DIGEST-IT

What is DIGEST-IT?

DIGEST-IT is a microbial inoculant added to slurry that increases nutrient recovery from slurry, reduces ammonia emissions from slurry and grows better quality crops, by improving soil health.

Why use DIGEST-IT in slurry?

In DIGEST-IT, a mixture of molasses, sugars and seaweed are added into a natural mother culture derived from slurry and soil. Composting, facultative and aerobic bacteria are the result of this process of fermentation. The benefits of using DIGEST-IT in slurry include:

• Reduces fuel costs, consumption and time required to agitate and pump slurry
• Reduces smell from fresh slurry when agitating or spreading
• Reduces surface crusting
• Reduces ammonia emissions from slurry
• Converts solids into plant-available liquid nutrients
• Improves fertiliser nutrient levels
• Improves soil fertility

“Our aim is to maximise grass production and utilisation, with less reliance on chemical nitrogen. Using DIGEST-IT® is key to this, as it increases the fertiliser value of the slurry, while at the same time reducing odour and rejection issues around grazing.”

“DIGEST-IT® improves the fertiliser value of my slurry and helps me on my mission to grow more grass as efficiently and cheaply as possible. I will be using DIGEST-IT® across all my tanks from now on.”

“Slurry is easier mixed when it is treated with DIGEST-IT®. We definitely see a reduced smell. The worms are surviving in the ground. We are growing more, better quality grass. We can now utilise slurry in our rotational grazing system.”

What is DIGEST-IT?

DIGEST-IT provides a rich food source for microbes as well as dormant aerobic bacteria species that are able to feed on and use the ammonia gas as a source of nitrogen to grow, thus turning it into microbial nitrogen. DIGEST-IT breaks down the solids in the organic material, decreasing chances of blockages during spreading.

Why use DIGEST-IT in digestate?

DIGEST-IT captures ammoniacal nitrogen that is continually being volatilised into the atmosphere as ammonia. The composting microbes that are present break down the dry solid matter and convert the released ammonia into organic and ammonium nitrogen. Benefits of using DIGEST-IT in digestate include:

• Grows better quality crops
• Increases NUE
• Reduces agitation time
• Reduces odour when spreading
• Easier to pump and apply = Handling benefits and lower fuel costs
• Reduces solid matter in liquid digestate by 29% and increases the available ammonium nitrogen fraction by 20%
• Improves soil health by supplying "good" microbes to the soil
• Is kinder to the soil organisms living in your soil, including worms
• Has a lower Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) than untreated slurry
• More quickly absorbed into the soil = lower risk of N losses to atmosphere