Farms.com Home   News

Manure Bartering Brings Benefits

When both fuel and fertilizer prices started moving upward, many crop and livestock producers became more interested in manure bartering. Kevin Erb, an economist with the University of Wisconsin Extension Environmental Resources Center, says manure bartering helps more evenly distribute manure nutrients to fields with lower fertility that might be located farther from a livestock facility. “Higher fertilizer prices make bartering more feasible,” he relates. The trend toward livestock producers networking with crop producers to barter manure has led states like Michigan and Illinois to create an online list of manure producers seeking to provide manure, as well as cash grain farmers who are looking for the crop nutrients manure has to offer. Illinois co-ops are also serving as brokers for manure exchange.

Erb says Wisconsin producers tend to exchange manure for cash, feed, or services, or may do a “Dutch treat” type of bartering. The Dutch treat system may be used when one or both farmers have land closer to another farm’s manure source. Erb says this situation commonly occurs when both producers have owned or rented land across a busy road or next to the neighbor’s barn. Each producer may agree to haul a set amount of manure to the other’s property, which is actually located closer, thus saving time and wear and tear on equipment. Both producers are able to benefit from manure’s nutrients.

Erb cited an example where two farmers were able to save two miles each way by using the Dutch treat bartering system. They were applying three loads per acre on a 20-acre field, thus saving 240 total miles and 10 hours of labor for each farmer. “The corn field was planted one day earlier as a result,” he adds.

A manure-for-feed barter system occurs when a cash grain producer agrees to accept a certain amount of manure from the livestock producer as part of a contract to produce feed. The rates, time of application and field selection are all spelled out in the contract.

With manure-for-cash barters, the livestock producer provides the manure for a set price per ton or per thousand gallons. The price is usually determined by the nitrogen content of the manure, and is more common with poultry and swine farms than with dairies.

Erb says the manure-for-services trade involves the manure recipient providing a set amount of services, such as hoof trimming, feed hauling, or tillage, in exchange for the manure. “One benefit of this type of exchange is that, if the dairyman can contract with a dependable neighbor with the right equipment, the dairy can avoid investing in that tool,” Erb explains. Any manure exchange or barter can have income tax implications, and should be double-checked with an accountant or tax attorney.

A written contract is essential with any type of manure exchange. Erb encourages producers to have the contract reviewed by both farms’ attorneys. Key factors pertaining to environmental responsibility, manure sampling, application guidelines, recordkeeping responsibility, tax implications and contingency plans if it is too wet to apply, are among the details that should be included in the contract. Because of potential income tax implications, contract language should be approved by an accountant or attorney.

Erb suggests successful manure exchanges usually start by involving both farms’ nutrient management plan writer or crop consultants. “Their knowledge of manure rates, soil conditions and other factors will make them a key player in any successful agreement,” he concludes.

Trending Video

Moving Ag Research Forward Through Collaboration

Video: Moving Ag Research Forward Through Collaboration



BY: Ashley Robinson

It may seem that public and private researchers have different goals when it comes to agricultural research. However, their different strategies can work in tandem to drive agricultural research forward. Public research may focus more on high-risk and applied research with federal or outside funding, while private sector researchers focus more on research application.

“For me, the sweet spot for public private sector research is when we identify problems and collaborate and can use that diverse perspective to address the different aspects of the challenge. Public sector researchers can work on basic science high risk solutions as tools and technologies are developed. They then can work with their private sector partners who prototype solutions,” Mitch Tuinstra, professor of plant breeding and genetics in Purdue University’s Department of Agronomy, said during the Jan. 10 episode of Seed Speaks.

Public researchers they have the flexibility to be more curiosity driven in their work and do discovery research. This is complimentary to private research, which focuses on delivering a product, explained Jed Christianson, canola product design lead for Bayer CropScience, explained during the episode.

“As a seed developer, we worry about things like new crop diseases emerging. Having strong public sector research where people can look into how a disease lifecycle cycle works, how widespread is it and what damage it causes really helps inform our product development strategies,” he added.

It’s not always easy though to develop these partnerships. For Christianson, it’s simple to call up a colleague at Bayer and start working on a research project. Working with someone outside of his company requires approvals from more people and potential contracts.

“Partnerships take time, and you always need to be careful when you're establishing those contracts. For discoveries made within the agreement, there need to be clear mechanisms for sharing credits and guidelines for anything brought into the research to be used in ways that both parties are comfortable with,” Christianson said.

Kamil Witek, group leader of 2Blades, a non-profit that works with public and private ag researchers, pointed out there can be limitations and challenges to these partnerships. While private researchers are driven by being able to make profits and stay ahead of competitors, public researchers may be focused on information sharing and making it accessible to all.

“The way we deal with this, we work in this unique dual market model. Where on one hand we work with business collaborators, with companies to deliver value to perform projects for them. And at the same time, we return the rights to our discoveries to the IP to use for the public good in developing countries,” Witek said during the episode.

At the end of the day, the focus for all researchers is to drive agricultural research forward through combining the knowledge, skills and specializations of the whole innovation chain, Witek added.

“If there's a win in it for me, and there's a win in it for my private sector colleagues in my case, because I'm on the public side, it’s very likely to succeed, because there's something in it for all of us and everyone's motivated to move forward,” Tuinstra said.