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Intermediate
Products based on Miscanthus Stable and high yields on Miscanthus
plantations in the absence of marketable products and realistic marketing strategies
are a concept for disaster and can lead to frustrations and the giving-up of valuable
Miscanthus plantations. The as of today existing and promising intermediate
products with good value added are (a) moisture adsorbing pellets, which
have already been tested with
(a) unsurpassed success, e.g. in horse boxes
(b) disposable table-ware
(c) Binders for oils and fats. Special construction
materials. NaWaRo Miscanthus Bedding Between
1997 and 1999 Mrs. Gallin-Ast (Electro-Farming GmbH) has been experimenting and
testing many variations of Miscanthus based bedding materials in the boxes of
thoroughbreds (mares and foals, re-convalescent horses etc.) Practically
all traditional or market introduced sorts of bedding materials and brands, including
straw with paper snips, had been included in the tests. As a result it turned
out that Miscanthus pellets are superior across all relevant criteria, such as
labour costs per box, material consumption, disposal volume, ammonia and bacteria
formation, storage costs and cost/performance ratio. Pellets
made from natural Miscanthus are turning after a short period into a stable, non
slippery dry mat in the box. Miscanthus bedding mats are binding urine excretions
and are drying up at the surface, bacteria formation is suppressed, ammonia emissions
and raising temperatures are absent. The overall
hygienic conditions in the boxes seem to be highly improved, the climate in the
boxes is stabilised, i.e. warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer season
and odours are missing. The health condition of the horses is generally improved.
An important advantage is the more comfortable
and less time consuming work in the boxes. Time spent and volume disposed are
reduced by 50%, resulting in savings in labour and disposal costs. Used bedding
material can be disposed on agricultural plots as a fertilizer or used as a feedstock
for energetic purposes in local closed loop biomass projects. Reference
- electro farming (English index) 
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