Turning Chicken Manure into Fertiliser in 5 Steps

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Turning Chicken Manure into Fertiliser: A Value-Added Guide for Zimbabwean Farmers

Most Zimbabwean poultry farmers treat chicken manure as a nuisance to dispose of. Nonetheless, it is an an opportunity to create income without any further costs. If you also grow crops on your property, this also reduces chemical fertiliser costs, and you can sell the excess to neighbours at a meaningful margin.

Whether you are working with broilers or roadrunners, a small operation can produce tonnes of raw organic material. When composted the manure can replace a significant portion of Compound D and Ammonium Nitrate. You can already see why chicken manure is valuable. This guide will explain how to make the commpost correctly and safely, and how to turn the surplus into a sellable product.

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Why Chicken Manure Is the Most Valuable Animal Manure in Zimbabwe

Of all animal-based manures, chicken manure carries the highest concentration of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K). Referred to as NPK value, these are the three most essential plant nutrients for good crop growth.

Fresh Chicken Manure Nutrient Profile:

Fresh cow dung manure contains 0.2 to 0.3% nitrogen while goat manure has between 0.5 to 0.7%. With up to 0.9% N,  chicken manure is consistently the richest natural fertilizer that is easily accessible to the smallholder farmer. Manure from layer chickens that consume limestone may also contain up to 6% Calcium (Ca). The chart below shows estimated nutrient content for fresh chicken manure.

Nutrient	Content %
Nitrogen (N)	0.5 % to 0.9%
Phosphorus (P₂O₅)	0.4 % to 0.5%
Potassium (K₂O)	1.2 % to 1.7%
Calcium (Ca)	6.0%

Broiler litter

Broiler litter is the mixture of chicken manure and wood-shavings that accumulates on the floor of a broiler house throughout a production cycle. It is particularly valuable because the bedding adds carbon, which reduces nitrogen volatility during composting, and produces a more stable, slower-releasing final product. A ton of well-composted broiler litter contains approximately 25 to 35 kg of available nitrogen, 15 to 20 kg of phosphorus, and 15 to 20 kg of potassium — plus calcium, magnesium, and other essential plant micronutrients.

Layer manure

This type of manure comes from cage or deep-litter layer systems and is even higher in nitrogen due to the chickens’ concentrated diet. But it has lower carbon content than broiler litter. This means layer manure composts faster but can lose nitrogen as ammonia if not managed carefully. So, some farmers mix it with wood shavings to make it more stable. The nutrient value in a ton of composted chicken manure is roughly equivalent to  12 to 15 kg of Ammonium Nitrate (34.5% N) for nitrogen alone.

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How to Compost Chicken Manure: Making Perfect Fertilizer in 5 Steps

Get the ball rolling; make sure that you have a shaded composting area. Follow these 5 simple steps to create your commercial-grade fertilizer.

Step 1: Gather the Raw Materials

The compost’s primary materials are nitrogen and carbon. Get the raw chicken manure (nitrogen-rich) and gather materials such as dry maize stalks or dry leaves (carbon-rich). The ideal carbon-to-nitrogen ratio is 25:1 or 30:1. But since fresh Chicken manure already has a 6:1 to 10:1 carbon-nitrogen ratio, you can use 2:1 to 4:1 (2 to 4 parts dry leaves with 1 part manure). You must also have water source and basic tools such as a garden fork

Step 2 — Build the Heap

Choose a shaded area on your farm, away from the poultry to prevent pathogen from affecting your birds. Build a heap at least 1 metre wide and 1 metre tall. Then layer the materials, alternating between carbon material and  manure, and mixing as you go. The heap should feel damp but not dripping wet. Add water if dry, add more carbon if soggy.

Step 3 — Check if the heap is heating up

Within 3 to 5 days of building the heap, microbial activity breaking down organic matter raises the internal temperature to 55°C to 70°C. Check if the heap is heating up. This step is important because the high temperature kills salmonella and weed seeds. If the heap does not heat up, add more manure (nitrogen), more moisture, or improve aeration. If it smells strongly of ammonia, add more carbon material.

Step 4 — Turn the Heap

Turning the heap introduces oxygen to the microorganisms doing the composting work. Move the outside of the heap to the inside and vice versa, ensuring that all material go through the hot centre. Turning also evens out moisture distribution and accelerates decomposition. Turn the compost twice first at 7 to 10 days, then at 18 to 22 days.

