Tractor supply granule feed turns to powder?

[Flame80]

I have been using Tractor supply Co. granule HEN feed in 50# bags for over 3 years with no problems. I'm in deep East Texas and it has been hitting the 100's already. I have ALWAYS bought 2 bags at a time and keep it stored in my shop where I keep classic cars. It is NOT climate controlled but have never had problems in 3 years! Now my feed seems to turn from a nice dry granule to a powder almost like a heavy flour?? The chickens eat it but...I constantly have to shake it down to work in my automatic feeder. What is going on?? Is it a defect from TSC? or is some other force of nature at work. Their bags are of PAPER type and NOT plastic.

 

[Brooks_]

I have been using Tractor supply Co. granule HEN feed in 50#

I am not familiar with this one. Could you link the feed?

Now my feed seems to turn from a nice dry granule to a powder

Have they all been from the same batch/lot/mill date?

 

[DonyaQuick]

Now my feed seems to turn from a nice dry granule to a powder almost like a heavy flour??

I use a different feed but just about any feed bag can get pulverized/crushed in transit and end up very powdery. From talking to my local stores I gather crumble/granule feeds suffer from that more than larger pellets. I make wet mash from the powder when this happens.

If the feed looks ok at first and becomes mysteriously powdery over time...then you've probably got bugs in it. Grain mites can create large amounts of dust in the feed and are hard to spot except when the population gets very large and congregates somewhere (looks like a slightly moving dust bunny). Grain mites also like heat and humidity. I'm having trouble with them here in NY right now because we're getting heat and tons of rain. There are also other bugs that can cause dusty feed although it's usually easier to find evidence of them (weevils, miller moths, etc.). You can also get them directly in the feed bag even when it seems tightly sealed - I had that happen too recently and had to exchange the buggy bag for a new one at the shop.

 

[Flame80]

I do recall they were on the bottom of the pallet in the store when i bought them. maybe there stock had not been rotated properly. If I change to laying pellets from laying crumbles baybe that will solve future problems.