What Is High-Bed Farming? A Detailed Guide to Its Advantages
No need to wash the pig pens, and pig manure and urine do not need to be separated; they are mixed directly with bedding material, turned and piled for fermentation, and turned into organic fertilizer. This high-bed pig farming model not only helps pig farms solve the difficult problem of waste disposal and helps them save energy and increase efficiency, but it is also favored by World Bank environmental protection projects and receives a considerable amount of funding support every year. Let us take a closer look at what high-bed farming is and what advantages it has.
1. What Is High-Bed Farming?
The full name of high-bed farming is “high-bed fermentation-type ecological pig farming model.” This farming model combines pig production with waste treatment and uses the principle of microbial aerobic fermentation to convert pig farming waste into solid organic fertilizer. It can ensure normal pig production while reducing water use, achieving zero wastewater discharge, and with low operating costs, it basically solves the pollution problem of pig farming waste.
The main approach is to use a two-story high-bed pig house for raising pigs, in which the second floor is used for raising pigs, while the first floor uses the principle of microbial aerobic fermentation and uses organic bedding such as sawdust to absorb the pig manure and urine produced during pig farming, which ultimately becomes organic fertilizer.
2. Advantages of High-Bed Farming
1. No water is used for flushing during pig farming, reducing the amount of wastewater generated at the source and reducing investment in waste treatment;
2. Pig production and waste treatment are organically combined, and the principle of microbial fermentation is used to convert pig manure and urine into solid organic fertilizer, turning waste into treasure and realizing the reduction, harmlessness, and resource utilization of pig farming waste;
3. Improve the farming environment, raise the production level, and increase farming benefits;
4. Save land and use land resources efficiently. The main approach is to use a two-story high-bed pig house for raising pigs, in which the second floor is used for raising pigs, while the first floor uses the principle of microbial aerobic fermentation and uses organic bedding such as sawdust to absorb the pig manure and urine produced during pig farming, which ultimately becomes organic fertilizer. Technical unit of the high-bed fermentation-type ecological pig farming model: pig house structure. The pig house has a two-story structure; the second floor is used for raising pigs and adopts temperature-controlled ventilation equipment and a fully slatted floor structure. During pig production, no water is used for flushing, and the pig manure and urine produced fall through the slatted floor into the bedding on the first floor. The first floor of the pig house is 2.5-2.8 m high and is the organic fertilizer production workshop, laid with bedding such as sawdust to absorb the pig manure and urine produced during production. The bedding thickness is 60-1750px, and machinery is used every day to turn and pile the bedding. Under the action of aerobic microorganisms, the pig farming waste ferments and degrades and is transformed into organic fertilizer.