Farmers will need more land for manure if the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs follows through with proposals posted recently for the Nutrient Management Act.
The original average finished weight value of 362 kilograms for beef feeders would change to 394 kilograms which would result in an increase in the calculation of manure by eight per cent.
Milking cow weights have increased – by 6.4
per cent for Holsteins, by 10.2 per cent for Guernseys and 5.3 per cent for
Jerseys.
Veal calves are being raised to heavier
weights, so their manure volume is being increased by 3.5 per cent.
Housing capacity per animal is being reduced
to reflect the difference with heifers being raised as milking herd replacements.
Most veal are raised on manure packs, the proposals say.
For broiler chickens changes would reflect to reflect Chicken Farmers of Ontario’s revised production cycles, improved growth and feed conversion rates which has resulted in fewer days in barn to reach market weight and more down time between flocks when the barns are empty. By shortening the production cycles growers are able to reduce the amount of time their barns are empty during the year.This results in a 12 per cent decline in manure production
