Teaming for Interdisciplinary Research Pre-Seed Program

Background:

Circularity- The Ellen MacArthur Foundation defines a circular economy based on three principles: eliminating waste and pollution, recirculating materials, and regenerating nature¹. The American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) recently developed the Circular Bioeconomy Systems Institute, with “bioeconomy” referring to agricultural products². Agricultural circularity was originally practiced millennia ago by farms that raised crops to feed livestock and then used the manure to fertilize the crops. However, manure does not always provide a sufficient amount or the precise application of nutrients required for optimal crop growth. As the industrialization of agriculture evolved, synthetic fertilizers have become mainstream to provide optimal crop nutrition and maximize yields. Additionally, livestock operations have become separated from crop production.

Now, these disjointed practices are causing nutrient imbalances, leading to consequences like poor air, water, and soil quality.

Poultry Industry- Georgia has been the top-producing state for poultry (broilers) for decades, with a farm gate value of $4.9 billion in 2021³. The vertical integration of the poultry industry combines all aspects from poultry farmers, processors, and distributors under a single company’s domain⁴. This organization could be beneficial to understanding and regulating waste streams across the product lifecycle. A recent survey from International Comparative Labor Studies on the impact of the poultry industry on Middle Georgia showed that at least 75% of surveyed participants believe the industry must pay the costs for chicken waste removal and do their part to keep the drinking supply safe⁵.

Our Research:

Our research will characterize the current state of circularity in Georgia’s poultry industry to help identify opportunities for improved nutrient management. We can then evaluate what-if scenarios to understand how changes in the poultry industry would affect nutrient cycling and its impact on water, air, and soil quality. We will consider nutrient pathways such as runoff and air emissions from poultry housing and processing facilities, nitrogen and phosphorus in chicken feed, storage and transportation of poultry litter, application techniques for poultry litter field application, plant uptake, soil storage, or surface

runoff following application, and alternative methods for processing poultry litter such as composting or anaerobic co-digestion. A framework for assessing the circularity of a system has been previously defined by Dr. Jenna Jamback in the Circularity Informatic Lab at UGA. This Circularity Assessment Protocol (CAP) was developed as a “hub and spoke” model identifying inputs, community, product design, use, collection, end-of-cycle, and leakage within urban systems for plastic pollution. This CAP was adapted to create an Agricultural Circularity Assessment Protocol (A-CAP) as shown here. For an A-CAP, we intend to employ the hub-and-spoke model to holistically characterize nutrient dynamics in agricultural systems, including inputs, transformation and cycling within the system, and outflows in the form of crop and commodity production or leakages into the environment.

References:

1The Ellen MacArthur Foundation. Circular Economy Introduction. https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/topics/circular-economy- introduction/overview

2ASABE. Circular Bioeconomy Systems Institute. https://www.asabe.org/cbsi

3UGA Extension. Ag Snapshots 2023 (anuual publication 129-1). 2023.

4Bryant, R.B., Endale, D.M., Spiegal, S.A., Flynn, K.C., Meinen, R.J., Cavigelli, M.A., and Kleinman, P.J. 2022. Poultry manureshed management: Opportunities and challenges for a vertically integrated industry. Journal of Environmental Quality. 51:540-551. DOI: 10.1002/jeq2.20273.

5International Comparative Labor Studies, Morehouse College. 2023. Coming Home to Roost: The Hidden Impacts of a Powerful Poultry Industry on Middle Georgia Residents. https://morehouse.edu/icls

Team Lead

Whitney Pagan
wl59680@uga.edu
Engineering
School of Environmental, Civil, Agricultural, and Mechanical Engineering

Team Members

Jenna Jambeck
jjambeck@uga.edu
Engineering
Environmental, Civil, Agricultural, and Mechanical Engineering

Casey Ritz
critz@uga.edu
Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Poultry Science

Brian Kiepper
bkiepper@uga.edu
Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Poultry Science

Joseph Usack
Joseph.Usack@uga.edu
Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Food Science and Technology

Gary Hawkins
ghawkins@uga.edu
Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Crop and Soil Science

Miguel Cabrera
mcabrera@uga.edu
Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Crop and Soil Science

Jeff Mullen
jmullen@uga.edu
Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Agricultural & Applied Economics

Wes Porter
wporter@uga.edu
Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Crop and Soil Science

Mark Risse
mrisse@uga.edu
Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Crop and Soil Science