SHERIDAN, WYOMING - April 4, 2026 - Commercial-scale hydroponic feed production, next-generation gut health additives, and shifting grain supply chains are forcing livestock producers and feed procurement teams to revisit sourcing strategies, capital allocation, and supplier relationships across North America and global markets in 2026.
Hydroponic feed reaches commercial scale in California
Forever Feed Technologies has contracted a $15 million project with River Ranch Farms in Hanford, California, to install two full-scale FFT GrowSystems - the company's first commercial deployment following more than a year of pilot operations at the same site. The FFT Innovation Center, launched in late 2024, was used to refine automation, growing protocols, and feed rations, resulting in measurable improvements in feed efficiency and milk output for the dairy herd.
Each FFT GrowSystem produces up to 50 tons of fresh, as-fed fodder per day and is engineered to replace 350-500 acres of traditional California farmland per unit while consuming 95% less water than field-grown alfalfa. ForeverFeed™ - hydroponically sprouted grain comprising wheat, barley, sorghum, and triticale - is blended directly into total mixed rations. The FeedCenter at River Ranch is designed to ultimately house three GrowSystems, with combined capacity to feed more than 7,500 milking dairy cows. The patented system integrates FFT's proprietary protocols with automation technology from JR Automation, a Hitachi company.
Trouw Nutrition advances broiler gut health with PhytoComplex additive
Trouw Nutrition, Nutreco's livestock feed division, will present new research on Presan® Evolve at the 9th International Conference on Poultry Intestinal Health (ICPIH), running 22-24 April 2026 in Istanbul, Turkey. The product is a proprietary feed additive combining a PhytoComplex sourced from four plants with targeted-release butyrates, designed to address oxidative stress and chronic inflammation in high-performing broiler flocks.
Modern broiler genetics produce faster growth than previous generations, but this growth trajectory can trigger inflammatory and oxidative stress loops that undermine gut integrity, feed conversion, and flock uniformity. Trouw Nutrition researchers will deliver three oral presentations at ICPIH, sharing data showing that inclusion of Presan® Evolve supported improved growth performance. The additive also targets muscle metabolism - a physiological process directly linked to body weight gain and feed efficiency - positioning it as a production-performance tool rather than purely a health intervention.
Dairy stress management and global grain market signals
Biochem launched RumiPro® Adapt, a five-component dietary supplement for dairy cattle designed to manage heat stress and the transition period. The formulation combines a long-acting rumen buffer, betaine for osmoregulation and heat-shock protein synthesis, plant extracts from grape and chili for antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity, and BetaTrace Zinc to reinforce intestinal barrier integrity and reduce leaky gut syndrome. The product targets a documented production gap: during heat stress and transition, reduced dry matter intake combined with high metabolic load suppresses fertility, health scores, and milk yield.
On the grain supply side, several concurrent signals are reshaping procurement outlooks. The FAO Food Price Index rose for a second consecutive month, with prices increasing across most grain categories. USDA Prospective Plantings data indicates a modest rotation away from corn toward soybeans, alongside a continued retreat in wheat planted area. Thailand's rice production outlook for 2026-27 has been revised down to 20.3 million tonnes by the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, driven by water availability concerns. CN Railway set another monthly grain movement record in March, shipping nearly 3 million tonnes - a logistics indicator with implications for North American export capacity and inland feed ingredient pricing.
Business impact
Feed procurement leads and livestock operations directors at large commercial dairy and poultry enterprises face concrete capital and sourcing decisions triggered by these developments. The $15 million River Ranch contract establishes a replicable commercial benchmark for hydroponic feed infrastructure: operations directors evaluating on-farm feed security against drought exposure or alfalfa cost volatility now have verifiable throughput and water-use data to model against conventional supply chains. Procurement teams sourcing roughage across California's water-constrained regions should factor GrowSystem economics into 2026-2027 feed budget cycles.
For poultry nutrition managers and feed additive procurement teams, the ICPIH data on Presan® Evolve introduces a combinatorial additive category - PhytoComplex plus targeted-release butyrates - into broiler ration design. The product competes in a segment where antibiotic reduction mandates and performance consistency pressure are both accelerating, making vendor selection decisions increasingly tied to peer-reviewed performance evidence rather than label claims alone. Dairy nutrition managers evaluating heat stress protocols should assess RumiPro® Adapt against existing rumen buffer and antioxidant programs, particularly for herds in high-temperature production regions where transition-period losses measurably affect seasonal milk revenue.