Bone meal

Bone meal is a mixture of finely and coarsely ground animal bones and slaughter-house waste products.[1] It is used as a dietary supplement to supply calcium (Ca) and phosphorus (P) to monogastric livestock. As a slow-release organic fertilizer, it supplies P, Ca, and a small amount of N to plants.

Uses

Dietary supplement

Bone meal, along with a variety of other meals, especially meat meal, is used as a dietary/mineral supplement for livestock. It is used to feed monogastric animals with bone meal from ruminants, however, it can contribute to the spread of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) or "mad cow disease". Proper heat control can reduce salmonella contaminants.[2]

Bone meal once was often used as a human dietary calcium supplement. Research in the 1980s found that many bone meal preparations were contaminated with lead and other toxic metals; for this reason, bone meal is no longer recommended as a calcium source.

Fertilizer

Bone meal provides phosphorus and calcium to plants, along with a largely inconsequential amount of nitrogen.[3] The N-P-K rating of bone meal is typically 3-15-0[4] along with a calcium content of around 12% (18% CaO equiv.),[5] although it can vary quite a bit depending on the source from 1-13-0 to 3-22-0.

As bone meal is water-insoluble, it needs to be broken down before the plant can absorb it, either by soil acidity or by microbial activity producing acids. According to the Colorado State University, it can only be broken down in acidic soil (pH < 7.0) and releases its nutrients over a span of 1 to 4 months.[4]

History

The process was first suggested by Justus von Liebig (dissolving animal bones in sulphuric acid) around 1840 and first used in Britain by Rev James Robertson in Ellon, Aberdeenshire in 1841.[6]

Before Liebig the expansion of agriculture had depleted the soil of essential nutrients. In desperation, farmers collected the bones from major battlefields like the Battle of Waterloo and the Battle of Austerlitz to crush them and refertilize the soil.[7]

In 19th century Europe, large scale production and international trade in bone meal was seen as essential for agricultural development.[8]

See also

References
  1. Brigham and Women's Hospital. "Bone Meal". Retrieved 22 November 2012.
  2. Animal Feed Resources Information System, University of Kentucky, College of Agriculture, Poultry Extension. "Common Protein Sources for Poultry Diets". Archived from the original on 1 December 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  3. Chen, L.; J. Helenius; A. Kangus (2009). "NJF Seminar 422: Meat bone meal as nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer (abstract)" (PDF). Nordic Association of Agricultural Scientists. 5 (2): 26. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  4. Card, Adrian; David Whiting; Carl Wilson; Jean Reeders (December 2011). "Organic Fertilizers" (PDF). Colorado State University Extension. Colorado Master Gardener Program (CMG Garden Notes): 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 8 October 2014.
  5. Barker, Allen V. (2018). "Fertilizers". Reference Module in Chemistry, Molecular Sciences and Chemical Engineering. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-409547-2.00142-6.
  6. "Robertson, James (1803-1860)".
  7. Hillel, Daniel (2007). Soil in the Environment: Crucible of Terrestrial Life. Elsevier Science. p. 161. ISBN 9780080554969.
  8. Sir John Sinclair (1832). The Code of Agriculture. Sherwood, Gilbert & Piper. pp. 141–145.
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