The Process of Making Dried Distillers

Grains with Solubles (DDGS)

he steps in producing ethanol, very basically, are

that the corn is ground, digested and then fermented
(see the figure below). First the corn is ground to
increase the surface area so the microbes and enzymes can
more efficiently access the nutrients (mostly starch). Then
the starch is digested to convert it into sugars that can be
metabolized by the fermentation microbes. The major
products of the fermentation step are CO2 and ethanol.
The ethanol is distilled from the fermented liquids and the
remaining liquid mash is separated by centrifugation into
distillers grains and wet condensed solubles. Both are
dried and reconstituted to make DDGS. The primary
product of interest in the process is ethanol. The other
products (DDGS and CO2) are generally referred to
either as by-products or co-products. As the values of
these products are considerably lower than ethanol they
should accurately be referred to as by-products.
As an important note, there is some movement by
some ethanol producers in North America to remove
the oil from the wet condensed solubles before drying
and reconstituting it into DDGS. This would lower the
energy worth of the DDGS which would dramatically
alter its nutrient content and value for livestock. For
example, it would lower its nutrient value for swine. It
is not immediately clear what impact it would have on
mature ruminants as removing the oil could also lead to

12

OSN S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 2

higher possible inclusion rates. This is because too much oil

in a ration decreases the ruminal microbes ability to digest
fibre. What that balance will be (lower energy (bad) vs. lower
fat density (good?)) for lambs is not clear. If and when that
process is adopted in Ontario it is important for shepherds
to be aware of source and process as both products will be
properly called DDGS.
Figure showing the basic process by which DDGS is
produced. OSN