Trans Fat, Where It (Mainly) Comes From and Why You May Want to Avoid It
January 14, 2014
Trans fat has been in the news lately. The Federal Drug Administration (FDA) has indicated that they may remove trans fat from its GRAS list. Ingredients included on…
Author: Dave Albin
Perhaps More Important Than Ever to Make Quality Food Products
December 17, 2013
The New York Times recently ran an article explaining how crop improvement and breeding programs have not focused on nutrient content or quality. This particular article focused on…
Author: Dave Albin
Actually, There IS a Way to Convert Fish By-Products into Useful Products on a Small to Medium Scale
December 3, 2013
NOAA Fisheries recently published an article on “Feeds of the Future” about sustainable ways to produce ingredients for aquaculture. As stated in the article, as fish farming increases,…
Author: Dave Albin
Why Extrusion Process Development is Important
November 12, 2013
Extruders are used for food and feed production – from oilseed processing, dry pet food production, and by-product/value-added processing. Extrusion is highly versatile and recognized globally. Insta-Pro International has…
Author: Dave Albin
Farmed Fish Are What They Eat…Sort of
October 22, 2013
Eating fish is becoming more popular, at least in part due to the health benefits derived from its consumption. In particular, a growing body of evidence suggests that…
Author: Dave Albin
Opportunities to Make Quality Pet Food
October 8, 2013
Pet food manufacturers follow guidelines established by AAFCO, which take into account information from the National Research Council (NRC) Committee on Animal Nutrition. You can read about this…
Author: Dave Albin
Cooking Food Made Us Human?
September 17, 2013
I recently stumbled across a book, published a few years ago, that examined the role that cooking food played in human development. It is called Catching Fire: How…
Author: Dave Albin
All Energy Sources Are Not Created Equal
September 10, 2013
Energy is supplied in the diet to livestock usually by starch in cereal grains, such as corn, and by animal fats and vegetable oils, such as choice white…
Author: Dave Albin
Preserve Your Nutrients – Don’t Bake Your Product To Dry It
August 20, 2013
In a previous blog post, I discussed the differences between dry and wet extrusion, and the relative moisture loads that must be dealt with after extrusion for food…
Author: Dave Albin
43% Less Drying Needed With “Dry” Extrusion
August 13, 2013
The new Medium Shear Extruder from Insta-Pro provides a solution for quality producers of dry, shaped products, including dry pet food and fish feed for aquaculture. Insta-Pro has…
Author: Dave Albin
Cheaper Ingredients May Have Hidden Costs
July 16, 2013
It’s no secret that livestock producers have been dealing with high feeding costs. Considering that feed is the largest part of the total cost of production, it’s no…
Author: Dave Albin
Energy In, Performance Out
June 18, 2013
Animals are driven to seek and consume food energy every day – this makes it possible for normal activities, such as growing and walking, to happen. Food energy…
Author: Dave Albin