AU607501B2 - Improved nutritional value of food - Google Patents

Description

607501 COMMONWEALTH OF AU (,RALIA PATENTS ACT 1952 COMPLETE SPECFCATION

(ORIGINAL)

FOR OFFICE USE: Form Application Nlumber: Lodged: Class Int. Class Cornpleie Specification Lodged: Accepted: Pubil.,hed: Prior~ty:0 00 0 00 0 o oO R elIa te4d ATt, 0 0 o o 0 0 00 000000 TO BE COMPLETED BY APPLICANT Name of Applicant: ERGO AUSTRALASIA PTY. LTD.

00 0 0 0 a0 0 0 0 0 Addregs'dfApplicant: 12 Waddikee Road, Lonsdale, Stdt :e of South 0 0 0 00 4 Actual Inventor: 00 aCC Address for Service: Australia, 2'omionwealth of Australia ROBERT JOHN TOWNSEND and DOUGLAS FREDRIND TREHARNE Care of R.K. MADDERN ASSOCIATES, 345 King William Street, Adelaide, State of South Australia, Commronwealth of Australia Complete Specification for the invention~ entitled: "IMPROVING NUTRITIONAL VALUE OF FOOD" The following statement is a full description f this invention, including the best method of performing It known to us.

2 This in *;ntion relates to a method and also to a means for the improvement of nutritional value of food for plant or animal purposes. Plant food according to this invention is applicable as a fertilizer, and animal oo( is applicable as a treated vegetable product.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Considerable advantages are obtained by pelletizing foodstuffs both for animal consumption and also for plant food when used as a fertilizer. In both cases the losses are much reduced. The material is more readily handled 0 00 0 0 0 0ooo and can if required be readily discharged from a machine 0 0o O0 0 00.0 in the case of fertilizer. However for pelletizing, it 0000 0 0 a o00 is desirable that the moisture content should be low, 0 0 0000 o preferably between 8% and 15%, depending partly on the 00000oooo product being pelletized, but the raw materials usually 0 0 have a very much higher moisture content, and it is 0 0 0 o00 0 therefore necessary to effect a drying step in the process of pelletizing the material.

0 00 0 0 .000 For plant food or fertilizer, the invention includes a method for the processing of manure waste, and for OO"" 0 example if poultry litter is processed, it is necessary to reduce the "burning" effect by decomposiition of ammonium cyanate (an isomer of urea). This is achieved in the invention by the application of heat.

If certain vegetable matter such as faba bean forage -2is to be pelletized for use as animal food, it is necessary to partly break down the fibrous structure and increase the drying rate by modification of the permeability of the cell membrane, and this ilso is achieved by heat. Faba bean plant can have a moisture content of about 16% to 70%, and poultry litter, and especially manure, can also have a high moisture content.

To dry by application of heat we id be uneconomical, and this invention seeks to provi' an economical method of production.

Briefly in this invention a method of improving S® the nutritional value of plant or animal food comprises 0000 a the following steps but not necessarily in the order 0000 oooo S° shown:- 00 0 a Air transporting particulate food material 0 Io 0 through a conduit by entrainment in an airstream for sufficient time to reduce moisture content; 0 00 o o0 and 0 63 0 Pelletizing the particulate food when it has -0o.°o a moisture content of between 5% and 15%. (A 0000 moisture content of 8% is regarded as suitable.) The invention can also include pulverising the ,000 f 0 C particulate material in a hammer mill.

The invention is particularly descLibed with respect o certain vegetable products suitable for animal food and for poultry litter suitable for fertilizer, but, with the necessary changes being made, can be applied to other vegetable matter or litter. The background of poultry litter, faba bean and lucerne is set out hereunder in more detail:is -3i -l-i, Poultry Litter Poultry litter can be unpredictable in its analysis and can be contaminated. If husbandry practices are stabilised, genetics stabilised and food input to the birds is stabilised, the analysis is more predictable, and less susceptible to contamination. -he lowest moisture content raw material litter has been found so far to be rice-hull based.

A high quality organic plant food can be 0 oC oo.. produced from pelletized poultry litter 0 00 00 0 on especially litter which is rice-hull based.