Step 5 — Allow compost to Cure

Now, wait for the heap to cure properly. The internal temperature has to drop and the materials must darken. The strong ammonia smell goes away when the nutrients have stabilized. Under active management, it takes 4 to 6 weeks to create a perfect fertilizer, safe to apply on plants. With slack management, the process may take up to 12 weeks.

The Pfumvudza Approach

The government-run Pfumvudza conservation farming utilizes the principle of building nutrient-rich organic matter into specific planting zones. A simplified version for manure composting is to dig a shallow trench in a future planting row, fill it with the manure and carbon mixture, and cover with soil.

The in-situ decomposition feeds directly into the root zone of the next crop without requiring a separate compost bay. This method is slower as it takes 10 to 14 weeks but requires less labour and eliminates transport costs of finished compost.

Application Rates: How Much Compost to Use Per Crop

Applying too little chicken manure limits crop yields while too much fertilizer builds up phosphorus in the soil over time and can cause burning in high-concentration spots. Here is how to use chicken manure correctly for different plants.

Maize

Apply composted chicken manure 10 to 15 cm into the soil as a basal dressing before planting. Apply the compost 0.5 to 1 kg per square metre or 2 to 5 tonnes per hectare. Chicken manure does not replace Compound D entirely, but it’s a supplement that cuts down the required amount by up to 50%. This means you only need to apply Compound D at half rate if you are using chicken manure.

Vegetables (Spinach, Rape, Covo, Tomato, Cabbage)

Vegetables respond well to the nitrogen-rich chicken manure compost. Apply 2 to 3 kg per square metre, worked into the top 15 cm before planting. Use additional 500 g per square metre four weeks after transplanting for leafy greens. Do not apply within 120 days of harvest for crops eaten raw (salad, spinach). A 60 to 90-day pre-plant application with proper composting is safe for leafy greens.

Fruit Trees and Perennials

Apply 2 to 5 kg of composted manure per tree in a ring around the drip line, incorporated lightly. Do this at the start of the rainy season (October–November) for most fruit trees. Avocados, mangoes, and citrus respond particularly well to chicken manure compost.

How Much Manure Does Your Flock Produce?

Within a 35-day production cycle, 100 broiler chickens produce 120 to 170 kg of effluent. This combines with wood shavings from the bedding to make up to 250kg of raw manure. Although this is technically waste matter, this is where fertilizer production numbers come from.

Layer operations produce less litter per bird in cage systems that have no bedding. But they produce manure continuously rather than in cycles. A 200-bird layer flock produces approximately 700 to 1,000 kg of manure per month. The following table outlines annual manure production for different flock sizes.

Operation scale	Flock size	Litter per cycle	Cycles/year	Annual litter output
Small smallholder	100 birds	170–250 kg	7.5	1.3–1.9 tonnes
Mid smallholder	500 birds	850–1,250 kg	7.5	6.4–9.4 tonnes
Small commercial	2,000 birds	3.4–5.0 tonnes	7.5	25–37 tonnes
Commercial	5,000 birds	8.5–12.5 tonnes	7.5	64–94 tonnes

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Always Compost Chicken Manure Before Use on Crops

Fresh Chicken manure applied directly are not good for your crops. Here are three reasons why you must always compost first.

Ammonia burn

Fresh manure contains high concentrations of ammonium compounds that release ammonia gas as they break down. In direct contact with plant roots or foliage, this ammonia burns and kills plant tissue.

Pathogen load

Fresh poultry manure carries salmonella, E. coli, and other pathogens that can contaminate food crops, particularly leafy vegetables that are eaten raw. This is a food safety and public health concern. These pathogens become inactive when composted.

Nitrogen volatility

Fresh manure loses nitrogen as ammonia gas rapidly when exposed to air, sun, and wind. Applying it directly means a significant fraction of the nitrogen you thought you were adding evaporates within 24 to 48 hours. Composting captures and stabilises this nitrogen before application.

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Selling the Surplus Chicken Manure for Additional Income

A commercial poultry operation produces 25 to 90 tonnes of litter per year, from which the farmer can make large amounts of compost that exceed the farm’s fertiliser needs. Luckily, the farmer can  sell the surplus chicken manure to crop growers in their neighbourhood and make extra cash.

