URBANA, Ill. - University of Illinois Extension will offer a unique workshop for livestock producers who use, or are considering, mortality composting. The Animal Mortality Composting Workshop will be held on Friday, Nov. 3 from 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. near Perry, Illinois.

“This workshop gives livestock producers the opportunity to visit a demonstration composting site and talk with a variety of experts on mortality composting,” says Neslihan Akdeniz, a clinical assistant professor with the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering at U of I and a member of the Illinois Extension Livestock Facilities and Manure Management team.

The workshop begins at John Wood Community College Agricultural Education Center. The morning session will include several presentations on different aspects of carcass composting including new technologies available to help producers. Ted Funk, professor emeritus in ABE, will discuss general requirements for successful on-farm mortality composting. This will include a range of options to ensure regulatory compliance. Akdeniz will explain how to manage for an efficient, nuisance-free mortality system. Matt Robert, Natural Resources Conservation Service engineer, will talk about facility designs NRCS supports and management requirements for the resulting systems.

In the afternoon, the workshop will move to the U of I Orr Agricultural Research Center, where attendees will rotate through three demonstration stations. Discussions and demonstrations will include moisture control, selection and mixing of a carbon source, measuring temperature in the compost, and site-specific design. “We will conclude the day by turning a compost pile that has already gone through a full heat cycle so that producers can see when they should turn a pile and what it should look like,” according to Stanley Solomon, U of I Extension educator.

All bio-security precautions will be implemented at the farm.

Exhibitors have been invited representing builders, composting equipment suppliers, and service providers. Attendees will have opportunities to visit with the vendors and exhibitors during and after the program.

Registration is available online. Space is limited and registration closes on Oct. 26. There is a $25 fee for the first registrant and $10 for any additional persons from the same farm. Registration includes lunch for each attendee and a heavy-duty thermometer (one for each farm represented) to use in composting. Spanish translation will be available on site.          

The workshop is sponsored by Illinois Pork Producers Association, Illinois Soybean Association, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and University of Illinois Extension. For more information contact Neslihan Akdeniz at 217-300-2644 or Stanley Solomon at 815-235-4125.