Leaderboard
Cheapest feed protein this week
Every feedstuff ranked by cost per pound of crude protein on a dry-matter basis, against the soybean-meal benchmark
Data through Jun 29, 2026 · page updated Jul 10, 2026
Cite
- Corn (energy anchor)
- Soybean meal (protein anchor)
- DDGS
Cheapest protein this week is Sunflower meal at $0.245 per lb of crude protein, 75% of soybean meal's cost. Data week of Jun 29, 2026, USDA feedstuffs board.
| Ingredient | $/ton | $/lb protein | vs soybean meal | $/lb TDN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunflower meal | $143 | $0.245 | 75% | $0.137 |
| Feather meal | $413 | $0.255 | 78% | $0.316 |
| Distillers dried grains (DDGS) | $155 | $0.292 | 90% | $0.098 |
| Meat and bone meal | $331 | $0.320 | 99% | $0.248 |
| Soybean meal | $309 | $0.325 | 100% | $0.212 |
| Linseed meal | $223 | $0.325 | 100% | $0.161 |
| Cottonseed meal | $273 | $0.332 | 102% | $0.210 |
| Safflower meal | $165 | $0.378 | 116% | $0.162 |
| Corn gluten meal | $459 | $0.380 | 117% | $0.283 |
| Canola meal | $300 | $0.422 | 130% | $0.225 |
| Wheat middlings | $145 | $0.448 | 138% | $0.103 |
| Corn gluten feed | $220 | $0.514 | 158% | $0.157 |
| Wheat millrun | $158 | $0.515 | 159% | $0.117 |
| Rice bran | $139 | $0.521 | 160% | $0.110 |
| Soybean hulls | $125 | $0.560 | 173% | $0.090 |
| Blood meal | $1013 | $0.585 | 180% | $0.764 |
| Hominy feed | $123 | $0.592 | 182% | $0.076 |
| Corn (US #2 yellow) | $145 | $0.866 | 267% | $0.093 |
| Whole cottonseed | $433 | $1.022 | 315% | $0.250 |
| Alfalfa meal | $385 | $1.156 | 356% | $0.351 |
| Cottonseed hulls | $475 | $3.895 | 1200% | $0.621 |
About Cheapest feed protein this week
This is the calculation a dairy or feedlot nutritionist does by hand. Each ingredient's board price is converted to a cost per pound of crude protein and per pound of TDN on a dry-matter basis, then ranked against corn (the energy benchmark) and soybean meal (the protein benchmark). A feedstuff below 100% of soybean meal on protein, or below 100% of corn on energy, is delivering that nutrient cheaper than the benchmark this week. Nutrient coefficients are verified against named extension and NRC feed-composition tables (see methodology); an ingredient without a verified coefficient is priced but not scored, never given a guessed number. This ranks the board; it does not tell you what to feed. Effective fiber, palatability, handling and inclusion limits are the nutritionist's call, not a price table's.
Weekly brief
Get the weekly feed brief
The substitution leaderboard, the corn and soybean-meal benchmarks, and the feedstuff moves behind them. One email a week, built from public USDA feedstuffs data. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.