C4-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, June 19, 1993 Pork Prose by ? Kenneth B. Kephart DEAD PIG COMPOSTING Success stories are mounting for composting dead pigs. Recipes differ, composting areas vary from one farm to another, but all opera tions use the same concept the aerobic decomposition of organic material by microorganisms. The Nature Of Composting Because many aspects of com posting are inexact, the process can occur over a wide range of conditions and with many materials. For optimum composting, there should be 20 to 40 times as much carbon as nitrogen. Moisture con tent should be 40 to 65 percent Particle size should be '/• to 'A inches in diameter. The pH of the mix should lie between 5.5 and 9.0, and there should be at least 5 percent oxygen in the pile. Let’s assume we’re planning to LAND PHIDEE 15’ ROTARY CUTTER Land Pride 15’ Rotary Cutter offers rugged dependability Sorting with a 10-gauge deck for the center section and wings, we've added effective reinforcement channels to each section for superior strength. With a mowing height ranging from 2” to 14", it can also handle material up to two inches thick. With two self leveling rods from front to rear, mowing height can easily be main tained, as well as deck-flexing being held to a minimum. PENNSYLVANIA Straley Farm Supply, Inc. 1760 East Canal Road Dover, PA 17315 717-292-2631 Keller Brothers R 7 Box 405 Lebanon, PA 17042 717-949-6501 1950 Fruitville Pike Lancaster, PA 17601 717-569-2500 Marshall Machinery, Inc. Route 642 Honesdale, PA 18431 717-729-7117 Pikevllle Equipment Inc. RD 2, Oysterdale Road Oley, PA 19547 215-987-6277 Penn State Extension Swine Specialist compost a 120-pound swine car cass. A rough estimate of the car bonmitrogen ratio for a pig that size is about 9. That’s too low, so we’ll have to add carbon. The car bon source isn’t critical, although the texture will influence the com posting process. Sawdust seems to be the material of choice because it has a small particle size, it’s absor bent, handles easily, and has a high carbon content. Charles Fulhage, extension ag engineer at the University of Mis souri, recommends about 100 cub ic feet of sawdust for every 1,000 pounds of carcasses. On that basis, our 120-pound carcass will require 12 cubic feet of sawdust Poultry litter, straw, or straw manure mixtures have also been used. The straw mixtures may require longer composting times, but are otherwise satisfactory. The moisture content for most hogs is about 60 percent which is high for optimum composting. The carbon source will often bring the water content into the correct Tractor Parts Co. 335 Central Road Bloomsburg, PA 17815 717-784-0250 Stouffer Bros. Inc. 1066 Lincoln Way West Chambersburg, PA 17201 717-263-8424 Stoltzfus Farm Service Cochranville, PA 215-593-2407 M.S. Yearsley & Sons West Chester, PA 215-696-2990 Norman D. Clark & Son, Inc. Honey Grove, PA 717-734-3682 Loysville, PA 717-789-3117 Nlcarry Equipment Co. RD 2, Rt. 61, 3 Miles S. of Leesport, Reading, PA 215-926-2441 range, but if very dry material is added as a carbon source, up to .5 pounds of water must be added for every pound of carcass. The pH of a live hog is about 7, but quickly drops following death. However, no adjustments need be made to ensure proper composting. The concentration of oxygen is the mixture is important. When the material is first put into the com post area, air is naturally trapped in the layers. Microorganisms quick ly use the available oxygen, and setding of the contents also expels the entrapped air. Unless the pile is turned or air is otherwise injected, the aerobic process slows. In an operation where frequent turning is not prac tical, the use of a small-particle carbon source, such as sawdust, may be a disadvantage. Straw, on the other hand, is more difficult to pack, and there fore may be the best choice if the pile is left undisturbed. 1. Composting bins made of large round bales. The May IS, 1993 issue of National Hog Fanner features a sketch of compost bins made of large round bales set end to-end. Each compost bin is three sided, with four bales making up the back wall, and three bales com prising each of the side walls. Two bins are needed (primary and sec ondary). For a 100-sow herd, the total area required in the two bins is 125-150 square feet. Start with 1 Deerfield Ag & Turf Center, Inc. RR 2 Box 212 Watsontown, PA 17777 717-538-3557 I NEW JERSEY | Caldwell Tractor & Equipment, Inc. 480 U.S. Route 46 Fairfield, NJ. 07006 201-227-6772 Rodlo Tractor Sales North White Horse Pike Hammonton, N.J. 08037 609-561-0141 Frank Rymon & Sons, Inc. RD 3, Box 355 Washington, N.J. 07882 201-689-1464 Reed Brothers Petticoat Bridge Rd. Columbus, N.J. 08022 609-267-3363 Systems That Have Worked Hey! Folks If your cows