Meat and bone meal as nitrogen fertilizer to cereals in Norway

Abstract

Meat and bone meal (MBM) contains appreciable amounts of nitrogen (N), phosphorus and calcium making it interesting as fertilizer to various crops. The effect of Norwegian MBM as N fertilizer has been evaluated in pot and field experiments. The soils used in the pot experiment were peat and a sand/peat mixture, both low in content of plant nutrients. The field experiment was carried out on a silt loam. In the pot experiment increasing amounts of MBM gave significantly increased yields, although there was a partly N immobilisation shortly after seeding the soil based on peat organic matter. In the field experiment there was no period of N immobilisation and good N effect was found also for small amounts of MBM (Total N 50 kg ha -1 ). At total N 100 kg ha -1 there were no significant differences in grain yield of spring wheat between the treatments with MBM, mineral N fertilizer, and combination of MBM and mineral N fertilizer (N 50 kg ha -1 from each). The results indicate that the relative N efficiency of MBM compared to mineral fertilizer is 80% or higher, if MBM is applied to cereals in spring.

Meat and bone meal as nitrogen and phosphorus supplier to cereals and oilseed rape

“…The result is in accordance with Jeng et al (2004), who found that N efficiency in MBM compared to mineral fertilizer was 80% or higher.…”

“…Nutrients contained in meals are found in both the organic meat and the inorganic bone fractions, the latter being released at a much slower rate than the former. Jeng et al (2004Jeng et al ( , 2006 showed fertilization effect of 80% of the total N in MBM already in the first growing season. The readily available P (ammonium lactate extractable P) of fresh MBM represented 33-40% of its total P, and MBM-P efficiency was about 50% compared to mineral-P in the first year (Jeng et al 2006).…”

“…Many research centres have undertaken investigations on use of various slaughter by-products as fertilizers. Soil amendment with animal meals has proven to generate satisfactory yields of crops, especially cereals and grasses (Salomonsson et al 1994, 1995, Jeng et al 2004, 2006, Ylivainio et al 2008, Simoes et al 2012. Currently, studies are carried out to evaluate the quality of yields after application of meat and bone meals or fertilizer products made from animal by-products (Chen et al 2011.…”

Phosphorus availability in residues as fertilizers in organic agriculture

“…The commercial fertiliser product Ladybug plus and meat and bone meal also had almost no available P either the first or second season. Previous research has shown better P availability in meat and bone meal, although it depended on the type of meat and bone meal (Jeng et al 2004, Bøen and Haraldsen 2013, Brod et al 2014, Nogalska et al 2014. In natural soil P will be released by decomposition of organic material, and in soils poor in P arbuscular mychorrhizal associations may increase P availability (Gollier et al 2011).…”

“…Other residues/waste materials were meat and bone meal (MBM), ash (ASH), wet composted food waste (CFW) and fish sludge (FS). MBM is waste from slaughterhouses and has been assessed in a number of previous studies (Jeng et al 2004, Brod et al 2012, 2015ab, Bøen et al 2013. ASH is bottom wood ash originating from wood and mill residues (Brod et al 2012(Brod et al , 2014.…”