A3B>Lancaster Farming, Saturday, November 14, 1998
Composting: Least-Cost Method For Poultry Disposal
ANDY ANDREWS
Lancaster Farming Staff
MAMIEIM (Lancaster Co.)
Every year poultiy producers have
to deal with a big pile of problems
about 1.2 billion pounds of dead
chickens and turkeys.
What are some of the options for
producers who are not only bat
tling competition from other meat
sources, but environmental and
public nuisance-type regulations
over how to properly dispose of
dead poultiy?
According to one Penn State
poultry science educator, there are
a host of viable solutions to the
problems of poultry mortality.
What’s the least-cost option?
Compost them, noted Dr. Paul H.
Patterson, Penn State poultry sci
ence instructor.
Patterson spoke Monday to
about 30 producers and agri
industry representatives at the
Penn State-sponsored Poultry
Health and Management Seminar
at Kreider’s Restaurant in
Manheim.
The Penn State researcher
pointed to research by several uni
versities into the options and costs
of disposing of dead poultiy.
“The bottom line,” said Patter
son, is that simple composting
methods proved to be “the least
cost of all of (the options) on a hun
dredweight basis. That’s the way
to go if you’re looking at total cost
of disposal.”
Patterson introduced several
methods of disposal in addition to
composting. They include burial,
incineration, and rendering and
reclaiming of nutrients. But “com
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posting is an existing technology
that’s working very well," he said.
“When it’s done right, it can be
great. When it’s not done right, it
can be a real challenge, too."
Several issues arc central to
dealing with chicken mortality.
Because the areas of disposal are
close to public housing, the public
will be looking ever more closely
at how dealing with mortality,
including composting, is handled.
Burial may be a “time-honored.
tradition,” noted the poultry edu
cator. While this still works, “open
and shallow pits are totally unac
ceptable,” he said.
Patterson recently returned from
a fact-finding trip to the Southeast
He noted that in Arkansas, which
has a high water table, pits are out
lawed because of the public’s con
cern about pathogens from poultry
sources in groundwater supplies.
Pits “can be an environmental and
disease disaster,” he said.
Incineration can be an excellent
way to handle dead poultry. Dis
ease and insect challenges are era
dicated. The downside of incinera
tion, Patterson noted, was start-up
costs and cost of fuel. Also, the
odors caused by burning poultry
can be a challenge. And the units
need to be replaced every 5-7
years. Incineration costs can run
from 3-4 cents per pound of pro
duct (for the propane gas fuel).
Composting, at a cost of about
$3.50 per hundredweight, has a
“lot of future in Pennsylvania and
the whole poultry industry," Pat
terson said.
There are different recipes and
ratios, but Patterson pointed to the
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following: a ratio of 1 (mortalities)
to 2 (used litter) to 0.1 (straw) to
water (0.25). The carbon-nitrogen
ratio needs to be about 2 3 carbon to
1 of nitrogen (a range of 15:1 to
35:1). Moisture should be 55 per
cent (within a range of 40-60 per
cent). If the compost system is too
dry, bird carcasses mummify and
won’t break down.
Moisture and air supply (com
posting is an aerobic process) are
critical issues, noted Patterson.
To start, producers need to have
a solid base, concrete pad (pre
ferred) or wood. The base should
be followed by a double layer of
manure, followed by the dead
poultry, followed by manure, fol
lowed by straw. Subsequent layers
would repeat the process dead
poultry, then manure, then straw.
Water should be added (misting
the feathers) with each layer of
birds. Water is dependent on the
moisture level of the manure, the
humidity in the air, and other fac
tors. It’s important, Patterson
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noted, to place the water on the
inner layers only if water pools
at the base, then too much was
applied.
The key is to allow the bacteria
and fungi present in the birds and
manure to work to break down the
organic material. In the aerobic
process, heat is generated. The
heat kills the pathogens, weed
seeds, and fly larvae. Turning the
product also restarts the heating
and composting cycle, allows aer
ation, and continues the compost
ing process.
Almost any source of carbon
will work, including straw, saw
dust, or wood shavings. Shavings
have about a 400: or 500:1 carbon
ratio.
Patterson pointed out some
information about a medium-sized
composting operation in Alabama
that used several primary bins and
a storage area. The composter
required a $3,000-$5,000 invest
ment, but included a concrete pad.
A front-end loader or skid-steer
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loader is used to deliver the pro
duct to the composter.
A small layer flock in Lancaster
County uses straw and hen man
ure. As a carbon source, the straw
works well for them, noted
Patterson.
This “minicomposter” doesn’t
require a skid loader and doesn’t
handle a large amount of birds.
The minicomposter uses five pal
lets, one on each side, with a pallet
on the bottom. The pallets ares
hinge connected (though produc
ers could use pins or wires). It
works well.
Patterson noted some research
on other methods of mortality dis
posal, which included rendering
and reclaiming nutrients. Refriger
ation units are used to store the
dead birds until central pickup.
Also, he reviewed research into
using acid or base concentrations
to render birds. In one case, feed
grade phosphoric acid was used,
though propionic and sulfuric
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