0000 0 0 0 00 Other bedding may be selected to grow the birds 0 00 0o o 0 00 0 on, dependent upon local availability of cost 000006 effective material. These materials may include seaweeds, straws, wood chip or paper wastes.

a oo In addition specific minerals may be incor- 0 06 porated within the litter base for later harvest o o00 0 0 when those minerals may be reactively incorporated into the biomass with time. Rockphosphate for example could be incorporated.

Food for plants generally comes from the soil and elements are absorbed generally in soluble or ionic form, an H+ ion exchanged for each cation absorbed and anions absorbed in weak base form, e.g. K po 4 and HP04 Crushed rock-phosphate is generally insoluble phosphate and is only available as a plant nutrient if it is made more soluble by the addition of acid, for example, in the production of "super" phosphate. If that raw material is subjected to the organic acid conditions of a biomass such as poultry litter it is made more availhle to the plant when eventually the phosphate-rock enriched material is takdn from the shed in which the birds were 0 OO 0, 0 housed after they are fully grown. Poultry 0 00 oo 00 o husbandry practice with rice-hull bedding allows 0000 0 0 0 00 top-up of litter base rather than the complete 0 00 0 0 0 removal after a single batch of birds had been 00o000 0 0 grown. Practice has shown that husbandry 0o standards can be maintained using 'top-up' 0 0o o o0 techniques with rice-hulls. The litter biomass 0 0 0 is thus enriched with larger amounts of bird 0 O 0 00 00.o manure containing essential minerals in a biological balance. Australian soils are oao o generally deficient in organic matter and phosphorus. An organic-base phosphorus enriched product is a logical progression to replace the "super" which has improved crop yields in the past. Furthermore poultry litter raw material may be modified to create organic metallo complexes which still support an active microbiological onvironment naturally occurring in poultry litter but can provide replenishment to particular soils rendered deficient in particular elemonts due to prolonged selective cultivation, "Hoalthy" soil contains all nutrients essential for plant growth but as the balance of nutrients in the soil changes with selective cultivation some nutrients become "tied up" or unavailable to plants. Essentially o 00 0.0 the electrical forces bonding the nutrient 0 00 0.00 within the soil structure are too great for the 0000 0 0 0 00 0 plant to overcome. Recycling of nutrients 0 00 00 0 0000 available to natural soil organisms initially, 0 000000 150. 0is the way in which locked up nutrients are made available in some soils to crop plants.

0 00 0 00 Replenishment of an available nutrient without effecting the soil biosphere is difficult due to O 00 000 the limited and finite spatial distribution being achieved within the soil biosphe:re. In the short-term, good responses may b: achieved but 0 long term (20 to 50 years), the peppering of a top-soil profile renders the soil less viable in terms of organic chemical equilibria and microbial symbiosis. Raw poultry litter and poultry manure have been long recognised -6as useful soil fertilizors but nave disadvantagos such as bulkiness, smell, danger of disease spread, unpredictable analysis, and toxicity to plants by causing "burning" a phenomenon which varies in definition of understanding from chlorosis or yellowing of leaves at abnormal times of the year to wilting and death in both mature and immature plants. It has been determined that this plant toxicity can be due to ammonium cyanate, an isomer of urea 0 00 0..0 and the "biuret" contaminant of urea 00 0 ooo fertilizers. Selective steaming is a well known 0000 0 00 00 0 technique in the production of pelletized animal 0 00 0000 feeds for optimum preservation whilst 0 maintaining quality control as to degree of 00 sterilization versus retention of digestible 0 00 potential as food. Ammonium cyanate decomposes 0 oor O 00 at 60 0 C, so that fine hammer milling of Urea 0 00 0 0 0000 granules containing ammonium cyanate (the T"biuret" of urea fertilizers) may, by mechanical 0 V heat generation within the fine milling, reach temperatures beyond the decomposition temperature of ammonium cyanate, and thus, that is eliminated.

