips – are therefore well-suited to animals that need lots of readily available energy.

Sugar chip pellets: feeding information

When it comes to dried feeds like sugar chip pellets, it is particularly important to provide the feed correctly. Especially when feeding horses, it is crucial that the dry pellets – whether molassed or non-molassed – are soaked and swelled in cold water for more than eight hours. This prevents the pellets from swelling in the animals’ digestive tract and causing dangerous constipation. It is also important to note that the pellets should not be soaked in water for more than 20-24 hours, otherwise they will start to ferment which could lead to colic.

Dried pellets are primarily suitable as a supplement to feed rations, since they are characterised by a good balance of readily available energy, easy digestibility, flavour and long shelf life. Their optimal proportion of sugar, protein, crude fibre and minerals make them a well-established, popular and nutritious feed.