UK poultry producer invests in biogas production

Great Ynys Farm, a 90,000-head broiler farm in the UK will use anaerobic digestion to convert chicken litter into biogas for renewable energy and heat generation.
The electricity generated will power the poultry houses and the AD system, with a 90% surplus sold to the power company National Grid. The captured waste heat will provide warmth for the chicken houses, displacing fuel oil and propane gas. Generation is scheduled to start on August 1.
The AD system will have the capacity to process 700 metric tons of poultry litter and 1,000 metric tons of cattle slurry, mixed with 3,000 metric tons of maize silage per annum. Use of maize reduces the nitrogen levels in the digestion process and prevents the buildup of high concentrations of ammonia that would arrest biogas production.
Plans are in place to convert the heating system in the farm’s broiler houses within the next few months, to utilize heat from the biogas generation process. This is expected to achieve payback on investment within one year, according to the farm.
The digestion process also produces a residue of 5,000 cubic meters of odorless organic liquid fertilizer that will be injected into the soil to provide an enhanced nutrient source for the maize crop. The farm currently uses its poultry litter as a fertilizer, but by digesting it methane losses to the environment during spreading will be eliminated. A new poultry litter store has been created to protect the AD feedstock from the elements and to prevent the risk of nitrate run-off.

In-house litter composting reduces bacteria in broiler litter

In-house litter composting has been shown to reduce bacteria in broiler litter, according to a USDA study sponsored by the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association. Reduction in natural flora of waste residual, however, may lead to increased re-colonization of other bacteria pathogens due to reduced competition.
Laboratory trials for the study, "Project #662: Bacterial Re-colonization of In-House Composted Broiler Litter," were conducted to:

• Determine re-colonization of food-borne bacterial pathogens (by inoculation with Salmonella, Campylobacter, Clostridium and Listeria) in composted and non-composted litter
• Identify bacteria associated with reduced pathogen re-colonization
• Correlate ammonia levels on pathogen re-colonization.

Food-borne bacteria were higher in composted litter in weeks one and two. However, bacterial levels were identical in both litter treatments by week seven. Upon ceasing addition of inoculated fecal matter, food-borne bacterial pathogens were overtaken by normal litter bacteria in both treatments. No differences could be attributed to ammonia levels.
The study concludes that while initial (week one and two) microbial levels were reduced and food-borne pathogens were increased in composted litter, bacterial levels were similar in composted and non-composted litter treatments by week seven.

Chicken litter may be alternative to synthetic fertilizers

Research from scientists at Mississippi State University, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service Southern Agricultural Laboratory, conducted a study investigating the effects of chicken litter-based fertilizer on plant growth, determining that while the chicken fertilizer had a lower nutrient content than synthetic fertilizers, it still proved effective.
The study involved comparing two broiler chicken litter-based organic fertilizers to a commonly used synthetic controlled-release fertilizer on marigold growth and flowering. "Despite having lower nutrient concentrations than many synthetic fertilizers, similar broiler litter-based fertilizers have been shown to be effective plant fertilizers," said Guihong Bi, corresponding author of the study. "For growers wishing to use these and other natural fertilizers in their production systems, the biggest question is how the fertilizers should be managed. How litter-based fertilizer behaves in an actual greenhouse setting remains a significant question."

South Carolina chicken litter energy plant opposed

Homeowners opposed to the construction of a chicken litter energy plant in Hart County, S.C., have set a meeting to discuss their concerns. A report in the Anderson Independent Mail said the group of area residents believes the plant being proposed by Homeland Renewable Energy-owned Fibrowatt LLC will pollute Hartwell Lake, the air and environment.
Calling it a source of clean, green energy, the county said the plant would also provide inexpensive energy and jobs, as well as provide electricity to 80,000 homes a year. Operating since 2007, the Pennsylvania-based company has built biomass plants that use poultry litter in Benson, Minn., and has projects in Arkansas, Georgia, Maryland, Mississippi and North Carolina.

Oklahoma poultry suit money-losing proposition for state’s law firm

The private law firm representing Oklahoma in its pollution suit against poultry companies will not receive any pay in 2010, according to Drew Edmondson, the state’s attorney general.
The Muskogee Phoenix reported that the state’s agreement with the lawyers specifies that they would be paid out of money awarded to Oklahoma by the court or in a settlement with the poultry companies. However, “Any cause of action where the state could recoup a lot of money or the lawyers could get paid a lot have been removed from the case,” Edmondson told the newspaper’s editorial board.
Edmondson estimated that the firm has accumulated $25 million to $30 million of expenses pursuing the case. He added that he hopes the court will grant an injunction against spring application of chicken litter fertilizer, which Oklahoma claims is polluting the Illinois River watershed and leading to low oxygen levels in Lake Tenkiller.