Scoop on Poop

At Burnbrae Farms manure is not a waste product. It is a valuable asset that comes off of our farms and is rich in nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, all the nutrients you need to grow great crops. We actually have a waiting list of farmers who want to buy our manure to use as organic fertilizer.

The Handling Process

In a modern chicken barn, the manure handling process has become very automated. There are belts that the manure drops onto, where it sits for a day or two and dries from the natural movement of the air in the barn. From there, the manure is run two to three times a week to the back of the barn where there’s another belt that the manure drops onto. It is then taken out of the barn and either goes directly into an attached storage facility or onto a waiting truck to be transported to an appropriate site.

The Storage Process

Our manure storage facilities are built to contain the manure. At Burnbrae Farms we have concrete pads and sidewalls to contain the manure, as well as a building built over the top of the manure storage to keep the elements from impacting the quality of the manure that we store there.  We employ agronomists to help us with manure samples to know exactly what’s in our manure. Our farmers who receive the manure also do soil samples to make sure the soil where the manure is being applied requires the nutrients found in the manure.  It is very important to handle and store manure in a responsible manner otherwise it can be a source of soil and water pollution as well as an odour  irritant for neighbours of poultry farms rather than an excellent source of fertilizer and organic matter.

The Delivery Process

We continue to collect the manure and store it over the winter months. Farmers order the manure as fertilizer for their fields during the fall after crops have been harvested and in the late winter / early spring after the freezing cold weather has passed. These are the ideal times for farmers to take delivery and store temporarily as the muddy conditions that come with the spring thaw are not ideal conditions for delivery. This can also allow farmers to have the product on site and gives them the ability to prepare their fields as quickly as possible for spring planting.

Why Is Manure Management Important?

Manure management is very important, it can mean the difference between a valuable input applied at the appropriate time versus a potential contaminant to waterways. Manure that is handled well is a great source of organic matter and fertilizer for farmers.