2014 - Volume #38, Issue #2, Page #17
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Pelleted Chicken Litter Catching On Fast
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“We used to make compost and sell locally, then we started in-house drying of manure,” explains Brian Geerlings, Herbruck’s Poultry Ranch. “We started pelleting about 5 or 6 years ago after several years of experimenting. It’s an easier form to handle and works in lime spreaders of all sizes and kinds.”
The dehydrated, pelletized, poultry manure is plant friendly as well. It contains 80 lbs. of nitrogen (N) per ton. More N is available to growing plants the first growing season than with synthetic N sources. Herbruck’s estimates that 2/3 of the N mineralizes in the first year. It’s also microbe friendly, which leads to healthier soils and plants.
“Customers like the improved crop performance compared to conventional fertilizers,” says Geerlings.
The pellets also deliver phosphate and potash, as well as micronutrients like sulfur, magnesium, calcium and more. It’s available in various sizes, from 50-lb. bags ($260/40-bag pallet) to 1-ton super sacks ($169), and bulk semi-loads ($99/ton, plus freight).
Crumbled pellets sized similar to fertilizer granules are also available for use with conventional fertilizer spreaders, planter boxes and lawn spreaders.
“We sell a fair amount of pellets and crumbles to organic farmers,” says Geerlings. “It’s in high demand from grain producers and other growers.”
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Herbruck’s Poultry Ranch, Inc., 6425 West Grand River Ave., Saranac, Mich. 48881 (ph 616 642-9421; www.herbrucks.com).
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