There are fertilizer products available in the marketplace today that didn’t exist a year ago. TerraNu MicroPack, TerraNu Ignite and TerraNu Calcium are new offerings from Midwestern BioAg. What’s unique about these products is that the basic ingredient is derived from byproducts left after processing manure through an anaerobic digester. TerraNu Nutrient Technology dries this product and turns it into granules that can be mixed with existing fertilizers and applied to aid in crop growth.

The company behind the new TerraNu product line is Midwestern BioAg, based in Madison, Wis. The first plant built to convert these manure byproducts into fertilizer products is located near Fair Oaks, Ind. Tony Michaels, chief executive officer of Midwestern BioAg, says the project came together through years of cooperation with Prairie’s Edge Dairy, part of Fair Oaks Farms.

“It’s all about a new dietary system for nutrients for plants, but it took a lot of cooperation to get us to this point,” Michaels says.

Douglas Rosenberg, Midwestern BioAg’s chairman of the board of directors, adds, “Partnerships are everything in this venture. It wasn’t just figuring out how to dry and granulate the product; it was also about adding nutrients to it. This is where the future lies.”

According to Mike McCloskey of Fair Oaks Farms, “Manure by itself is not neighbor-friendly. We turned to the digester process many years ago to help reduce problems with flies and odor.

“We converted manure into natural gas, and built the first 42 trucks that run on 100% natural gas to transport our products. Working with Midwestern BioAg and creating these granules through new technology was the next step.”

How it works
Midwestern BioAg has built a new plant just to process the manure byproduct from the digester into fertilizer granules not far from the headquarters of Fair Oaks Farms. The plant uses huge equipment to dry the product, removing excess water so it can then be processed into granules. Basically, the manure byproduct goes in at one end and fertilizer granules come out at the other.

One fertilizer industry journalist attending the unveiling of the plant commented, “It’s just another fertilizer plant — you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all.”

Some of the equipment used in the plant may be the same as in other fertilizer plants, but that comment misses the point. Nowhere else does someone start with the raw product of manure and turn it into fertilizer, Michaels points out. The plant began making product this spring, and is now on line, he adds.

How products are used
There are three different granulated products coming out of the plant, as noted earlier. Which product the plant makes depends on which other nutrients are added to the processed manure base, Michaels explains. The processed manure base with nutrients added becomes the TerraNu granules in the last step of the process. Essentially, the plant can custom-make a product to fit the needs of the customer.

The end goal is to produce easy-flowing granules that can be mixed with dry fertilizer blends. The blend typically includes a relatively smaller amount of the manure granules compared to the amount of commercial fertilizer in the mix. Adding the granules helps pick up benefits that you would normally get from manure, representatives say.

There are plots in Indiana this year where fertilizer mixed with TerraNu products was applied. More will be known about performance after harvest.

Questions remain, including how the products will be priced to be competitive with other sources of nutrients. However, easy-to-handle granules made from manure is a reality.

“We’re excited about the potential,” Michaels concludes. “This is totally new technology that resulted from many people and companies working together.”

Check out the slideshow for an inside look at the plant.