Under these conditions they indicated that growing poultry probably would not be as profitable under typical contracts offered in the industry today. However, a broiler integrator on the panel stated that integrators were willing to participate in solving pollution problems. Nutrient Management Nutrient management is considered to be the key to solving water quality problems particularly in problem watersheds. This subject was addressed by Phil Schroeder, from Virginia Tech. Broadly speaking, nutrient management refers to control of nutrients so that they do not get into runoff or ground-water.
Animal wastes are a significant source of nutrients.
To protect surface and ground-water, waste must be properly stored after removal from poultry houses and careful planning is required before waste is land applied. Land application rates should consider the nutrient content of the waste, the soil type and the nutrient requirements of the crop to be grown on the field. Early nutrient management plans often considered only nitrogen content of the waste and nitrogen requirement of the crop. It is clear now that phosphorus levels in waste and soils must also be considered. In some cases salt content of the waste and copper and zinc levels may also need to be considered.