It is well known that poultry manure left to "cure" loses its "burning" effect as it -7composts to high temperatures. Another practice has been to spread the manure or litter in summer where soil temperatures may exceed and thus decompose the ammonium cyanate well prior to seeding a crop. Significant nitrogen losi;es occur as gaseous ammonia in these dry hot conditions as the damp bulky litter is spread. This nitrogen loss occurs to a lesser extent with composting but nevertheless is still significant. Pelletization of the fresh 0 0 0 poultry litter will minimise those inherent 0 00 00 losses. Steaming at around 85oC will destroy 0000 0 o 0 00 0 many disease spreading bacteria commonly found 0 00 0 0 0 000 in raw poultry waste but normal soil saprophytic 000000 sporulating organisms are preserved.

Faba Bean (Vicia Faba) 0 0C S00 Very high moi ture content materials will 0 00 0 0 0 0 00 require some form of artificial drying or solar 0 00 0 oo 0000 drying to reduce the moisture content to a level where it may be handled by air transfer.

Leaf protein fractionation where proteins 0 '30 are precipitated from macerated young lucerne and harvested by ultra-filtration is a well established technology.

Separation of such protein rich fractions by precipitation from an air-flow is a new approach on this large scale.

-8- Extraction of water by pumping off is more energy efficient than boiling off at 100 0 C by approximately 20% to 25% in an ideal situation.

The system of dehydration of a high moisture content biomass will involve a costeffective formula of commercial evaporation/dehydration using the following criteria: Maximise surface area of the biomass.

0 00 o Minimise time to dehydrate.

oo o Control temperature of the biomass to 0000 0 a 0 oo 0 no greater than 118 0 C by pulsed energy 0 00 0o o 0000 inputs and vacuum phase to extract water 000000 1 to less than 30%. This temperature is critical for protein preservation.

0 0 0 0 00 Lower temperatures would be required for o 00 more sensitive components to be harvested.

0 00 oU0 This technique has been utilised in, for example, freeze drying of valuable biological f products.

Vicia Faba or broad-bean or faba bean species has been considered as it is readily produced and high yields of protein per hectare can be achieved as seed.

0 00 o 0 0 t oo 0 0 0 a c 0 o 0000 0 00 0o o However, reference is made to page 188 of the article in the Journal of Agricultural Science Cambridge (in 1979), to a report by N.P. McMeniman and D.J. Armstrong.

This states that "the results of this product indicate that unless another method oi protecting the protein proves successful, beans are not an ideal form of protein supplement for cattle since high levels would have to be fed to increase significantly the amount of T.A.A.-N (total amino acid nitrogen) reaching the small intestine".

At the time that article was written, it had already been shown by Lonsdale and Taylor in 1969 that a satisfactory result was achieved with a feed conversion efficiency of 17% in nine month old steers, when dried and pelleted, whole crop vicia faba was fed ad lib and consisted of 50% of the total dry material intake, t'i remainder being maize silage.

In 1982 Redshaw and Gaudiel concluded that comparison of the data with NRC dairy cattle requirements 1978 showed that as a livestock feed faba bean forage would only require manganese supplementation.

With minor modification only, the diet would be applicable to other ruminants, for example sheep and goats Vicia Faba plant, in particular, has the fol ,vng properties. It is: Unpalctablo to ruiminantoi in 11I~e f')Im LUp"Allu;-tihle 24 hours post treatment with woc(icido (wilted); 4 comparo with Salvation Jano (Pattornono Curar Palatable to carnivoros (domestic (log freoh stenaed and oli (four woeks) dehydrated loco than 2W6 and mouldy~.

Turns black within three to four hours on zaposure to light at 250C and at more than 30 0 C this tim is less. Has little adverse known effect on palatability and nutrition 'to anim-tal species stated.

0 00 0 (1 '1 elanin (Melatonin) is produced, how-,ever wahich is 0000 not known to be harmful.

0000 0 00 Total N x 6. 25 crude protein, most of which has 0 00 0 0

C;

0000 been identified histologically as protein in leaf 000000 l1 9 0 and biochemically in lignin (stonm) of Vicia Faba 0 00 0 0 0 0 00 Major transportation of N (Nitrogen) in Vicia Faba 0 00 00 0 0 00 is in amino-acid form not as inorganic maolecules 0 Oq 000 or ions such as nitrate.