There is no formalised market for composted chicken manure in Zimbabwe in the way there is for Compound D or Ammonium Nitrate. But, as of 2026, you can sell bulk raw litter for USD $10 to $20 per tonne, Composted manure for $3 to $6 per 50kg bag, and dried compost for $5 to $8 per 50kg bag. These prices are typically negotiable.

You can sell your packaged and ready-to-apply chicken manure to market gardeners, tobacco farmers, small-scale maize growers. You can also list your chicken manure on the farmers directory where farmers farmers look for organic fertilizers.

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Safety Rules for Composting Chicken Manure

• Here are some things to take heed of before you start working with a compost.

• Ensure the composting heat phase is fully achieved and sustained before using manure on food crops. Layer manure has higher pathogen risk than broiler litter.

• Always compost before applying to any food crop. The process produces heat which kills salmonella and E coli, preventing contamination in the crops.

• Site your compost at least 30 metres from water sources. Leachate from composting manure carries nitrogen and phosphorus that contaminate boreholes and streams.

• Wear gloves and a dust mask when handling dry manure. The dust carries ammonia and harmful pathogens.

• Do not over-apply the manure. Excessive phosphorus accumulation from repeated heavy manure application in the same field builds up over years and creates soil chemistry problems.

• Always compost before applying to any food crop. Raw manure on vegetables is a food safety hazard. The composting heat phase (55°C+ for at least three days) kills salmonella and E. coli. Do not shortcut this.

• Do not compost near water sources. Leachate from composting manure carries nitrogen and phosphorus that contaminate boreholes and streams. Site your compost bay at least 30 metres from any water source and ideally at a lower gradient than any water course.

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Conclusion: Manure Production & Your Poultry Operation

Producing chicken manure does not only lower fertilizer costs and generate extra cash, it is directly tied to the operational quality of your poultry farm. A clean, regularly cleared fowl run or broiler house is a healthier environment for your birds. If left to accumulate, ammonia causes respiratory problems for layers.

Although you have to cover feed costs to get your birds to market weight or to produce eggs, composted manure gives you income with little or no additional capital. Women poultry farmers who have vegetable gardens have historically used poultry compost to manage input costs for their operations. In conclusion, this by-product, often seen as a nuisance, is a gold mine.

Stay current with poultry industry developments including input costs and market access on the Zimbabwe poultry news page and the ChickenPrices podcast.

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Chicken Fertilizer Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use chicken manure on my vegetable garden without composting?

No. Fresh chicken manure carries dangerous pathogens such as salmonella and E. coli, and is therefore a food safety risk on vegetables eaten raw. It may also burn the plants due to the high ammonium content.

How long does chicken manure take to compost in Zimbabwe’s climate?

It typically takes 4 to 6 weeks to compost chicken manure if you use the correct proportions and turn he heap twice. But in winter , microbial activity is slower and the process may take 8 to 10 weeks.

How much composted chicken manure do I need for a 500 square metre maize plot?

A 500 m² plot requires 150 to 250 kg (3 to 5 bags) of composted manure before planting. A small-scale broiler operation with 50 or 100 birds produces more than enough raw litter needed for this type of compost.

Can I sell chicken manure without composting it?

Yes. You can sell raw litter at but at  low prices (USD $10 to $20/tonne) since there is no no processing involved. List your fresh chicken manure in the farmers directory. If you are a buyer looking to source raw litter, check the buyers directory and the search users tool to find poultry farmers near you.

Does composting reduce the nutrient value of chicken manure?

Composting reduces the total nitrogen content by 10 to 20% as ammonia escapes during the active heat phase. However the process  increases the proportion of nitrogen that is stable and available to plants over time. This creates a fertiliser that performs better in the field.

Which crops benefit most from chicken manure compost in Zimbabwe?

All crops benefit, but the highest-value responses come from leafy vegetables (spinach, rape, covo, cabbage), maize, tobacco, and fruit trees. Legumes (soybeans, groundnuts) fix their own nitrogen and benefit less — apply chicken manure compost to the maize in your rotation and save the nitrogen-fixing legumes for the following season.

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For more on running a profitable poultry operation in Zimbabwe, see the roadrunner vs broiler profitability guide and the Zimbabwe chicken price tracker. To list composted manure or raw litter for sale, register on the farmers directory. If you are a crop farmer or market gardener looking to buy chicken manure compost, browse the buyers directory or use the search users tool to find a poultry farmer in your province.