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Newtrient looking to expand market for cow manure

Some of the nation’s largest dairy cooperatives have founded a company aimed at developing a broader market for cow manure.

Newtrient will be led by former Darigold attorney Steve Rowe, who says research shows there is untapped value in what he calls the third output of a dairy cow.

“The first being milk, the second being tissue from the animal and the third being the brown output, which is manure.  We know they’re all the same inputs and there’s value in things found in manure that if it wasn’t there, we would have to buy and produce.”

He tells Brownfield energy produced from anaerobic digesters is only one aspect of the technology.

“It’s energy, it’s nutrient value, it’s environmental credit trading.  So if someone can reduce pollution for something less expensive than somebody else, there might be a way to generate a market of environmental credit trading-similar to Greenhouse Gas credits.”

Rowe says this venture is a first for the industry.

“We’ve never done this on a collective effort and we hope that Newtrient can develop some scale.  The large supply chain buyers of either energy or dairy; we’re engaging them to say you need to be part of this cycle of resources and economic value.”

Newtrient’s services are available to all dairy farmers and any returns for the company will go towards the Dairy Checkoff.