Nutri-Berries sit somewhere between bird food and foraging.
Instead of grinding everything into a uniform pellet, Lafeber leaves much of the seed and grain recognisable and forms it into loose berry-shaped clusters. Your bird has to pick one up, pull it apart and work through it rather than simply eating from a bowl.
They're formulated as a nutritionally balanced food, but the shape and texture are what make them particularly interesting for parrots.
Here's what Nutri-Berries are, which size to choose and where we'd fit them into a varied diet.
Jump to What Nutri-Berries Are, Why the Shape Matters, Choosing a Size, Classic or Tropical, Where They Fit in the Diet, How to Serve Them or Frequently Asked Questions.
What Are Nutri-Berries?
Nutri-Berries are clusters made from hulled seeds, grains and other ingredients with added vitamins, minerals and amino acids.
Unlike a conventional pellet, where the ingredients are ground together into a uniform piece, much of what you're looking at in a Nutri-Berry is still recognisable. The ingredients are formed into a loose round cluster that a bird can pull apart as it eats.
Lafeber formulates Nutri-Berries as a nutritionally balanced food rather than simply a seed treat. That doesn't mean they have to be the only thing your bird eats, and we wouldn't treat them that way. More on that below.
You can see the full Lafeber range here.
Why Does the Shape Matter?
Because eating doesn't have to be over in five minutes.
Parrots naturally spend a considerable amount of time finding, handling and working through food. Put something uniform in a bowl and much of that work disappears.
A Nutri-Berry puts a little of it back.
Larger parrots will often hold one in a foot while they pull it apart. Smaller birds might work on one from the bowl or carry pieces away. Either way, there's more picking, breaking and sorting involved than there is with eating a conventional pellet.
It's not a replacement for proper foraging toys and opportunities around the cage, but it's an easy way to make the food itself a little more interesting.
Which Nutri-Berries Size Does My Bird Need?
Think of the size names as a starting point rather than a rule.
The best size is one your bird can comfortably handle and actually eat. Some birds prefer something smaller and easy to break up. Others enjoy a larger berry that takes more work.
Cockatiel Size
The smallest Nutri-Berry size in our range and the best place to start for Cockatiels and smaller parrots.
It can also be offered to Budgies, Lovebirds, Parrotlets, smaller Conures and similar birds. Very small birds may find it easier if you break a berry into pieces when introducing it.
Classic Nutri-Berries Cockatiel
Parrot Size
A good middle size for medium parrots including Ringnecks, Alexandrines, Caiques, Quakers, Galahs, Corellas and many Conures.
It's also worth trying if a smaller bird demolishes the Cockatiel size too quickly and you'd like to give them something that takes a little more work.
Classic Nutri-Berries Parrot and Tropical Nutri-Berries Parrot
Macaw and Cockatoo Size
The largest option, made for birds with a bigger beak and foot.
It's a good starting point for Macaws, Cockatoos, African Greys and larger Amazons. The larger berry gives them something substantial to hold, pull apart and work through.
Classic Nutri-Berries Macaw and Cockatoo and Tropical Nutri-Berries Macaw and Cockatoo
If you're unsure between two sizes, there's nothing wrong with trying both. Lafeber's formulas are designed around the same general nutritional approach, so choosing a size is largely about how your bird prefers to eat it.
Classic or Tropical?
Classic is the original Nutri-Berries formula, with the familiar mixture of seeds and grains. If your bird is new to Nutri-Berries, it's a straightforward place to start.
Tropical Fruit adds pieces of pineapple, papaya and mango, giving the berries a different smell, taste and texture.
There's no need to find one flavour and stick with it forever. Rotating foods and textures is one of the easiest ways to keep a bird's diet interesting, provided the foods you're rotating are appropriate for your bird.
Where Do Nutri-Berries Fit in a Bird's Diet?
Lafeber formulates Nutri-Berries so they can be offered as a nutritionally balanced food rather than treating them as ordinary seed.
Our approach is still the same as it is with pellets: we don't think there's one food every bird should eat exclusively.
A varied diet suited to the species gives you far more flexibility. Depending on the bird, that might include Nutri-Berries alongside fresh vegetables and greens, pellets, quality seed, soaked or sprouted seed and appropriate foraging foods.
Nutri-Berries are particularly useful for birds that resist pellets because they keep much more of the texture and appearance birds recognise from seed while still being formulated very differently from a basic seed mix.
They're also handy when you want something nutritionally useful that can go into a foraging toy without the mess or spoilage issues of fresh food.
How to Serve Nutri-Berries
You don't have to put them in a food bowl.
Try offering a Nutri-Berry by hand, placing one on a platform perch or tucking one into an appropriate foraging toy. Larger parrots will often take one straight into a foot and start dismantling it.
If your bird looks at a Nutri-Berry as though you've put a rock in the food bowl, break one apart first.
Crushing a small amount over a familiar food can help a hesitant bird investigate the smell and texture. Once they understand that it's food, you can gradually offer larger pieces and eventually the whole berry.
Don't immediately fill a bowl with them either. Offering a smaller number at a time makes it easier to see what your bird is actually eating rather than allowing them to pull out favourite pieces and discard the rest.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Nutri-Berries pellets?
Not in the conventional sense.
They're formulated to provide balanced nutrition in a similar way to a pellet, but the ingredients aren't all ground into one uniform piece. Seeds, grains and other ingredients remain much more recognisable and are formed into the berry-shaped cluster.
Are Nutri-Berries just a treat?
No. Lafeber formulates Nutri-Berries as a nutritionally balanced food that can be fed as part of a bird's regular diet.
They're certainly convenient enough to use as a treat or training reward, but nutritionally they're designed to be more than that.
Can Nutri-Berries replace pellets?
They can play a similar role in the diet because they're formulated as a balanced food rather than a plain seed mix.
That doesn't mean you need to choose one or the other. Nutri-Berries and pellets can both be used as part of a varied diet alongside appropriate fresh foods and other foods suited to your bird.
Can my bird eat a larger Nutri-Berry?
Yes, provided they can comfortably handle and eat it.
The species names on the sizes are useful guides, not strict rules. Some birds enjoy a larger Nutri-Berry because there's more to hold and pull apart, while others prefer something smaller.
Can I break Nutri-Berries into pieces?
Absolutely. It's particularly useful when introducing them to smaller birds or to a bird that isn't sure what to do with one yet.
Once your bird recognises them as food, try offering whole berries as well so they get the benefit of pulling them apart themselves.
What's in Tropical Nutri-Berries?
Tropical Fruit Nutri-Berries contain pieces of pineapple, papaya and mango along with the seeds, grains and other ingredients used to make the nutritionally balanced berry.
Which Nutri-Berries should I start with?
Start with the size closest to your bird and don't overthink it.
For a Cockatiel or small parrot, start with Cockatiel size. For most medium parrots, try Parrot size. For a large Cockatoo or Macaw, start with Macaw and Cockatoo size.
If your bird would rather steal a different size, that's fine too. The important part is that they're eating the whole food rather than choosing a few favourite ingredients and throwing the rest at you.
