November 21, 2017
MEMORANDUM
TO: 		Air Docket EPA-HQ-OAR-2017-0655
SUBJECT:	Summary of Net Energy Impacts of Reduced-Oil Sorghum Dried Distillers Grains with Solubles (DDGS) on Livestock

Table 1: Net Energy Impacts of Reduced-Oil Sorghum Dried Distillers Grains with Solubles (DDGS) on Livestock

Net Energy 
Full-Oil Sorghum DDGS (kcal/kg)
Reduced-Oil Sorghum DDGS (kcal/kg)
Beef, growing
2144
1924
Beef, finishing
2011
1830
Dairy
1855
1873
Swine
2394
2053
Poultry
2283
2135

Table 1 above provides net energy values for livestock fed with both full-oil and reduced-oil sorghum DDGS. These values have been calculated by the National Sorghum Producers using ratios from the impacts of reducing oil in corn distillers grains, as there currently exists no scientific literature on feeding values of reduced-oil sorghum DDGS.
The values above show net energy of livestock on a kilocalorie per kilogram of DDGS basis. Net energy measures the energy that is available to a livestock animal after it has consumed, digested, and metabolized feed, and it includes the energy lost as a result of heat produced from these processes.  
While the petitioner expects beef, swine, and poultry net energy to decrease with the use of reduced-oil sorghum DDGS, there are other factors in the case of poultry and swine that may lead livestock producers to substitute reduced-sorghum oil DDGS for feed at equal rates as full-oil sorghum DDGS. As detailed in the Notice, full-oil distillers grains with solubles (DGS) typically contain higher levels of free fatty acids and thus may have a negative impact on the fat digestion of poultry and swine. 
For dairy cattle, net energy is expected to slightly increase when reduced-oil sorghum DDGS is fed instead of full-oil sorghum DDGS.

