Soaring fertilizer prices makes chicken litter more attractive
In the face of soaring fertilizer prices, some producers are looking at poultry litter to grow crops such as corn.
As of last week, a ton of commercial fertilizer with a 3-1-2 blend of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium could cost $360 a ton (€302 per mt), which translates to $50 an acre (€94/ha). The same amount of fertilizer last year averaged $25 an acre (€47/ha). There an increasing demand for litter as fertilizer, greatly due to more acres of corn being planted, and litter being less costly than commercial fertilizer.
Currently, there is a federal programme which pays the cost to haul litter from major poultry producing counties to farms in counties with no poultry houses, as hauling costs can be more than the price of the litter.
However, the programme is ending in April on this year and it unclear at this point if the programme will be renewed.
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