This Conference has been closed !

Objectives of the Conference

To provide an open platform that will enable a wide range of institutions/agencies, including national and international bodies; governmental and non-governmental organizations, research institutes/universities and development organisations to share information and exchange ideas, views and experiences about on-farm composting methods, especially rapid composting.

Background to the Conference

Growing concerns relating to land degradation, threat to eco-systems from over and inappropriate use of inorganic fertilizers, atmospheric pollution, soil health, soil biodiversity and sanitation have rekindled the global interest in organic recycling practices like composting. The potential of composting to turn on-farm waste materials into a valuable farm resource makes it an attractive proposition. Composting offers several benefits such as enhanced soil fertility and soil health, thereby increased agricultural productivity, improved soil biodiversity, reduced ecological risks and a better environment.

Even though the practice is well known, farmers in many parts of the world especially in developing countries find themselves at a disadvantage by not making the best use of organic recycling opportunities, like composting, due to various constraints like unawareness of efficient and expeditious technology, labour and investment requirements, etc.

It takes as long as about six to twelve months to obtain a good, finished compost through traditional methods. Rapid composting methods carry the advantage of producing larger quantities of compost on a limited piece of land in shorter spans. A variety of rapid composting methods have been evolved from time to time. The conference is intended to review the present state of knowledge; identify the efficient, appropriate and affordable technology for various agro-ecological and socio-economic situations; generate ideas for further progress in the areas of policy, planning, research, and development in relation to rapid composting.

At the end of the conference, based on the deliberations and inputs, a more comprehensive review will be prepared and sent to all participants and also widely disseminated.

The conference outcome would be useful in the promotion and wide-scale adoption of efficient rapid composting technologies, with the ultimate objective of soil productivity improvement of small farmers in developing countries and protecting the environment from degradation.

A number of variants of the methods evolved by various agencies for different situations are available. A desk-study would not only be a time and resource intensive process, but might not be able to capture some very useful experiences. Therefore, it is intended to facilitate the process with the help of this electronic communication. A background document 'On-farm Composting Methods', has been prepared. Though by no means it is exhaustive, it attempts to provide a brief gleaning in the prevalent composting methods and is intended to be a starting point for discussions, and receiving further contributions.

The main document "On-farm Composting Methods" is available as pdf. and word file:

pdf file "On-farm composting"

Word file "On-farm composting"