FCR Calculator — Feed Conversion Ratio for Poultry & Livestock

FCR stands for feed conversion ratio. It measures how efficiently an animal converts the feed it eats into output — usually live-weight gain, or egg mass for laying hens. It is the standard efficiency metric in poultry, pig, cattle and aquaculture production.

For modern broilers, an FCR of 1.5–1.8 is considered good under well-managed conditions, with below 1.5 excellent and above 1.9 poor. Day-old chicks start near 1.2–1.3 in week one and the cumulative FCR rises as the bird ages, so always compare birds at the same age.

Divide total feed consumed by total live-weight gain over the same period: FCR = feed (kg) ÷ weight gain (kg). Example: a flock eats 350 kg of feed and gains 200 kg → FCR = 1.75. Subtract spilled or spoiled feed first so you use feed actually eaten.

For layers, divide feed by total egg mass (egg count × average egg weight), not by the hen's body-weight change. The industry standard is about 1.95–2.10 kg of feed per kg of egg mass; below 2.00 is excellent. Tab ① has a dedicated egg mode.

For land animals, no — you cannot create more body mass than the feed you put in, so an FCR below 1.0 means a weighing or recording error. In fish it is occasionally reported because fish absorb water, so wet body-weight gain can exceed dry feed intake; in practice it still usually signals a measurement problem.

They are reciprocals. FCR = feed ÷ gain (lower is better); feed efficiency = gain ÷ feed = 1 ÷ FCR (higher is better). An FCR of 1.75 equals a feed efficiency of 0.57, meaning 57% of feed mass becomes body mass.

Basic FCR spreads feed over all animals placed, which hides the cost of dead birds. Technical FCR counts weight gain only from surviving animals, so feed eaten by animals that died still counts against efficiency — the number is always a little worse, and a little more honest. Enter placed vs. finished counts in tab ① to see both.

Economic FCR divides feed by dressed (carcass) weight gain instead of live weight: feed ÷ (gain × dressing %). With a 75% dressing percentage, a live-weight FCR of 2.49 becomes an economic FCR of 3.32 — the figure that actually maps to saleable meat.

Multiply: cost per kg gain = FCR × feed price per kg. With FCR 1.75 and feed at $0.45/kg, each kilogram of gain costs $0.7875 in feed. Compare it with your sale price per kg in tab ③ to see margin and break-even.

The biggest levers are: consistent high-quality feed with the right amino-acid balance; clean water always available; stable brooding temperature (18–24 °C) and good ventilation; correct stocking density; strict biosecurity and vaccination so no feed is wasted on sick birds; and accurate feeders that minimise spillage. Measure FCR batch by batch so you can see what actually worked.

Species and breed genetics, feed quality and formulation, animal health and disease, ambient temperature and heat stress, water quality and access, stocking density, lighting programmes, feed waste, and measurement accuracy. Because so many factors move it, compare FCR only between similar systems.

Yes, substantially. Modern broiler strains are bred for feed efficiency and routinely beat 1.7, while slower-growing or dual-purpose breeds may sit above 2.2 on the same feed. In layers, white-egg strains typically hold 1.90–2.05 while brown-egg strains run 1.95–2.10 at peak. Benchmarks in the table above are ranges, not promises for every breed.

About 1.5–1.8 kg of feed per kg of live weight for a well-managed modern broiler at market age. Use tab ② (Target Planner): enter your target FCR and the total gain you want, and it tells you exactly how much feed to budget — e.g. FCR 1.6 × 500 kg gain = 800 kg of feed.

Dairy FCR is usually expressed per unit of milk, not weight gain: kg of feed ÷ litres of milk, with a typical range of 1.3–1.6. It is not directly comparable to meat-animal FCR because the output (milk vs. body tissue) has different water and energy content.

Weigh a sample weekly and compute a cumulative FCR (all feed so far ÷ all gain so far) — weekly tracking catches problems like rising waste or disease weeks before the final number does. Record every finished batch in tab ④ so you build your own farm baseline to beat.

No. FCR measures biological efficiency, not economics. Profit also depends on feed price, sale price, mortality, labour, housing, veterinary costs and how fast animals reach market weight. A slightly worse FCR on cheaper feed can be more profitable than a great FCR on expensive feed — always run the numbers in tab ③.