Environment

Nutrient Management

While sustainability has become a buzz word in recent years, pork producers have long realized the importance of applying the manure produced by their pigs onto their fields to fertilize the crops they grow.  Those crops, in turn, will then be fed to their pigs.  This is a prime example of sustainable farming.

While pig manure is rich in needed nutrients for growing crops, it also has some benefits over commercial fertilizer which can improve soil health.  Research has shown that the application of manure to a field results in an increase of water-stable large macro-aggregates.  This can then lead to reduced runoff and soil erosion, and increased water infiltration into the soil, possibly leading to increased drought tolerance.

The manure we apply to cropland is injected directly into the soil instead of being spread on the surface.  This helps to reduce odor as well as the potential for runoff.  To get manure to the fields, it is pumped through a hose directly to the tractor injecting it into the ground.  In this manner, the manure is moved from the storage structure and injected into the field without ever seeing the light of day.  This method also helps to prevent compaction to the field and eliminates the need to haul the manure on the road.