Can I Afford to Haul Manure?
Ron Wiederholt, NDSU
Extension Livestock Waste Management Area Specialist
The easy answer to that
question is yes! With nitrogen
fertilizer prices at very high levels, just the value of nitrogen alone in
manure makes it affordable.
Table 1. Fall 2004 Comparison of Nitrogen Costs
|
N Source |
$ per lb of available or actual N* |
|
Anhydrous |
0.23 |
|
Urea |
0.28 |
|
Beef Feedlot Manure |
0.11 |
* Based on:
Anhydrous (82% actual N) at
$385/ton
Urea (46% actual N) at
$265/ton
262 lbs of 1st year
available N per $29/load of custom spread manure within 1 mile of the feedlot
The values used in Table 1
are reflective of prices in the Carrington area so you may have to check
locally so the numbers are relevant to you. If the hauler charges a mileage fee, the cost
of manure N may rise based on longer distances to
haul.
Calculating the cost per
pound of actual N for anhydrous and urea is very straightforward. Calculating the cost per pound of available N
in manure depends on several factors.
The manure N numbers in this
chart were calculated using information from a custom manure hauler. The spreader truck hauled 17.5 tons of manure/load
and the book value of available nitrogen per ton of beef feedlot manure
is 15 lbs/ton of manure. The available N
is determined by a 60% 1st year availability factor of the total N. According to research done at the University
of Nebraska-Lincoln, there is approximately 25 lbs of total N per ton of beef
feedlot manure of which 60% is available the first year or 15 lbs.
Therefore, using only the N
value in manure, it is easy to see that hauling manure is an affordable
expense. If you include the phosphorous
(15 available lbs/ton), potassium (25 available lbs/ton) and all of the
beneficial bacteria and organic matter fractions in manure, the money spent on
manure application could almost be called an investment.
However, to realize the value
of manure you have to apply it at the proper rate. If your target available N application rate
is 150 lbs/acre, then using the book values mentioned above, you need to
calibrate your manure application to put on approximately 10 tons of manure per
acre. If you are hesitant to credit the
manure N value at 15 lbs per ton, you may wish to discount that number slightly
to feel more comfortable that you are not going to be N deficient.
To really fine tune your
system, it is best to sample the manure and your soils to know the exact
nutrient values you are working with. For
more information on how to go about these processes, you can call your local
county agent, watershed coordinator or call the