So, what IS beet pulp supposed to smell like?

[jaimebaker]

Shreds with molasses that is. Here's the skinny on what happened. I just started feeding BP a month ago. The first bag I got (Midwest) was a brown paper bag. The beet pulp smelled like dirt. Or 'earthy' I should say. I got another bag from the same feedstore, same brand (Midwest), but a different style of bag. Instead of paper, it was that white plastic-y burlap type bag (poly bag). When I opened it, the BP smelled really sweet. Not bad, just sweet. So, I figured it just had more molasses to it. I rinse it anyway (plain shreds is harder to get) so no biggie. I decided to soak a test batch and when I soaked it, it fluffed the same and looked the same but smelled like coffee.:confused: As opposed to the earthy smell I've dealt with with the last bag. Again, I'm a noob with this stuff so I wouldn't know which was right or what 'off' would smell like when it comes to BP. I took it back to the feedstore to have them check it. One of the owners was out and the other couldn't smell a difference (it was VASTLY different). So, I go out to talk to the guys that load feed and tell them I need to sniff their Beet pulp. When I explained what was going on, the guys shook their heads in agreeement and said that since the company switched to the poly bags that the BP was actually 'fresher' and the smell was the molasses. They said that the paper bag basically aired the BP out so much that the smell was gone by the time it got to them and was opened. It totally made sense to me having worked at a feed store for many years in the past. The same thing has been happening with the dog food we buy. Instead of the paper bags, it's all switching to plastic bags.

So, I guess my question is, is this truly normal for smell? They opened other bags and they smelled identical. I still have a few days worth of the old bag so I want to gradually mix this newer batch in with it, just to be a bit safer. But really, what's a 'normal' smell for BP? It looked, soaked and fluffed the same. Just smelled totally different. Not bad, just different.

[rainechyldes]

A normal smell can be anything from earthy as you describe over to slightly sweet, depending on molasses content. The smell you don't want to have is an off smell, that's smells sour and in extended cases of beetpulp sitting around downright rancid. (similar to that whiff you get of milk that's off when you smell it)

this may sound crazy, but if it smells good enough to eat (meaning yourself) then you are ok. And yes.. I have eaten beetpulp before. I think over the years I've pretty much tasted any feed my horses have gotten:) I confess to being a bit weird.

[jaimebaker]

That's so funny because, I admit, I taste tested. They both tasted ick to me so I don't think I made it too far. But actually the new sweet smelling bag, smells more appetizing than the first 'earthy' bag. It was the wet 'coffee' smell that threw me. I love coffee but not sure if my horses would.

But I know bad smelling sweet feed, bad smelling hay, and bad smelling milk and I know it didn't smell bad, just different. That eases my mind a lot though. So it's not necessarily a 'different' smell, it will definitely smell rancid/bad/off/rank if something is wrong? That I can handle. Thank you for the input!

[rainechyldes]

Beetpulp that is off is very obvious smelling. Take some home, find a bucket, mix it, throw it in the garage somewhere a bit on the warm side. 12+> 24 hours, then go take a big whiff:) You'll see what I mean.

[Vandy]

Interesting, as I recently went through a "smelly beet pulp" situation. I had been feeding the same brand for years, and suddenly a few months ago, the price literally doubled. I found another brand that was significantly less expensive, manufactured by a reputable feed mill, so I decided to switch over. The new brand smelled TERRIBLE to me. My barn manager laughed and said I was crazy, as did the feed store owner. However, it did smell awful to me, and despite the fact that it was half the price of my old brand, and I could have saved like $50/week by using it, I just couldn't bring myself to do it. FWIW, the store sells TONS of the bad smelling brand and hasn't had anyone complain about any issues other than the smell (which only one other person out of dozens has complained about). My BM (who is also my BF ;)) still teases me about it, but if anything had happened to any of the horses if I'd fed them the stuff that smelled bad to me, it would have haunted me forever, whereas my BF will probably only haunt me about it for a few months.

