Marcia I. Endres, Extension Dairy Scientist

May 26, 2007

Compost dairy barns are still generating interest, especially in other states and countries. They are an alternative loose-housing system for dairy cows that allow freedom of movement and provide good cow comfort. Some producers house all their lactating cows in a compost bedded pack barn, whereas others use this type of barn for their close-up, fresh, and/or lame cows. 

Because of the great interest in this housing system from all over the country, the University of Minnesota is hosting a “National Compost Dairy Barn Conference” to provide an opportunity to share research results and producer experiences with anyone interested in this type of facility. The conference is scheduled for Friday, June 22, 2007, at the Holiday Inn in Burnsville, Minnesota. An optional tour to compost barn dairies will be held on Thursday, June 21. This conference and tour is very quickly becoming an international event, with attendees already registered from Holland, Israel and Canada as of May 18.  Deadline for registration is June 4.

We have been conducting research to better understand and optimize the use of compost barns and that research will be presented at the conference. Our compost barn team is multidisciplinary and includes U of MN researchers from Ag Engineering, Agronomy, Animal Science, Applied Economics, Soil Science, as well as experts in the use of agricultural and wood byproducts, marketing of compost, and more. Collaborating with us are the real experts, the dairy producers utilizing compost barns who have shared their knowledge of the system and allowed us to conduct research at their dairies. They are crucial members of our team. We appreciate their partnership.
One of the areas we are currently investigating is the use of materials other than sawdust for bedding. A laboratory scale study was conducted by researchers in the Department of Soil Science. A pilot cow study is being conducted by Animal Science researchers at the West Central Research and Outreach Center in Morris. What we found out so far is that the best bedding material is sawdust. It is hard to beat its absorption capacity, structure, particle size, easiness of mixing, etc. However, some alternatives appeared promising. These materials would preferably be used in combination with sawdust, but some could possibly be used alone. According to the laboratory and pilot study results, wood chips and finely processed soybean straw, corn cobs and flax straw were the best bedding alternatives to sawdust. Corn stalks are not a good option, as they lack the structure needed to make the system work. Additional materials and mixtures need to be tested.

Presenters at the conference on June 22 will be from the University of Minnesota, USDA, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Agricultural Utilization Research Institute, and Minnesota Mulch and Soil. Several topics will be addressed including: composting dynamics, bedding material options, layout and design of compost barns, pack management, cow comfort and performance, economics, and use of finished compost. In addition, a producer panel will include a virtual tour and question-and-answer session with three compost barn producers - Dan Barka, Andrew Golberg and Tom Portner (who, with his brother Mark, built the first compost barn in Minnesota in 2001).

The optional tour on June 21 will take attendees to three compost dairy barns in Minnesota. Buses will leave from the Holiday Inn, Burnsville with a possible stop at the Holiday Inn, New Ulm to pick up additional attendees. Dairies included in the tour are:

1. Dean and Elizabeth Johnson (Storden) who have used a compost barn since December 2003. They are milking 65 cows with a rolling herd average of 23,300 lbs and SCC of about 160,000. They have two cover-all type barns that are used for housing their cows.
2. Porthaven Dairy, Tom and Mark Portner (Sleepy Eye) who constructed a second barn in summer 2005. They are milking 215 cows with a rolling herd average of 25,500 lbs and SCC of about 225,000.
3. Mike and Judy Sellner (Sleepy Eye) who have housed cows in their barn since December 2004. They constructed a Winkler hoop barn that features scissor gates and Big Ass Fans®. They are milking 84 cows, averaging 78 lbs per cow per day and SCC of about 90,000. Mike uses a rototiller behind the tractor to aerate the bedding.

The conference and tour will be a great opportunity not only to learn about research results and producer experiences, but also to network with producers and other attendees from around the country and the world.

For registration information and more details check the conference web site (www.ansci.umn.edu/compostbarnconf.htm) or contact Bonnie Rae at 612-624-4995. For more information about the conference program, contact Marcia Endres at 612-624-5391.