There is a threat of a shortage of poultry manure

Poultry manure has no part in the current manure placement crisis in our country. Almost all poultry manure is exported. Almost nothing ends up on agricultural land here. Nevertheless, the manure production ceiling in the poultry industry must also shrink. Such a measure contributes to a new and bizarre 'manure crisis', namely a shortage of available poultry manure for the production of organic fertilizer pellets.

In recent decades, producers and exporters of fertilizer pellets have built up a global demand market. A demand-driven market with sales within and outside Europe. A small amount remains in the country and goes to private individuals via garden centres, among other places. The growth of the sales of these high-quality fertilizers is threatened by a shortage of dry poultry manure as a basic raw material for fertilizer pellets. This threatening shortage is partly the result of government measures.

Unfair
Poultry farmers – just like other livestock farmers – are orienting themselves on the future of their business. Stopping the business now is a conscious choice due to the termination arrangements offered. This also means that the production of poultry manure will disappear. If the voluntary stoppers do not yield sufficient phosphate and nitrogen reduction, then there is still a threat of an additional mandatory shrinkage of the poultry sector. The measure, which is unfair to this sector, has no 'manure motive' whatsoever. Any relationship with better water quality in our country is missing.

Raw material for green gas
A second measure for the impending shortage of raw materials is the position of manure pellet producers on the raw materials market. Large industrial green gas producers will soon be scouring the manure market for manure types with high organic matter contents as raw material for green gas, for the blending obligation with natural gas. High biogas yields from poultry manure, relatively high sales prices for green gas (and certificates) and also the possibility for gas suppliers to pass on the costs of the blending obligation to the end users, give green gas producers a strong competitive position on the manure market. The manure pellet producers do not have this strong position. They have to purchase the raw materials on their own and without any subsidy or government support. With less available poultry manure in the Netherlands, importing manure from Germany and Belgium is a serious possibility.

Benefits of fertilizer granules
Organic fertilizer pellets as a product form have great advantages in marketing and sales, storage, application and in the accessibility of distant sales markets. The pellets are rich in nutrients per ton of product. In the distant sales markets these products are both attractive natural fertilizers and soil improvers. High yield prices are also paid for these products. Sea transport of fertilizer pellets to distant places takes place by using empty containers that return to destinations such as Southeast Asia and Africa. For transports within Europe, road hauliers are used who look for return freight.

Waiver of mandatory shrinkage
The production and export of high-quality fertilizer pellets is the best cornerstone of the fertilizer policy. In 2023, 6,1 million kilos of phosphate and approximately 8 million kilos of nitrogen were exported with fertilizer pellets. The export to more than 60 countries worldwide thus makes an important contribution to a better fertilizer balance in our country. In order to meet the growing demand for fertilizer pellets, protecting the poultry farming sector from a mandatory shrinkage is the least the government can do to prevent a threatening shortage of raw materials.

Jaap Uenk

Jaap Uenk is the owner of consultancy Mestem and has more than 40 years of experience in various positions in the Dutch fertilizer sector.

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