2o. High yield expectations for raw material are feasible 0 13C eg. 3,000 to 3,500 hoctares roruired, to oupLport one operatLional unit c- 20, 000 tonnes of finiohed prudu~jt annually) using cult ivars ooecLuc for vegetativea performance aa well.. aas protcein yield.

-11- Thus is may be concluded that at the time of this invention, it was already known that vicia faba beans were capable of being used satisfactorily as a sup 'Ic to a low protein diet, but difficulties identified included that Lhe food conversion o~fviniency for ruminants was too low to alwaysI ho economically viable, and that anti-nutrient factLor-, are2 deleterious to monogas tric animals. This invention is ab.le to provide a cost eIffoctive process which -Will preserve valuabJ.o food components and alter the nature of the original biomass of(for example) the vicia faba plant to an o xtont that Lpotontial protein yield maximised-,--.

00(3) Lucerne Hay C0 C ccC Bales are broken and introducod into a 00 000000 ingredients to balanoo, theu final product, The hatmmer mill pulvoriseo and blends- the material S00 0 00 to a condition wherein its particleszei o 00 0 saitable for pollotizinj and the material drops: 0 0 into Lin air-streara and io transported. Furthor 0 OCIO oeparation f moisturoe from particulate :maLte,,r occurs in a transporting conduit and (tho raw material is precipitated into a pollet pros j,; feed bin.

Two, embodiments- of the invention are Jeaccibed hor~ounder in some detail with reference to and are illustrated, in tho acoompanyin- rwnsi hc: -1 2-'ig i hlh Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic layout showing the means and method for the improvement of nutritional value of plant food (fertilizer); and Fig. 2 is a similar drawing but showing the layout for the improvement of the nutritional value of faba bean.

As shown in Fig. 1, raw material in the form of poultry litter for example is stored in a raw material heap 10, and the moisture content is likely to lie between 17% and 28%. (The hot fresh finished product usually has a moisture content of between 15% and 19%. This is fed by any suitable means (elevator, auger or air transfer) into a raw material bin 11. Tt is augered by auger 12 from the raw material bin 11 into a hammer mill 13.

l The final projuct is likely require the addition to prescription binding agentr or enrichment to balance the diet, and these are taken from respective heaps 14 and 15 and fed into an additives bin 16, again by means which may already be known. Additives zre metered in by auger 12(a).

Trace elements may be added by using controlled wearoff from hammer mill blades for example cobalt rich steel to introduce cobalt or manganese steel if appropriate.

The hammer mill 13 pulverises and blends the material to a condition wherein its Particle size is suitable for pelletizing, and it is transferred by means of air, driven by the first blower 17 into a press feed bin The hammer mill is on the upstream side of the blower and thorofore is at a relatively low pressure, and return air is fed back to the hammer mill through conduit 18, The upstream conduit 18A between the first blower 17 and the pellet press feed bin 19, is in practice, made sufficiently long for a considerable drying to occur of the pulverised material.

Pulverised material is stored in the bin 19 and when required it is transferred to a pellet press 3®1 which is a press of known type, in this eroodiment a "Sprout and Waldon" pellet press made by Jaybee Engineering, Melbourne, Australia. The transfer is by eoans of an auger 21 which is aided by the output of the first blower 17. The material entering the pellet press 20 has about 8% moisture content, the remainder of the moisture having been evaporated by the air transfer. However it would enter the pellet press S0 at ambient temperature, or even a lower temperature 0.oo because of the moisture evaporation, but to break down the ammonium cyanate, destroy certain pathogens (bacteria) and to raise the temperature sufficiently for the material to be readily pelletized, superheated steam is injected through n nozzle 22 from a boiler 23, and this effectively raises the temperature without excessicvly raising the moisture content of the material, The output of the pellet press 20 is fed into a conduit 24 with a venturi arrangement, and rod to the -14- 3 li-A.

C 0 a C 0 0 oa 00 0 F 0 0 00 0 o ct e a oo 0 0 0 i o o0 top of a cyclone 25. The cyclone 25 will throw out the pellets and also any unpelleted fine particles of material, and the moist air vented to atmosphere through outlet 27. Conduit 26 will carry hot air to the venturi pick-up from the pellet press. This treated air -imits pellet damage in transfer after initial pellet formation.