ETA: The bad smelling stuff smelled different to me than fermented beet pulp - it smelled like something had died in there. Nasty. Another interesting note: it smelled the worst right when I added the hot water to it. By the time it had soaked for a few hours, the smell was still there, but barely noticeable.

[Tree]

Wasn't there supposed to a shortage of BP? One of my clients mentioned they were having a hard time finding BP and the feed store owner said there was a shortage and that the BP companies were going to be selling more of it to commercial feed companies that use it in their mixed feeds (Senior feeds) and less otherwise...like straight BP products.

As for smell, ours always smelled earthy and came in paper bags. The type I got was shredded but when I used to haul a couple of our horses to AR, my friend found the powdered variety of BP or pelleted. Having only seen the shredded, we had to figure out how much to feed of the powder compared to shredded.

Tree

[sk_pacer]

Beetpulp that is off is very obvious smelling. Take some home, find a bucket, mix it, throw it in the garage somewhere a bit on the warm side. 12+> 24 hours, then go take a big whiff:) You'll see what I mean.

Don't do this....the stuff smells like sour mash left over after making home brew!!!LOL One whiff will make you wanna puke!!

I STILL havent heard of a shortage anywhere but what I was told by a couple of different sellers is this: the order for the company must be in at the sugar companies prior to a certain date, months before harvest. Any company that does not do this gets leftovers, partial orders or nothing. I have had trouble getting beet pulp twice: first time when the place I was buying from neglected to send in their order, and the other time was two weeks ago when the little part timer couldnt find 3 pallets of the stuff...was along a wall partially obscured by mini-bulk containers, not hard to get to, but hard to see.

[manyspots]

I am also a newbie to using beet pulp and on my second bag. The first bag didn't seem to have much smell dry or soaked. BUT this bag seems to have a dirt/smokey odor. Not sour, just strange. Horses still gobbling it up... anyone ever smell this? It is Blue Seal plain pelleted....

[Cashela]

mine smells almost like a nutty smell

[springer]

I am also a newbie to using beet pulp and on my second bag. The first bag didn't seem to have much smell dry or soaked. BUT this bag seems to have a dirt/smokey odor. Not sour, just strange. Horses still gobbling it up... anyone ever smell this? It is Blue Seal plain pelleted....

That's funny you call it a dirt/smokey odor! Couldn't think of how to describe the smell, but that's IT! The beet pulp we've been getting out here has had the exact same weird smell for the last year or so. I finally found a local feed co out of the Bitterroot (Lakeland Feed) that has some normal smelling beet pulp.

[manyspots]

Yes!!!! So I take it that even thought it has this odor and they are eating it then it is OK??????

[wateryglen]

Why does it need to smell good or taste good to YOU! YOU"RE not eating it!!! HE is! Are you pre-tasting his hay?!!! His grain?!!! Yes it smells like dead plant material that has molasses on it. Like dead leaves, dead plants, the ground, the earth....DIRT! Horses eat these and manure and....so don't fret over it. We give ourselves WAY too much credit for being able to SMELL things accurately. Like hay that SMELLS good is somehow better nutritionally for a horse or he will somehow like it more.

My nose burns when I smell moldy hay......so I thought I was accurately able to detect mold.....so it turns out after allergy testing that I'm alllergic to hay and NOT mold. Nose innacurate! And the hay wasn't moldy...looked it but it was just normally dried compressed plant material!

Oh and I love to taste sweet feeds with a lot of whole oats in it! Like sweet oatmeal! :winkgrin::lol::D But I put my foot down with catfood! ;):yes::D

[bludejavu]

I have gotten both the paper bagged shreds and the poly bag - which ever the feed store happened to be selling. At any rate, I think the difference in smells may be due to the soil the beets might have been grown in. I'm a tomato connoisseur (sp? - and I know tomatoes are a long way from beet pulp:smile:) but I can always tell if a tomato has been grown in regular potting type soil, black dirt or black dirt with manure fertiliizer, strictly by smell - long before I taste them. Soil type makes a huge difference.

