They came, they saw, they learned more about spreading it around.
They came, they saw, they learned more about spreading it around.
About 1000 custom manure applicators, livestock producers, equipment
manufacturers and others involved in the nutrient application industry
descended on Boone, Iowa, this past August to take part in the 2009
Upper Midwest Manure Handling Expo.
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| Participants had an opportunity to get up-close and personal with many of the liquid manure injection systems both before and after they were demonstrated. |
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| The crowd checks out the injection paths and depths following the liquid manure injection field demonstrations at the manure handling expo. |
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| A Backhus compost turner shows what it can do during the field demonstrations. |
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| There was a lot of crowd interest in The Mole, a liquid manure injection system developed by Schafer Welding in Corning, Iowa. |
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| A solid manure spreader from JBS was one of several systems showcased in the solid manure application field demonstration. |
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| An opportunity to view and “kick the tires” of the manure handling and incorporation equipment was a draw for the show. |
Held at the Central Iowa Expo site, attendees from more than 14 states and six Canadian provinces took part in educational seminars, both liquid and solid manure field application demonstrations, ride and drive opportunities, and visited with the more than 55 equipment and service exhibitors on hand.
This is the first time that Iowa has hosted the annual event, which rotates between various states in the Upper Midwest and Great Lake regions of the U.S. And, according to event planners and managers, it was a great success.
“Fourteen manufacturers demonstrated their equipment in front of a large crowd of interested expo attendees under field-like conditions,” said Ross Muhlbauer, a member of the expo planning committee and the event’s field demo emcee. “The demonstrations generated good response from the crowd, resulting in more exhibitor-customer interaction.”
Solid manure spreaders from JBS, Kuhn, Meyer, Roda, AgChem and Sioux Automation were showcased along with liquid manure systems by Houle, Jamesway, Hydro Engineering, AgChem, Bazooka Farmstar, Sioux Automation, Balzer, Dietrich, Puck Custom Enterprises (PCE), and Mole Incorporation. A proto-type subsurface poultry litter injector developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture researchers at Auburn, Alabama, was also demonstrated along with a Backhus compost turner.
A lot of interest was also expressed by expo participants in the equipment ride and drive opportunity, held at the end of the day’s events.
Attendees also took part in several educational sessions, which covered everything from Iowa CAFO regulations to biosecurity during manure pump outs.
“The educational sessions were very well attended,” added event coordinator Dr. Robert Burns, a professor at Iowa State University. “They provided the most up-to-date information on several topics of interest to manure applicators and animal feeding operation owners and operators.”
The expo was co-hosted by Iowa State University Extension and the Iowa Commercial Nutrient Applicators Association (ICNAA) with the planning committee consisting of ISU’s Agricultural Waste Management Team and board members from the ICNAA.
Next year’s manure expo – the 2010 Great Lakes Manure Handling Expo – is scheduled for July 15, 2010 at the 55-acre Penn State Ag Progress Days site near State College, Pennsylvania. The event, themed Balancing Production and Conservation, is being hosted by Pennsylvania State University and will feature commercial exhibits, educational seminars and equipment demonstrations. More information can be found at http://das.psu.edu/manure-expo .
