Why advising Harrison’s Bird Foods?

       What do we know about Harrison’s Bird Foods?    That’s the question.

1. Certified USDA Organic

•No artificial colors.

• No chemical sweeteners.

• No added flavors.

• No preservatives.

• First certified organic pet food.

2. Our Organic Supplier and product mixer

• Grain Place Foods was featured in the first National Geographic Magazine article on sustainable agriculture as a role model. Founding member of certification movement.
• They grow, source and store our ingredients with organic farmers they have worked with for decades. Not the open market.
• Many grains are toasted on site as discussed later.
• Whole grains and product is handled in state of the art vacuum transfer and storage facilities to avoid scratching, breaking and worn metal contamination from agars, buckets and chains so often used.
• Each ingredient is prepurchase tested for molds (mycotoxins) and nutrient analysis.
• Each mix is tested after grinding for fat, moisture, protein, fiber and ash to assure continuity of extrusion flour.
• Product is refrigerated upon grinding, mixing and during post production shipping to our ware house.

3. Certified Mycotoxin Free

4. Fixed Formula

• Each batch has the same ingredients.
• Low priced ingredients are not switched for higher priced items.

5. Whole Grains And Legume

• Example on HBD label “ground shelled corn” = whole corn not by product.
• Pet product labels. Corn = corn with oil removed, pressed, post cooking or other by products.

6. HBF Contains Psyllium

• Enhances absorption of nutrients:

– calcium

• Binds toxins and allergens.

• Firmer droppings = easy clean up.

• Increases feed efficiency, lowers volume consumed and of stool.

• Bacteria - yeast problems reduced.

7. Spirulina - Alfalfa

• High quality protein.

• Natural source of vitamins:

•B vitamins (riboflavin).

•Vitamin E.

• Stimulates vitamin K production in the bird's intestine.

• Wild birds do not eat vitamin A. Their diet provides vitamin precursors (carotenoids) found in these food items. Nor do they eat vitamin D₃ but produce it from exposure to sun light

• New roles for carotenoids & sun light:

• Immune strength.

• Healing of digestive (pancreas, liver, and colon), nervous and respiratory tissues if diseased and ready for healing.

8. Ancient Mines Used For Source of Minerals - Trace Minerals (uncontaminated by modern pollutants).

• Montmorillonite clay

• Sea salt.

• Calcium carbonate.

9.  Sea Kelp Not Iodine
• Easier to evenly disperse in flours.

10. Toasted Whole Grains & Legumes

• Infrared ovens stabilize natural enzymes.

• Toasted flavor.

• Reduces extrusion temperature needs.

11. HBF - No Animal Protein

• Fish meal - animal proteins = waste by-products.

–'fishy' taste

–bacterial contamination potential

• Vegetable protein eliminates problems.

12. Low Pressure & Temperature Extrusion

• Extrusion = 'cooking' resembles baking.

• Increases digestibility.

• Prolongs storage. 

• Toasting – allows low temperature extrusion

–natural flavors

–enzymes

–maximum acceptance and health benefits.

• Avoids degrading vitamins.

• Minerals are less interactive.

• No heat denatured by products.

• No over-formulation accommodation.

13. Increased Production Costs

• Whole grain flour - lower temperature.

• Extrusion slow.

• Drying slow.

14. Post Production Analysis

• Each and every product is analyzed using a nutrient profile.

• Five of the worlds leading pet bird nutritionists have reviewed our formulas for nutritional content.

15. HBD Is Concerned With Packaging

• Products are often inadequately packaged.
• Light, oxygen, moisture and heat speeds spoilage.

1.        Peroxide formation from damaged fats (rancidity).

• Plastic, cellophane, coated paper or cardboard boxes

1.        Stop light or moisture but not oxygen or heat.

2.        Break down of essential nutrients or change their biological activity

–advertised vitamin A  12,500 IU/kg reduced to 1,500 IU/kg (McDonald D,  CAM 2006) further after being opened

–To compensate some companies have added excessive levels

–So only old bags have ideal levels

–New bags may have excessive levels

3.        Most companies use preservatives.

• Organic ingredients with no synthetic preservatives are very prone to rancidity.

16. HBD Quadruple Laminate Bags

• Used by high-end coffee companies.

• Poly coated extruded paper.

• Nylon for puncture resistance.

• Metal alloy oxygen barrier.

• Polyethylene layer moisture resistance, retain oils.

• Increased shell life - 14 months.

• Opened six weeks – food needs to be replaced.

• Cannot be preprinted.

• Cannot be formed at packaging.

• Preformed, top sealed, hand labeled.

• Bags 10 x as expensive as roll stock.

17. Roll Stock Bags

• Used by most companies.

• Mass produced bags.

• Rolls of preprinted plastic formed at packaging.

• Faster than preformed.

• Less expensive.

