UDC 636.083.143+631.879.4
DOI 10.36461/NP.2025.76.4.015

EFFECT OF COMPOST AS A BEDDING MATERIAL ON POULTRY FARMING
¹A.N. Bastrakov, Candidate of Biological Sciences, Researcher,
²D.Yu. Ilyin, Candidate of Biological Sciences, Associate Professor,
³I.V. Sokolov, Chief Executive Officer, ²G.V. Ilyina, Doctor of Biological Sciences, Professor,
²A.I. Zyabirov, Doctor of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor, ²M.L. Ilyina, Student
¹A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences,
²Penza State Agrarian University, Penza, Russia, tel. (8412)628-151, e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
³Biogenesis LLC

The poultry farming in Russia makes a significant contribution to ensuring the country's food security. Floored housed broiler breeding predominates in meat poultry farming, so this research is aimed at developing sustainable bedding materials. Composts are of great importance being the bioconversion of solid livestock or organic waste. Current research was carried out to study the microbiological and physicochemical properties of the “Biogenesis” compost in order to assess its compositions with coniferous wood shavings as essential bedding material for turkeys.
The “Biogenesis” compost is the processing of organic waste by the larvae of the fly Hermetia illucens. Properties of the “Biogenesis” compost, its compositions with coniferous wood shavings, and the granulated compost were examined. Microbiological evaluation revealed no pathogenic microflora, indicating the safety. Microbial counts ranged from 1.1×105 to 3.6×108 cells/ml, with the highest values determined for the compost without wood shavings and the lowest for the granulated compost. The granulated compost is characterized by minimal moisture capacity, while the compost composition with coniferous wood shavings in a 1:2 ratio had the highest. The highest ammonia sorption capacity per unit mass was observed for the compost composition with coniferous wood shavings in a ratio of 1:2, the lowest – for the granulated compost (the mass fraction of ammonia after saturation increased by 9.25 times, 7.75 times and 2.14 times, respectively).
Based on the data obtained, it is possible to recommend the compost in combination with coniferous wood shavings, thereby reducing the volume of sawdust used in production.
Keywords: poultry farming, floored housed poultry farming, poultry waste, compost, veterinary sanitation.

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