As commercial fertilizer prices continue to rise, farmers are increasingly turning to livestock manure to offset their input costs. However, unlike custom commercial options, manure is highly variable, making uniform application a hurdle.
To bridge this gap, researchers at the UW Dairy Innovation Hub are independently evaluating real-time sensor technology designed to track nutrient variability on the fly. Utilizing tools like John Deere’s Harvest Lab 3000, which relies on near-infrared spectroscopy, the technology measures nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium as manure is pumped through tankers or draglines. This allows operators to see exactly what nutrients are hitting the soil.
“So the idea behind this manure sensor project is really to look at how we can track that variability in real time,” says Joe Sanford, an assistant professor at UW-Platteville and within the Dairy Hub.
He notes that the tech helps ensure a field isn’t getting too much or too little, which directly impacts a farmer’s bottom line.
While the technology offers clear benefits for large-scale dairies and custom operators handling millions of gallons, widespread adoption faces regulatory and data privacy obstacles. Currently, state regulations for permitted farms still require annual laboratory manure analysis, meaning the sensor cannot yet replace official nutrient management paperwork. Furthermore, concerns over data ownership and how information might be used against a farm cause lingering hesitation among some producers.
Sanford explains that independent data remains vital for building confidence in these high-tech investments. Private tech companies are eager to cooperate with university researchers to prove their tools work under local conditions.
“At the end of the day, farmers trust is what needs to be built and that independent review is what builds it,” he says.
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