[Vandy]

Why does it need to smell good or taste good to YOU!This is all good and well, except in my case when it smelled like a dead, rotting carcass compared to a different brand of the same type of feed which smelt good to me for years ;)

[jaimebaker]

Why does it need to smell good or taste good to YOU! YOU"RE not eating it!!! HE is!

Did you read my first post at all? I don't care if it smells good to me or not, I asked what it's SUPPOSED to smell like. Some of us are new to BP and aren't familiar with what it should smell like. Geez, give me a break.

[Tree]

As far as any BP shortages, it seems limited to the kind without molasses. While at work today I asked the BO about this and they said they'd had no problems finding BP w/molasses.

Sorry to interrupt, carry on.

Tree

[Brigitte]

The first shipment of beet pulp (plain) that my feed store got in after being out for months has a different smell. I've been telling everyone that it smelled like burnt coffee, especially after adding warm water.

Well, guess what, the company has finally said that it got scorched. So, perhaps you are smelling something like that also.

Normally I don't think it has much older and certainly should not smell rotten.

[jaimebaker]

The first shipment of beet pulp (plain) that my feed store got in after being out for months has a different smell. I've been telling everyone that it smelled like burnt coffee, especially after adding warm water.

Well, guess what, the company has finally said that it got scorched. So, perhaps you are smelling something like that also.

Normally I don't think it has much older and certainly should not smell rotten.

Were there any problems feeding it? This kind has molasses in it so not sure if it would make a big difference on smell or not.

[flyingchange]

My husband bought a couple of bags of beet pulp from our local Tractor yesterday. When he got home and pulled it out of the car I saw that it was in the paper bags and not the poly bags that I have been getting. Hoped it wouldn't be a big deal and dumped it in the feed bin.

It smelled/smells so WEIRD! Yes, smells like burned coffee. I soaked the first batch last night and it did not absorb the water very well and the water that is left over is kinda slimy.

My two picky eaters won't eat it. I don't blame them. Kind of made my stomach turn smelling it this morning.

It does seem like it got scorched. I'll be returning it this week. Thanks to a search here on COTH I see this is not a new problem. :)

[jaimebaker]

My husband bought a couple of bags of beet pulp from our local Tractor yesterday. When he got home and pulled it out of the car I saw that it was in the paper bags and not the poly bags that I have been getting. Hoped it wouldn't be a big deal and dumped it in the feed bin.

It smelled/smells so WEIRD! Yes, smells like burned coffee. I soaked the first batch last night and it did not absorb the water very well and the water that is left over is kinda slimy.

My two picky eaters won't eat it. I don't blame them. Kind of made my stomach turn smelling it this morning.

It does seem like it got scorched. I'll be returning it this week. Thanks to a search here on COTH I see this is not a new problem. :)

When I started this thread it was when I had previously been getting the BP in paper bags and then my feed mill went to the poly bags. So it was a HUGE change in smell. Well, TSC still has the paper bags. So, just due to paranoia I went to TSC during this time and got one of their paper bag ones. Well, it was the smell I was used to BUT it had pellets all in it (it was the shreds). I had to pick out all of those dang pellets ever day. In hindsight I should have just tossed the bag and bought a new one. That was a lot of work! But when you are soaking shreds for 15-30 minutes, that's just not enough to even touch a pellet. I couldn't take any chances. But yeah, shoulda just bought a new bag:lol:

[kookicat]

I think each bag of BP smells a little diffrent. I use the pellets, and the bag I have now smells a little like coffee. Horses gobble it up though! I wouldn't worry so long as it dosen't smell bad when you open the bag or after it's been soaked.

[KPF]

BP can, in fact, be burnt. I had gotten a bag from SS about a month and a half ago and immediately noticed it smelled funny. Horses would eat it but weren't too happy about it. My husband said it smelled burnt. It really did smell like burnt coffee. I was like, no, they don't cook it, do they? Long story short, I took the remainder of the bag back to SS and they verified it was in fact, burnt. Yes, it is cooked in the process and yes, my hubby was right for once! :lol:

SS said they get burnt bags on occasion and they happily replaced the bag for free. It took days for me to get the smell out of my nose, though! :lol: