Seed Sprouts – A ‘Super Food’ for Birds

You may well enjoy sprouts as a ‘super food’ yourself, but did you know that they offer a tasty nutritional boost to larger birds too? A daily serving of sprouted seeds is a great way to provide parrots, budgies, cockatiels and finches with a hearty ration of highly digestible, nutrient-dense energy food. 

The sprouting process dramatically increases the nutritional value and digestibility of seeds. Compared to dry bird seed, sprouted seed delivers higher levels of micronutrients, enzymes, minerals, vitamins, omega 3 fatty acids, antioxidants, and of course protein.  

If you are new to sprouting bird seed, it’s best to start small, with just half a cup of quality seed that your birds already enjoy. 

We recommend Soak & Sprout seed mix.

Rinse the bird seeds well in a colander or fine sieve until the water runs clear then transfer them to a bowl. Cover the seeds with water and let soak for 8-10 hours or overnight. Next, drain the seeds, spread them out in a colander or shallow dish and place in a dark, well-ventilated area. 

At least three times a day, rinse the seeds in lukewarm water and drain before returning them to the dark. The sprouts will be at their most nutritious when tiny root tips begin to appear. At that point, give them a final rinse and let them air dry - they are now ready to use.

Once you’ve mastered the sprouting process, sprouts can be made in large batches that are divided into set portions and frozen for future use. Mid-size batches can be kept in a container in the fridge and fed out to your birds over 2-3 days, provided they are rinsed and drained daily to maintain freshness.

Note: It’s important to discard any uneaten sprouts at the end of the day and wash and dry the container before reuse.  Sprouts that look old or smell sour at any stage must be discarded – spoiled sprouts are as bad for birds as they are for humans!

Any easy way to introduce your birds to this new food is to mix small helpings of sprouts into their favourite food for a couple of days.  Once they have got to know and love them, sprouts are best served in a separate container in small amounts. This helps to ensure they are eaten fresh that day and not soiled by tramping.

You can easily grow your sprouting repertoire by sprouting different seeds and seed mixes. In a batch of seeds of different sizes, the smaller ones will likely sprout first but stick to halting the process as soon as those first sprout tips emerge. The larger unsprouted seeds will still be more nutritious than if they were dry – even just soaking a seed enhances its food value by reducing phytic acid and starch and initiating enzyme activity. 

Here's a video explainer on sprouting seeds for birds: