MANURE

Management of manure is growing in importance for dairymen given a variety of issues that range from the inherent desire to protect the environment to the need to ensure profitability.

One option often considered for dairy farmers currently operating an anaerobic digestion system is the co-digestion of off-farm substrates.

Labour is an important discussion point when looking at any aspect of your operation. Labour is even more significant when it comes to the manure management system you select.

Utilizing manure as fertilizer is one common approach to capturing the inherent value in manure and reducing the costs of off-farm inputs. But the approach has its limitations, particularly in situations where there is more manure than can be responsibly managed on the available land.

With nutrient pollution and water quality issues gaining attention in the media, as well as rising costs of fertilizers, retaining nutrients from fall manure is both economically advantageous and environmentally imperative.

Plenty of things have changed in the world of dairy farming. Advancements in milking systems mean that robots, not people, can perform the several-times-per-day task of milking cows.