A new slurry storage system is helping a Yorkshire farm reduce fertiliser costs and improve crop performance.
Installed by A-Consult, the 2,200-cubic metre concrete tank includes a pump and mixer from Whitchurch-based Landia.
Nigel Lee, the farm proprietor, said: “Before we chose A-Consult and Landia, there was a suggestion that we could use a tractor to drive a PTO-driven stirrer to mix the slurry, but that wouldn’t work for us because our two tractors are normally used as a pair.
“We preferred the option of an electrical submersible mixer, which would do the job at the push of a button at minimal cost; offset from the 50kWp solar panels on our grain store.”
The setup serves a 600-acre, mostly arable site where pig numbers increased from 2,000 to 3,200, prompting the need for additional slurry storage.
Mr Lee said visiting another pig farm using the same system helped him make the decision.
He said: “Seeing it all first-hand showed me how simple yet very effective this installation would be.
“The A-Consult concrete tank and the Landia equipment also made far more economic sense for the long term.”
He praised the ease of installation, noting that “the panels for the new tank were up in a day.”
Howard Burton from Landia said: “Some pig farms like the flexibility of the portable trolley mixer from Landia, which stops the build-up of crust that would attract flies.
“It’s a very neat installation with the covered tank, pump, mixer, ladder, gantry, manway, top-fill pipe and transfer pipe, with just a 24-hour timer on the mixer and manual control on pump, it pretty much looks after itself.”
Even the first use of the new system showed benefits.
Mr Lee said: “Because the Landia mixer does such a good job of homogenising the slurry, we get a better uptake with uniformed nitrogen, phosphate, potash and trace elements.
“We’re on course to make a saving of between £40,000 to £50,000 per year on our fertilizer bill.”
He also highlighted the environmental advantages.
Mr Lee said: “The covered A-Consult tank helps protect the environment by greatly reducing ammonia and methane from going into the atmosphere – and retains the valuable nitrogen for use in our soil for crops.”
The farm applies the slurry to oilseed rape and wheat in spring, maximising nutrient value while minimising environmental loss.
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