Air intake for the blower 34 forms the air flow through the pellet cooler vanes. It is necessary that an airbalance valve 27A be placed on the input side of blower 34 to balance air and moisture venting out through outlet 27.

The pellets are passed into a pellet cooler 28 wherein they are traversed by air before it passes back through conduit 26. A paddle wheel type conveyor mechanism within the pellet cooler 28 delivers the pellets through to a fines separator 31 which contains within it a reciprocating screen 32 which separates out the fines which are driven by a second blower 33 back to the pellet press The transfer of the pellets through the conduit 24 is by the third blower 34, while a fourth, blower delivers the pelletized product through a conduit 36, the pellets being fed into the conduit 36 through a venturi tube 37.

While the sketch shows only one cyclone 25, use can be made of a second cyclone 39 (shown dotted in the drawings) to receive the output from the hammer mill 13 and the first blower 17 and provide a more positive separation of air and particles than is achieved with F i i~ r a the arrangement shown. In that event, the return conduit 18 to the hammer m.ll would be from the cyclone 39 rather than from the press feed bin 18. Some venting of moisture can occur from cyclone 39 if dust traps are used.

By judicious control of the pressures effected by the various blowers, a simultaneous drying and air transfer can be achieved of the particulate material.

For example the pressure at the upstream side of hammer mill 13 can be sl.ghtly sub-atmospheric while the pressure in the feed bin 19 can be considerably above atmospheric pressure. Use can be made of paddle wheel conveyor devices similar to the paddle wheel 30 to partially seal the 0000 o,'g press feed bir 19. These are however not illustrated 0 00 o 0 herein. However pressurization aids the flow into the 0 1 auger 21 on the lower side of the feed bin 19 and this not only assists in the transport of the material but o9 0 C also assists in the removal of moisture. The air flow 0 00 O 00 rates and the travel distances are selected if possible o a a so that the final product will have a moisture content of about 8% when pelletized, this reducing after about S five weeks storage to about 5 1/2% in hot summer

C

weather.

The paddle wheel 30 seals the air transfer system 35-37 while allowing delivery of pellets into the venturi pick-up of system 35-37. Paddle wheel 30 is motorised and rotation rate is adjusted to output rate of finished product. It is a positive material air input system -16- I i The conduit 36 is shown to be relatively short and in practice is made sufficiently long to promote further drying of the finished product prior to storage or packaging.

Because of the high forces involved, the standard type of pellet press is too flexible, and requires some stiffening. In order to improve the stiffening and reduce excessive deflection due to the cohesive characteristics of the product, the forward bridge tensioning system needs modification. In the standard pellet press, two rollers are spaced from one another and are driven so that S 0o oo.: their peripheries are eccentric, providing a cam action o 0O ooo° which extrudes the material through apertures in die 0000 O° o plates. In this embodiment, a bearing mounting plate 0 a.o extends between the axles of the two rollers, and is 0 provided with a cam type adjustment which enables a ready adjustment to be made of the space between the periphery 0 00o 0 00 of the roller and the die plate.

0 00 o 0 o0 It must be emphasised that the above arrangement 0 oo Mo. is only one of a number of alternatives available to a designer for the production of pelletized organic products for agriculture, which becomes a diet for animal and plant growth.

There are a number of advantages in using the process, and the pelletized manure product produced thereby has the following benefits:- -17- Non-wetting sands become wettable and thereby more capable of supporting plant growth; Soil acidity is not increased, because of the neutralising effect on chemical fertilizers with acidic pH which are otherwise frequently used; The soil texture is improved and structural deficienciets are made up; The product supports the soil biosphere; The product provides nutrient focuses and 0. moisture focuses; The product is more easily handled mechanically 1 than untreated poultry litter or other organic