are slipping and falling, it ain’t my fault because I have a machine called a Scabbier that will fix that concrete so your cows won t keep slipping all the time. We’ve got service all around this section of the country, and I have a fellow just jumping to do your job mighty fast. And that ain’t all, our prices are right reasonable, and if you’re a tightwad we’ll let you do the Job yourself if you’ve got over 500 square feet. It can save you right smart a money. So call me on my nickel at 800-692-0123. If I’m not by the phone, some real live person will fake your number, and I’ll try to get bach to you real soon. Usually somebody is awake in this outfit, so you just call any time day or night. But, please mind the Lord, and don’t call on Sunday. Just one more thing. We fellows make our living doing this kind of work, and we’ve got children to feed and bills. That’s our side of it, but you’ve got such things too, A lot of people tell us that this Seabbling saves a whole lot more than it costs. So go ahead and do it. It’ll put shoes on everybody’s feet. Be looking to hear from you folks right soon. foot of sawdust in the primary bin. Place the carcasses and cover with a foot of sawdust. Continue layer ing carcasses and sawdust until the bin is full. After three months, move the contents to the secondary bin. After another three months, the material will resemble humus, with very little odor. Some easily crumbled bones will remain. 2. 8 by 8 bins, with ventilated sides. These three-sided bins are constructed with 2-inch by 8-inch boards. A 'A -inch to V* -inch gap is left between the boards for air flow. Concrete walls can surround the wooden bin, as long as a four inch air space is allowed between the concrete and wooden panels. In a demonstration project at the Uni versity of Arkansas, researchers successfully composted large and small pigs in these bins. A straw broiler litter-straw “sandwich” was added to begin the composting process in early September 1992. After 48 hours, pigs and carbon sources were added using the fol lowing formula: Parts by weight 1 pound pig carcasses (each weighing less than 25 pounds) I.S pounds broiler litter. 1 pound wheat straw Up to .5 pound water. Carcasses were added to the bin in layers over a 23-day period, then completely covered with litter. On the 37th day, when temperature at the 10-inch depth started to decline, the stack was moved to a secondary bin. Temperatures at various depths in die mixture ranged from 122 to 144 degrees F during the demonstration. The pile was removed 80 days after the first pig was added, and 54 days after the last pig was added. The only remains were hoofs, and some mummified skin which crumbled easily. In a related project, a sow was cut into 25-pound pieces and composted in another bin. After 74 days, the sow was totally decom posed except for the largest pelvic bones, a few large ribs, the skull, and the hoofs. All bones were bare The Scabbier Man 800-692-0123 with no meat or skin attached. 3. Empty pens in an open-front hog building. In this demonstra tion at the University of Missouri, pens from an open front building measured approximately 6.S feet by 9.5 feet To each pen, the fol lowing materials were added: a layer of straw (about S pounds/ square foot), a layer of dead pigs, followed by a (fry manure-straw mixture, and another layer of straw equal to one half of the weight of dead pigs. The layers were repeated until a final depth of about 3 feet was reached. The pile was left undisturbed for about 70 days (beginning late spring and ending in early fall). Composting was complete with smaller pigs (only a brown spot remained); however, larger hogs and sows did not break down completely, appa rently because the mixture got a little too dry. No rodents were observed, but when the mixture was loaded onto the spreader at the end, there were a lot of cockroaches. Summary Composting continues to look promising as a method of dead pig disposal. It should be noted that this process is not formally cov ered by law (Pennsylvania Act 317, passed in 1945). However, the Bureau of Animal Industry is rewriting the law to include com posting. In the meantime it recog nizes composting as an acceptable means of dead animal disposal as long as the process is conducted in a manner that is not offensive or a threat to biosecurity. The rate and effectiveness of composting is maximized under ideal conditions of car bonmitrogen ratio, moisture, and oxygen concentration. Fortunate ly, the process is forgiving enough that a wide range of conditions will support satisfactory composting. (Turn to Page C 5) 'v. £U; . f i t * k ‘ / * <l.| * » ■ 11 * •«* * Ml Jr W * K ‘ 4 *.# ¥ # I s, w » ■■- > fH f 5 : '• * ■** fe As /
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers