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Manure entrepreneurs turn brown to greenMissouri Changing economics make livestock manure worth more, said planners of the Breimyer Seminar at the University of Missouri, May 22. The theme this year will be "Manure Entrepreneurs: Turning Brown to Green," said Laura McCann, MU assistant professor of natural resources economics. Livestock manure, often considered a problem, is now viewed as a renewable resource for crop nutrients and for energy. "A number of factors make manure more valuable," McCann said. Average prices for fertilizers are 130 percent higher this year than in 2000. High crop prices, increased demand for ethanol, reliance on imported nitrogen and potash, along with declining value of the dollar, make manure fertility worth more. In addition, developing countries are using more fertilizer. At the same time, high oil prices have brought renewed study of manure for energy. Manure can be burned or it can be converted into methane gas in anaerobic digesters. "There are new incentives to develop marketable products from manure," McCann said. Producers who convert manure into value-added products will tell their stories at the seminar. Some speakers will tell of funding sources for projects. Academics and government officials will discuss economics, technologies and regulatory and environmental issues. "On a sadder note," McCann said, "the seminar will honor the memory of Charles Fulhage, a manure expert and early proponent of methane from manure." Fulhage, an MU professor of agricultural engineering, died Feb. 26, following a traffic accident. The annual seminar for discussing developing areas of economics is named in memory of Harold Breimyer, an MU professor and USDA agricultural economist. One of his areas of concern was energy policy. The meeting will be from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., on the MU campus. The registration fee of $25 includes lunch and parking. Deadline for sign-up is May 16. For brochures or registration, contact Joyce White at whitej@missouri.edu or 573-882-6533. 4/14/08 Date: 4/24/08
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