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C Cmaterial; In many instances seeds contained within the 2 t litter are rendered sterile by the process; Because of the high temperature to which the 0o material is subjected by the superheated steam, O0o 0 00 0 oo the material is more hygienic; 11 0 0 o oo Since the ammonium cyanate is substantially 0 00 broken down, the "burning effect" of raw manure is substantially eliminated; The nutrients have slow release characteristics; (11) The material re-establishes microflora which may otherwise have been depleted by conventional farming practices; -18r__ (12) The material provides a pH buffer which has the effect of maintaining the soil pH within a smaller range than otherwise is achieved with chemical type fertilizers; (13) Because it is a simple balanced diet for plants, it compares well with expensive slow-release chemical fertilizers and has been found to be more cost-effective; (14) Use of this product is for soil rehabilitation and fertility maintenance and in the production of high quality standards of horticultural and market gardening crops; .oo (15) It has a high fertilizer conversion efficiency; .00 (16) It is a "living" fertilizer.

0 Reference is now made to Fig. 2.

0aa00 0 It will be seen that much of the equipment in Fig.

2 is similar to that in Fig. 1, and similar elements 0 00

O

6 bear similar designations.

0 0 The object of keeping the faba bean (other legume 9^Q plant) is to harvest and subject the plant to rapid dehydration and compression to increase the feed density under conditions of controlled temperature, and thereby both the protein yield and the nutritional quality of the Vicia Faba or other legume may be significantly increased above that available by the mere use of the beans or other legumes.

-19- C ii -ll ~iT ~I

J

fr The husbandry of the plant is as follows: Seed is sown to a density of about 70 to 90 plants per square metre and at a depth which will vary in accordance with local conditions but usually of between 11/2 inches and 2 inches. A cultivar is selected which is tall growing so that when it is approximately 800 mm in height, flowering would have just commenced although this again will vary with climatic conditions since flowering is initiated by environmental factors.

It is beneficial if the soil selected is high calcium low iron, and that ample potassium and phosphate exists or is applied to the soil. In dry areas irrigation should O. 0 be used. The soil biosphere must be 'healthy'.

0009 0 0 °09 The planting takes place between late autumn and early spring, and is staggered so that there is a supply a Dao of the crop for subsequent treatment, the planting time and predicted harvest time being synchronised for this S purpose.

o0 The crop is sensitive to excess water, and excess @4.oo water can cause flower shedding, accelerating vegetative growth at the expense of reproductive growth, and eventual seed yield.

The vicia faba plants have the ability to fix nitrogen and this appears to be resistant to short-term water stress once the vegetable growth is well established, and imr's.3ition of a water deficit in the early stages of reproductive development increases flower shedding. Experimental evidence indicates that plants with flowers which were continually removed to prevent fruit formation showed delayed senescence and possessed more protein than controls for a given area of planting.

By promoting the vegetative growth and delaying the reproductive growth, and planting the high plant density, a high protein content of between 20% and is available at harvest time if plants, which at maturity would reach two metres, are harvested at about 800 mm in height, for whole crop forage production.

o 00 0.0o It is essential that the heat processing after 0 00 ooo° harvesting is quickly commenced. The plant is immediately 0 0 0 0o 0 cut by chopper 40 into lengths of about 20 mm and is 0 o o0 0 0 0 i 0 macerated. It is protected from light and transported 000060 0 0 as rapidly as possible on a conveyor 41 through a tunnel 42 where it is subject to super heated steam which is o00 at a temperature of about 275 0 C for a period of between o oo and 20 seconds. It should be subject to heat before 0 00 0 0 0 2@ o° four hours have elapsed from harvesting. This has the effect of subsequently increasing the drying rate by cl modification of the permeability ou the cell membrane.

The biomass is also treated with a small quantity of sodium chloride so that in the finished product the sodium chloride content, lies between 1% and 3% of total dry material. The salt ,olution has the effect of altering 1_ ~LI the chemical composition by precipitating certain proteins in the bio,,.ass, and while other salts may be used to achieve this, sodium chloride has been found to be adequately effective.

The biomass is then transfered by means (not shown) to a pressure vessel 43 which is closed, heated to a temoerature near but not beyond 120 0 and under low pressure conditions effected within the pressure vessel by the vacuum pump 44. This has the effect of quickly removing further moisture to a level of around 30%, raw material is precipitated out, and moisture bled off.

o "0 The product is placed into a storage bin 45, if necessary under an atmosphere of inert gas, and also under ultra a 0 oo: violet light imposed upon the biomass on a series of I.s9 tubes 46. The purpose is to inhibit fungal-spore a0 o 0*0 germination. The pH of the biomass at this stage should be between 7 and 8. A pump 47 extracts any moist air o 00 from the storage bin. A mould inhibitor may be added to further avoid spoilage by fungal growth.