18. Harrison’s

• Healthiest food –preferred by 9 out of 10 veterinary avian specialist’s surveyed.

• Any claim made about a potential problem with a product is followed up by independently monitored feeding trials in healthy birds. No unhealthy links to our products every substantiated.

•Not designed for entertainment but preferred by birds in independent tests.

• survey of ultra violet properties show high level in HBD’s natural ingredients is attractive to birds.

• Echol’s studies show birds need more than colored shapes for enrichment.

19. HBD education materials

•Handbook For A Healthier Bird is our most popular item for client education.

• Avian Medicine Online at http:/www.avianmedicine.net

• password entry

• current questions answers

• commissioned White Papers

• research results

20. Veterinarians’ Clinical Reports

• Normal bacterial flora created without probiotics.

• Normal body weight = increased muscle mass.

• Loss of lipomas and xanthomas.

• Decreased cholesterol.

• Decreased sugar in urine.

• Corrects pancreatic and liver malfunctions.

• Recovery ideal sick bird gavage.

• Neonate & Juvenile give least problem hand rearing and sick bird support.

• Production of breeding birds is enhanced and baby bird survival is maximized.

21.    Textbooks

•AVIAN MEDICINE: Principles and Applicationby Ritchie, Harrison &  Harrison

– the standard

– little basic science changed since publication

–  the foundation for Clinical Avian Medicine. Pages: 1384 pp. Published:1993

• CLINICAL AVIAN MEDICINE  (2 Volume set)by Harrison & Lightfoot

•1300 color images

• current scientific data

• practical diagnostic support

• published 2006. Pages: 1008pp. ISBN: 00-9754994-0-8

22. HBD Customer Service

• Trained professionals.

• Assistance in bird’s health and feeding.

23. HBD Thoroughly Field-tested. 

• Developed in avian practice.

• Developed to correct breeding and hatching problems in Hyacinth macaws.

• Nine years feeding trials.

• Two breeding collections.

• Parrots, mynahs, toucans hemachromatosis:

–  all formulas low iron.

–  no vitamin C which enhances iron absorption.

–  some birds need vitamin C added on an individual basis.   

• Small birds do better on chia than psyllium.

24. HBD Thoroughly Researched

• African greys, macaws, budgerigars, recovering wild birds.

• Ideal levels of intestinal bacteria - reduces Gram-negative bacteria without antibiotics.

• Levels of calcium and vitamin D₃ prevent seizures, osteoporosis.

• Harrison’s stabilizes HDL cholesterol levels.

25. HBD’s Historic Nature
• Sunflower, millet, oats, rice, peas and peanuts fed since the beginning of bird keeping.
•  HBD improved centuries of results by adding missing nutrients.
• Chicken formulas were avoided.
• No wheat or refined sugar.
26. Adult Lifetime Mash = Hypoallergenic

• No corn, sunflower, peanuts for sensitivity to develop.

• Gray millet, wild buckwheat, sesame and chia seeds clinically reduce allergy symptoms.

27. HBD Has 15 Products In As Many As Three Sizes Per Product.

·         Veterinarians do not want to stock a wide variety of diets.

·          We listened.

·         We teach veterinarians how to use our 15 products in dozens of different ways.

The following is a list of questions Dr Jan Hooimeijer of The Netherlands asks a client to consider when choosing a bird food company:

1.  Who is/are responsible for the background, quality and content of the   

      product?

      Who is/are the nutritionist(s) that the company is working with?

2.   What is the philosophy of the company concerning health and welfare of      

      birds in captivity and in nature?

3.   What kind of projects are sponsored by the company?  What are the

      contributions related to avian medicine?

4.   What can they tell you about the differences between common species like

      macaws, budgerigars, African greys?

      Amazons and cockatoos, related to nutritional needs? 

5.   Do they have different products because of different nutritional needs?

6.   Are they adding preservatives to prolong the shelf life, if so which ones?  

      Are they organic and non-toxic?

7.   What can they tell you about the quality of the packaging related to shelf  

      life and the risk of rancidity?

8.   Are they using artificial colors, flavors  and if so what makes it in the best

      interest of the birds?

9.   Are the products certified organic and if so by which organization and is it

      mentioned on the label as certified?  If not, what is the reason that the

      products are not certified organic?

10. How long does it take before the birds are accepting the products? What

      are the companies recommendations to convert a bird?

11. How much are the birds eating per day? What are the daily costs or the

      yearly costs for instance for an African Grey, Amazon and a cockatiel? 

12. Can they refer you to well known avian veterinarians/specialists/diplomats

      worldwide that are using/advising birds be fed their products for at least 5

      years?

13. Can they refer you to well known aviculturists that are using their products

      for at least 5 years and are they willing to provide their breeding results? 

14. Can they refer you to publications and/or research publications that show

       that their products can be recommended based on scientific data?

 So can we afford not to use or advise Harrison’s?       Why take the risk?