That’s because his chickens’ feed is infused with phosphorus, a nutrient the birds need to stay healthy — and Shaver doesn’t make the feed.

But the farmer wants to apply his poultry litter, a mixture of manure and bedding material, because it also contains the nitrogen his crops need to grow.

The plants, however, use nitrogen more efficiently and leave too much phosphorus in the soil than is healthy for the environment.

“The new [state] nutrient management programs are based on phosphorus and that puts the hurting on us,” Shaver said.

That’s because if Shaver applies litter according to the state’s program, his crops might not get enough nitrogen.

On Wednesday, Virginia’s poultry companies signed an agreement to lower phosphorus in poultry feed — a move that could benefit Shaver and other farmers in the future.

The Agreement

Representatives from Pilgrim’s Pride Corp., Cargill Turkey Production LLC, Perdue Farms, Virginia Poultry Growers Cooperative Inc., George’s Foods LLC and Tyson Foods Inc. signed the agreement at the Harrisonburg Municipal Building.
 

Virginia’s Secretary of Natural Resources L. Preston Bryant Jr., the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry Robert S. Bloxom, Virginia Poultry Federation President Hobey Bauhan and Department of Conservation and Recreation Director Joseph Maroon also were present.

The companies agreed to a 30 percent reduction in the phosphorus content of poultry litter by Dec. 31, 2010, by adding the enzyme phytase to feed for turkeys, broilers and other birds going to market.

The companies already have achieved close to a 20 percent reduction, Bauhan said.

After it’s ingested, the enzyme increases how much phosphorus in the food is available for birds. Different types of birds need varying amounts of the nutrient to grow strong bones and sustain performance.

In turn, the birds excrete less of the nutrient, creating a fertilizer higher in nitrogen and lower in phosphorus, said Russ Perkinson, the state’s nutrient management program manager.

In this way, less phosphorous will find its way into the Valley’s rivers and streams, according to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. Too much of the nutrient in the water produces excess algae, which robs sunlight and oxygen from other plants and aquatic animals.

“It’s good news for [farmers],” Shaver said. “It’s going to benefit the poultry industry and the environment.”

Work In Progress

The companies have been using phytase since the late 1990s, when the state provided cost-share programs to help companies buy equipment to infuse feed with the enzyme, Perkinson said.

“At that time, this was a new technology and we thought there was some potential in funding this equipment,” he said. “That’s since paid off and we’re pushing it to the next level.”

The agreement now takes the use of the enzyme a step further by encouraging companies to maximize its effects and bring phosphorus levels down, and to communicate more closely with the state.

For example, the agreement also called on the DCR to start testing phosphorus levels in the state’s poultry litter each year, beginning July 1.

By focusing on lowering excreted phosphorus with the enzyme, Bloxom said, producers will also be more inclined to conduct research and create new ways of protecting the state’s waterways.

“It turns the spotlight or focus on one tool,” Bloxom said. “You’ve got the tool you need and all the companies have agreed to use it.”

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