Human manure in sustainable agriculture
Western European agriculture, particularly in the Netherlands, faces significant environmental challenges due to overfertilization with artificial fertilizers and animal manure. This practice leads to excessive nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus levels, posing health risks, degrading water quality, and reducing biodiversity. Artificial fertilizers and animal manure are also energy-intensive to produce, geopolitically sensitive, and part of exploitative economic structures. This project investigates a revolutionary alternative: using human manure for agricultural soil management.
Goal
- Explore the barriers to incorporating human manure into food chains in the Netherlands.
- Identify procedures, agencies, or legislation hindering the commercial use of human manure.
- Develop strategies to overcome these barriers and promote sustainable agricultural practices.
Building on partnerships with organizations such as Broodje Poep, Woongroep Wegel, and farms De Ommuurde Tuin and Veld en Beek, this project adopts a practice-based experimentation approach. With Veld en Beek Farm the team wants to look into the permits to compost and use human manure commercially, tracing bureaucratic and practical procedures, and exploring methods to close nutrient cycles by collecting human manure from farm members. With De Ommuurde Tuin and Woongroep Wegel the teams looks in their experience with non-commercial human manure use to guide best practices and ensure safety and effectiveness.
By addressing the barriers to using human manure in agriculture, this project seeks to make agricultural systems more resilient, sustainable, and environmentally friendly. Through collaboration and innovative practices, we aim to transform nutrient management and promote a healthier, more sustainable future for Dutch agriculture.