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Farm-Scape, Episode 2270

The Puratone Corporation reports growing concerns over biosecurity and the risk of exposure to disease is fueling an increased interest in composting to dispose of deadstock.

The Biovator is an industrial composting system which consists of a rotating four foot diameter drum that mixes livestock mortalities with wood shavings while introducing oxygen and it was introduced approximately two years ago by the Puratone Corporation.

The device was developed to provide an alternative help address concerns related to the environmentally sustainable disposal of mortalities in the swine industry.

Shawn Compton, with Puratone's Biovator Division, says interest in the technology is being fueled by the desire of producers to reduce the volume of traffic coming onto their farms to improve biosecurity.

"Interest is widespread in North America. We've been doing a little bit of research in Europe as well. The main market right now seems to be the US, large sow producers, just based on lack of options at this point.

Canada is starting to show a lot more interest due to environmental regulations and biosecurity as well. We're seeing, in the US particularly, it's a cost factor because the rendering companies and other options for disposal are becoming increasingly expensive so in-vessel composting is actually more economical and again, the biosecurity, they just do not want to see traffic coming and going.

Canada is a little slower in that regard but it is coming as well."

Mortalities are added and wood shavings are introduced into one end of the system and the drum is rotated four revolutions in the morning and four at night on a daily basis.

The finished compost is discharged on its own at the other end once the material has made its way down the drum. Compton estimates the unit cuts the time required for composting from three to four months down to about ten days.

Staff Farmscape.Ca