“WHOLE FARM” SWINE NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT HAS ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS

DES MOINES, Iowa (June 8, 2006) – By manipulating the diet fed to swine, producers can lower excessive levels of nitrogen and phosphorus excretion, says Dr. Al Sutton, Professor of Animal Nutrition and Nutrient Management at Purdue University. This reduction will help balance farm inputs, the amount of nutrients available from swine, and the land’s need for nutrients.

Dr. Sutton gave a presentation, “Nutrient Management on Pork Operations,” at the World Pork Expo here today. Sponsored by Engineered Storage Product Systems, manufacturer of Slurrystore® and Harvestore®, his presentation was based upon his efforts to help swine producers achieve “Whole Farm” nutrient balances at their farm operations. “Essentially, Whole Farm Nutrient Management is balancing the input nutrients from feed, fertilizer and manure with animal and plant needs for efficient crop and pork production,” he explained.

Nutrient management is extremely important for its positive economic and environmental impact on pork production. Required by state and federal regulations, nutrient management helps reduce the threat of pollution. Agriculture has been identified as the leading source of water quality impairment in U.S. rivers, Dr. Sutton added, as nutrients rank second only to sediments as pollution sources.

Whole Farm Nutrient Management measures inputs such as feed, animals, irrigation water, fertilizer and legume nitrogen and attempts to balance them with managed outputs such as meat, crops and manure. Too much nutrient import on the farm creates excessive nutrient output, Dr. Sutton added, that can be corrected by reducing inputs or removing excess nutrients from the farm. Producers can begin by determining land application requirements.

“Nutrient ratios in manure generally do not meet crop nutrient requirements,” Dr. Sutton added.

Diet is a key factor affecting manure nutrient content, he explained. For example, use of phytase enzymes with low phosphorus diets can reduce phosphorus secretion up to 40 percent, while low crude protein with synthetic amino acids can reduce nitrogen secretion up to 50 percent. Phase and split feedings will also lower levels.

“Wet-dry feeders will reduce manure volume by 30-50 percent and increase nutrient concentrations,” he said. “In addition, genetically developed plants providing grain for animals can reduce phosphorus excretion in manure. However, these crops are not available commercially today.”

Even slight changes can make a huge difference. Reducing crude protein from 15.8 percent to 13.1 percent reduced nitrogen excretion by 25 percent in his studies, while reducing phosphorus from 0.437 percent to 0.369 percent reduced phosphorus secretion 25 percent.

Swine manure has high value as crop nutrient
There are significant benefits to using swine manure as a fertilizer resource, Dr. Sutton pointed out. “It’s equivalent to commercial fertilizer if all the nutrients are utilized by the crop,” he said. “You can obtain improved soil characteristics such as a build up in organic matter, greater soil microbial activity, improved water holding capacity, water infiltration, drought resistance and drainage.”

Producers may not use swine manure as a fertilizer resource due to inconsistency of the nutrient product, losses during application and in the soil, inability to achieve uniform application, lack of storage, and having the wrong equipment for the volume of manure produced and timely application. And, it’s not a highly desirable job, Dr. Sutton explained. However, swine producers need to work towards meeting these environmental and production goals:

Environmental Goals

• Achieve whole farm nutrient balance
• Control leaching
• Control runoff
• Control volatile emissions (odors)

Production goals

• Maximize nutrient utilization
• Reduce fertilizer bill
• Minimize costs
• Maximize crop production
• Achieve whole farm nutrient balance

Decanting with Slurrystore
The type of manure storage will affect the availability of nitrogen and phosphorus for crop production. Liquid pit is best at retaining nitrogen and phosphorus, while lagoons show the highest losses, up to 70 to 80 percent for nitrogen, Dr. Sutton said, compared to 15 to 30 percent for a liquid pit.

Nutrient recovery and consistency in manure is another big challenge – at the Purdue Dairy Research Center, a Slurrystore has been installed to decant solids out of slurry before it goes to a lagoon, Dr. Sutton said. Previously, solids have accumulated in the first stage of a two-stage lagoon system and it has been difficult to remove the solids and spread solids onto far reaching fields through the farm’s center pivot system for manure application. With the Slurrystore decanting system installed last Fall, solids can be removed by better agitation and mixing and improved nutrient consistency before application. Dr. Sutton assumes a 30 percent loss of nitrogen at the high end for manure stored in a slurry system, with a range of 50-70 percent of the nitrogen in the slurry available for the crop at time of application.

Besides the type of storage system, ration changes, feed and water spillage, and management can all affect nutrient variability. Application systems count, too

Dr. Sutton outlined his “Best Management Practices” for manure application:

• Test manure to determine nutrient content
• Calibrate application equipment to match application goals
• Use pre-sidedress nitrate test to adjust the nitrogen application rate
• Nitrogen-based application rates typically over apply phosphorus and potassium, so rotate manure applications to different fields each year

Incorporating manure is the preferred system, he added. “The greatest reductions in nutrient runoff losses, minimal volatile emissions and maximum fertilizer value from manure will be achieved by incorporating manure rather than broadcasting it or running it through irrigation,” he concluded.

 

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SIDEBAR:

Slurrystore manure storage systems can help swine producers achieve Whole Farm Nutrient Management, according to Dick Nelles, Engineered Storage Product Systems’ Agricultural Sales Manager.

“Slurrystore has been designed to provide complete agitation and blending of nutrients for consistency,” Nelles said. “Slurrystore pumps and nozzles blend a consistent nutrient mix throughout the structure like a fertilizer mixer. And consistency is valuable for even land application.”

Decanting nutrient solids before slurry enters a lagoon system is a new use that is being looked at experimentally by universities such as Purdue, Nelles added, for both economic and environmental benefit.

Decanting manure helps producers achieve even land application for greater fertilizer efficiency, and lagoons receiving decanted slurry will be less environmentally hazardous and odorous.

“Slurrystore’s above-ground containment minimizes the risk of run-off and ground pollution that may occur with earthen basins, lagoons, stacks, concrete pits or other storage methods,” he added, “due to its glass-fused-to-steel construction and reinforced concrete floor and foundation design.

Slurrystore provides swine producers with more control over their nutrient management program, and gives them more options as well as safeguards, Nelles said. “We’re saying Now’s the Time for Slurrystore -- that even though the first Slurrystores were introduced long ago, they were ahead of their time. New environmental regulations make an above ground containment system like Slurrystore pay for itself if anything should happen with another less secure storage method. But it’s also achieves fertilizer consistency,” Nelles concluded.

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Engineered Storage Products Company is located in Dekalb, Illinois. They are the leading manufacturer of glass-fused-to-steel structures in North America, including the well-known Harvestore® and Slurrystore® brands. For more information, please call 815-756-1551.