Investigating the Effects of Reducing Pathogen Levels in Cow Dung as an Organic Fertilizer Feedstock

Abstract

Organic fertilizer plays a pivotal role in sustainable agriculture, offering an eco
friendly alternative to inorganic fertilizers with their adverse long-term effects on 
soil health and environmental balance. However, the presence of pathogens in 
organic waste, such as cow dung, poses significant challenges to composting 
efficiency, soil stability, and end-user health. Despite its importance, previous 
studies have often overlooked the necessity of assessing pathogen levels in selected 
feedstocks, thereby hindering the optimization of composting processes. This study 
addresses this gap by focusing on pre-treating cow dung as a feedstock for fertilizer 
formulation to reduce pathogen levels. Chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total 
solid (TS) analyses were conducted on both untreated and treated samples, 
following ASTM standards D6238 and D5231, respectively. Results showed a 
substantial reduction in COD from an initial value of 293.98 mg/L to 27.02 mg/L and 
degradation of TS from 303.78 mg/L to 53.74 mg/L, indicating efficient pathogen 
reduction. Additionally, the volatile solid (VS) removal efficiency during 
pretreatment was found to be 80.1 %. It is therefore concluded that, the treated 
cow dung to mitigate pathogen levels proved to be suitable for use as feedstock in 
organic fertilizer production. This is evidence from the significant reductions in COD, 
TS, and VS concentrations by 90.8 %, 82.3 %, and 80.1 % respectively.