Feather Meal Claims Protein Lead at 72% of Soybean Meal

Feather meal is the cheapest protein on the USDA AMS feedstuffs leaderboard this week at $0.261 per pound of crude protein on a dry-matter basis, 72% of soybean meal's cost per pound of CP, moving to the top position and edging sunflower meal off the lead it has held across several recent issues. Sunflower meal follows at $0.266 per pound of CP (73% of soybean meal). Both remain well under soybean meal's cost per pound.

• Wheat millrun, Pacific Northwest and Portland (delivered): $150 per ton this week, 38% below the five-year median and down 3% from the prior week, per USDA AMS. The historical discount is the sharpest in this week's mover set.
• Soybean hulls, Kansas City region (FOB plant): Two series priced in a range of $95 to $143 per ton, 31% to 36% below their respective five-year medians, per USDA AMS. Both moved higher on the week, up 12% and 8% from the prior week. On the energy board, soybean hulls rank third at $0.096 per pound of TDN (96% of corn's cost per pound on a dry-matter basis).
• Hominy feed: Leads the energy board at $0.076 per pound of TDN (76% of corn's cost per pound on a dry-matter basis), per USDA feedstuffs data.
• Yellow grease, California: FOB plant prices at $65 per ton (Central Coast and South). Delivered prices are $67 to $72 per ton (San Joaquin Valley and South), per USDA AMS. All regions are running 43% to 97% above their five-year medians, with week-over-week changes flat to up 2%.
• Wheat middlings, Kansas (FOB plant): $137 per ton, 30% above the five-year median, per USDA AMS. Second on the energy board at $0.092 per pound of TDN (92% of corn on a dry-matter basis).
• DDGS: At about $164 per ton per USDA AMS, DDGS prices protein at 85% of soybean meal's cost per pound of CP and energy at 103% of corn's cost per pound of TDN.

Corn is priced at about $155 per ton (plant input cost) and soybean meal at about $345 per ton (FOB), the two anchors for the substitution leaderboard. The corn series is among 44 USDA feedstuffs series that have not updated in over two weeks. Treat the corn benchmark as potentially stale.