'j3.

s The storage can be for a period of time which may vary within very wide limits, but from the storage bin the biomass is withdrawn and subjected to the hammer mill 13 which pulverises the material. (It may also be subject to a hammer mill before storage in bin 45.) The material is air transferred to the pellet press storage bin 19 to further separate moisture from particulate matter and the biomass is handled as in the first embodiment.

-22-

O

As shown in Fig. 2, extracted dust is fed to the boiler 23 to supplement other fuel, the boiler 23 providing the steam required for both the tunnel and the pressure vessel 43.

As the product is subjected to its hammer milling, appropriate additives may be put into the product (to create a balanced ration for example), particularly manganese in the case of a product for feeding to dairy cattle, and the material is mixed with steam (if necessary in a steam chest) at about 140 0 C to assist "binding" and "disinfection" of the material as it is pelletized o° by the pellet mill 20, where bentonite may also be added.

4 oo oo Q" Alternatively, the biomass may be compressed or 0009 oo a otherwise increased in density as appropriate for 0 transport and final processing at a more remote location a o o040o Salthough pelletizing is particularly suitable as a finished product.

S0 V, 0 0 Inherent losses of nutritional value occur in the preservation of a large biomass. To overcome these losses S a combination of stages described above include: 1. Strategic plant husbandry techniques to maximise potential protein yield; 2. Maceration of the crop; 3. Treatment of the material with superheated steam; 4. The addition of salt to provide the final salt content of between 1 and 3% on a dry material basis of the final product; -23- L Heat up to 118 0 C or less, while simultaneously removing the moisture so that the biomass is dehydrated to contain less than 30% of water; 6. Holding storage under controlled microbiological conditions; 7. Hammer milling; 8. Air transport of material; 9. Selective steam disinfection; Pelletization.

The process appears to create rumen by-pass protein protein), and heat labile anti-nutrient factors to monogastric animals are significantly reduced to a safe .t level, by the combination of the high temperature steam, t salt treatment and controlled temp'rature exposure.

3 In the horse and other non-ruminant herbivores the C t product also shows potential.

Its potential for the pig industry and other Sintensive farming industries appears to be limited only o0 by fibre content, and strategic harvesting can modify this, but moisture content is inversely proportional to fibre content (to a certain extent), so a balance must be achieved in economy of scale.

This invention is a cost effective method for the preservation of high protein vegetable matter. It is not necessarily limited to vicia faba, but can be applied to other crops the necessary changes being made.

-24t The second embodiiment described with respect to Fig. 2, is applicable to the following biomass: High protein fresh chopped immature forages with low (20% or less) fibre, e.g. Vicia Faba and Lab Lab bean (Lab Lab Purpureus); Byproducts from dairy industry, e.g. whey and from the brewing industry, e.g. dundar and spent brewers grains, (as additives); Seaweed abundant supplies of which occur on Australian beaches, identified for their possible growth promotant content (Cytokinins).

(Posidoniaceae sp. o0 Fresh or ensiled poultry waste (PL and PM) So o 0 '000 0° o and other wastes; with significant protein drya 00 00 0 IS." matter residue.

000000 In the case of lucerne hay it is not necessary in all instances to subject the hay to the initial steps 0 00 0 0 0 0 00 described in the second embodiment, that is the 0 0 0 o b application of steam and sodium chloride. The hay can o oo ,0o° immediately be placed into the storage bin 45 and from which it is transferred to the hammer mill 13 and entrained in an airflow created by the blower 17 and transferred to the hopper 19 in the same way as in the first embodiment. The remaining steps are as described with respect to the second embodiment, including the bleeding of moisture from the cyclone 25, which can have a 0 duct traD above it a' ijhown in Fig. 1, wheruin a dunri trap 39 io positioned above the pellet press feed bin 19, Notwithatanding that in the case of lucerne heating is not alwayo essontial, but is nevertheless desirablD in most instances.

From the above, it will be seen th-t the invention can provide the following:- 1. The efficient production of two simple balanced diets: one for ruminants and other animals, economically limited essentially by fibre 0 00 °o content in intensive feed-lot productior but sOo' °0which can by simple pellet blending still provide a valuable high protein feed supplement.

00 0 13. The second is a "balanced diet" for plants, Pelleted poultry manure waste which is microbiologically active, but disinfected of 0a Smany pathogens (but preserving soil saprophytes) and the composition of which may be enriched to prescription.

2. The creation of an organic-base microbiologically active, phosphorus-enriched pelleted fertilizer is described, Pellet crumbling and dry blending with chemical fertilizers or mineral rich earths to inoculate those materials to improve availability of nutrients.

-26i 3. Detailed husbandry techniques to produce the raw materials of optimum quality in respect of each diet.

4. Consideration of other biomass of potential in the blending of one or more of these ingredients or additives with those defined in more detail within the embodiment viz legumeforage and poultry litter.

Removal of ammonium cyanate contamination in the food croduction.

6. The use of poultry litter as a major °aw material in pelleted feed formulation.

7. An efficient dehydration system of handling high moisture content raw material biomass by entrainment in an air stream prior to pelletization or other method of decreasing bulk density.

8. Inoculation of soils with defined but natural micro-flora normally present in healthy soil to rehabilitate affected soils, improve nutrient availability to plants and to maintain soil viability where chemical fertilizers are used to provide major nutrients and stimulate crop yields.

9. To improve the availability of essential mineral elements locked up in mineral-rich -27fOrtilizeri usud to roplonich ools do iciont in KIef mod' mlncrn2l Componont~o.C 11arvostLng and oprosorvathion or- dofined microflora from manure wastes.

11. Inoculation and incubation of appropriate organic-base to create micro -bi olog ical focuses.

t 44 -28-

Claims (6)

1. 2. A method according to claim 1 further comprising subjecting said food to a hammer milling process before pelletizing said food. 0* 3. A method according to claim 2 further comprising entraining said food in an air stream in a conduit after its said subjection to hammer milling, and delivering 4 4 said food from the conduit to a pellet press feed bin and storing it in that feed bin before said pelletizing r l of the particulate food.
2. 4. A method according to claim 2 or claim 3 further comprising heating said food to a temperature exceeding 600C before subjecting to said hammer milling. A method according to claim 4 further comprising effecting said heating of the food by application of steam thereto before it enters the hammer mill. -29-
3. 6. A method according to any one of claims 2 to further comprising subjecting said food to the application of steam as it enters a pellet press for effecting said pelletizing.
4. 7. A method according to any one of claims 2 to 6 further comprising mixing additives with said food before the food is subjected to said hammer milling.
5. 8. A. method according to any one of claims 2 to wherein said food is animal food, comprising harvesting a growing plant material, sub-dividing the growing plant into short lengths, applying steam to those short lengths,
6. 51.*f I and then transporting said short lengths to a hammer mill for effecting said hammer milling operation by entrainment S of said short lengths in an air stream in a conduit. t l 9. A method according to claim 8 further comprising retaining said air transported short lengths in a storage bin before subjecting to said hammer milling operation. 9 10. A method according to claim 9 further comprising applying a low pressure to said storage bin and storing slit said short lengths under that low pressure. 11. Means for improving the nutritional value jf plant or animal fC-od comprising a hammer mill, a pellet press feed bin and a pellet press, and characterised by a conduit extending from the hammer mill to the feed bin and a blower coupled to the conduit to create an air stream therein, said conduit being in air flow communication with said hammer mill such that particulate output of the hammer mill is entrained in that air stream, the conduit being of sufficient length that the moisture content of the entrained particulate hammer mill output is reduced during entrainment to a level of less than by weight. 12. A method substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying d crawings. 13. Means substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying S drawings. Dated this 1st day of June, 1988. o *ERGO AUSTRALASIA PTY. LTD., By its Patent Attorneys, R.K. MADDERN ASSOCIATES S o a uf *L f y 0 4* -31-