TESTIMONIALS

Good Neighbor System Neutralizes Odor and Dust in Hog Finishing Unit

Hogs have a bad reputation because of the odor and dust generated from livestock housing units. Columbus farmer Bill Luckey knows all about their bad standing with neighbors and communities.

“I live 6 or 7 miles from Columbus and I wanted to add a 2,000-head finishing unit to bring my son Lucas back to the farm. Our family's 480 acres of cropland wasn't enough to support the family, so I started to finish hogs under contract with another farmer. Some of my neighbors were not too sure about the move, but the Good Neighbor System that controls odor and dust has helped tremendously,” Luckey said Nov. 8.

Good Neighbor System
Odors generated in livestock housing can exit the facility and make their way to downwind neighbors, said Gary Rapp of Rapp Technologies who created the technologies that make up the Good Neighbor System.

“Even systems that utilize external manure storage will have some manure within the housing itself, creating odor. Additionally, there will be odors and dust particles from feed and odors that cling to the animals themselves. Odorous compounds tend to be carried on dust particles and therefore, strategies to reduce odors from animal housing focus primarily on housekeeping measures that reduce dust and gas emissions,” Rapp said. The Good Neighbor System consist of two processes a deep pit treatment and atomization system which stops the problem of odor at the farm.

Controlling pH Levels
“The system measures the pH in the pit and injects a neutralizer that elevates the pH level. The increased pH level reacts specifically to the short chain fatty acid gasses that produce the offensive smells of the decomposing manure, thus emissions are significantly reduced by the oil layer which is surface applied to the accumulations of waste.” Rapp said.

The system has been on Luckey's farm for two years and has been very successful in controlling odor in the air. He also installed an atomizer system that sprays pigs with a fine mist and reduces and contains dust inside the building.

“Equipment cost for both systems is roughly 28 thousand dollars, in addition to the oil layer of 5 thousand dollars per pit. The oil needs to be replaced about every two to three years,” Rapp said.

Paying for the cost of the system wasn't really an issue for Luckey. “The fact that the system controls odor for my neighbors and myself, and it protects my health as well was worth the investment. My wife Nancy is allergic to pig and she can walk in and out of the barn with the Good Neighbor System and be fine. She can also tell me when things are breaking down and need to be changed,” Luckey said.

A farmer in the state of Maryland had the first system installed in the country and Luckey has the second. John Johnson, planning director for the Madison County Planning and Zoning department has been on Luckey's farm four times since the system has been installed.

“Two times were on structured tours. But the others were unannounced visits and every time I have been on the farm I have not smelled like I have been in a hog facility or have been offended by any smell. The system seems to really work,” Johnson said.

Testimony of Dennis Willard
September 26, 2004

To Whom It May Concern;

My family is a five generation hog producer family. We have seen many changes take place in the swine industry. We started out with slopping hogs and have advanced to a 2,000 head swine finisher barn built in 1997 with first batch of pigs being delivered in 11/97. With all the new and modern technology that is available on the market today for swine producers, we can see this way is the best way to raise the best pork for our consumers.

When we first started using our 2,000 head finisher barn, we began getting odor complaints from our neighbors. These neighbors referred these complaints to the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE), who have been very faithful in monitoring our barn since that time. According to MDE the complaints were as high as 40 some neighbors complaining, but now MDE has been basically getting complaints from just one neighbor. Unfortunately, this neighbor began having problems with our barn even before the pigs were delivered, as she had already called our local health department complaining of pig odor before the pigs even arrived.

It was at this time we began various pit additives which did help when first applied, however, this was short-lived until the complaints came again.

At this time, MDE along with our Purina field man informed us of Mr. Gary Rapp's odor control system and explained briefly how it operated. We became very interested in Mr. Rapp's project and proceeded to contact him after which time we installed his entire odor control system in our 2,000 head swine finisher barn. This whole procedure took place in three different phases until final completion was made in June, 2003.

Since the final completion of the installation of Mr. Gary Rapp's system in our barn, MDE has not reported any odor complaints to us for nearly a year.

We have been very happy with this system. The dust has completely disappeared; the barn is crystal clear from one end to the other. The pigs seem to be very content with greatly improved respiratory status since Mr. Rapp's system was installed. Also, the environment of the barn is greatly improved for those working in the barn with the pigs, especially noticeable during and after time of shipment of pigs. The ammonia odor is greatly reduced, thus further improving the respiratory status of the pigs. Pigs are growing more uniform with less tail-enders and all tail-biting has minimized. I have had improved growth rate with pigs finishing about 10-12 days earlier than prior to Mr. Rapp's system. Last, but not least, we have had very good swine production rates, see chart below for comparison of mortality and feed efficiency rates.

In summary, we are very content with Mr. Rapp's odor control system in our barn. We are amazed at the improvements seen with each phase of installation. The first phase consisted of incorporation of the oil seal on the manure pit on one side of the barn only. Even with just the initial phase, I was amazed to see the environment in the barn completely clear of all dust on the treated side of the barn as compared to the untreated side. The second phase consisted of applying neutralizer to bring the pH level up to the correct level which made another big difference in the overall health of the pigs with pigs being more active, less coughing, and just minimal odors being noticed in the treated side of the barn. The final phase was the atomization system which was installed on both sides of the barn. With this final installation being complete, the entire barn is now a very good working environment for both pigs and workers.

The following table will demonstrate the quality of the pigs during both before and after Mr. Rapp's system was completely installed. This information was extracted from my records showing the mortality rate and feed efficiency rate of my pigs.

DATES MORTALITY RATE FEED EFFICIENCY RATE
2/98-6/98 5.29 2.61
12/99-5/00 5.5 2.72
1/03-7/03 1.22 2.53
03/04-8/04 1.28* 2.48

*This particular rate of mortality was affected by an issue dealing with feed. Some producers experienced a mortality rate as high as 10% at this time.
Note: Since the installation of Mr. Rapp's system, I had only two pigs that did not meet market weight with the last batch of pigs shipped out to market which is really unheard of with the average being 262 pounds.
In summary, I have proved that Mr. Rapp's system has contributed to me being the top swine producer for Deer Stone Ag., Inc., through the improved environment in our barn attributed to Mr. Rapp's odor control system.

Sincerely,
DENNIS L. WILLARD

MORE TESTIMONIALS:

• The Sense of Smell & Being a Good Neighbor
• Maryland Department of the Environment Pg.1
• Maryland Department of the Environment Pg.2
• Maryland Department of the Environment Pg.3
• Maryland Department of the Environment Pg.4
• Maryland Department of the Environment Pg.5
• Maryland Department of the Environment Pg.6
• Maryland Department of the Environment Pg.1