Testimonials and results

“I met SOBAC by a combination of circumstances. Following a soil’s sample, a man who had come by offered me a product to help enhance the value of the manure directly in the stalling. At that time, I had a giant pile of it outside. I tried but the following year, in 1998, the merchant shut down. Fortunately we had one bag left. It was Bactériolit. I called SOBAC directly and one of its man¬agers, Raymond Fabre, came by to see me. In between, I had done a trial with a product coming from Brittany, based on algae. With Raymond, we chatted almost the whole afternoon. He came back and it all started! 5 years later, the entire farm was working with Bactériolit.

I understood right away that, composting the manure was an asset, for working time and workforce. No need to take it out, we take it directly from the stalling to spread it on the fields at any time during the year.

In the Bactériosol trenches, the implanting was of 120 cm when it was only 60 cm on the other trench. 
In terms of worms, we were going from 405/m2 to 45/m2

I also did some conclusive trials with Bactériosol. It’s not a fertiliser, so it means that there are alternatives to NPK or lime. In other words, I realised that there was something else than the Coops to make the grass grow. We stopped using chemicals, that is to say, 50 tons of lime and 10 of potash. We completely stopped spreading nitrogen in the meadows. We just go with 30 to 50 units depending on the year and the state of the crops by the end of winter.

Once everything is set up, it’s economically worth it. In two ways actually. You can’t only look at the price in comparison with fertilisers; you also have to take into account the evolution of the fields. We started being independent on grass right from the beginning. The grass is impressive. I can sell hay every year. However, I am not entirely independent on food since I still have to buy proteins. 

In terms of fodder, the improvement is obvious; it grows more without using any nitrogen

When we had a cold spring like this year (2010), we felt it was starting slowly. In my neighbours’, it grew well with nitrogen, but for how long? 15 days and then it stopped. Whereas with SOBAC’s products, once it starts, it never stops growing. Today, beginning of November, it is still growing. I doubt it is the same thing in the farms of those who spread 70 or 80 units of nitrogen in order to do Ray-grass silage. With nitrogen, in 3 days, the grass is dark, the cows have “liquid poop” and the calves suffer from coccidiosis. The violent growth of the grass causes unbalances; at my place, the grass always has the same nutritive value. 

My veterinary expenses have decreased and it has been years since I had to treat a calf with coccidiosis. In the stalling, the atmosphere is different. It does not burn your eyes and it does not smell of ammonia anymore.

There is a better atmosphere in the shed and the cattle is healthier

In fact, it is an addition of little things that, in the end, changes our life.

What we need is to produce at a lower cost. That is the sinews of war. And with that process, I produce cheaper than the others. In addition, and it is not insignificant, I have the feeling of producing cleanly. I do not pollute. I can spread my cattle manure anywhere, it is not washable. My soil is easier to work, it has a better water retention, and it dries more slowly. In period of drought, we stay green longer than the others.

In terms of cattle, we immediately noticed something unbelievable. We were spreading and the cows were eating right after the spreader. We could not believe it. It was huge! It means that the decomposition is not the same, that the cows are not pushed away by something too strong, too rich in certain elements.

What is nice in this adventure is that my father and I have always agreed on those subjects. Not far from here, it is a “Natura 2000” area. The farmers are bothered. They have to do a cover over the corn if they want to be able to do some again the following year. They can’t leave bare lands. And they also have to reduce nitrogen supply.

Every year I organise an “Open Doors” event. We feel that people are interested. They come to see if I tell the truth! The last soil section we did was extremely eloquent. In the Bactériosol trenches, the implanting was of 120 cm when it was only 60 cm on the other trench. In terms of worms, we were going from 405/m2 to 45/m2. On the side with Bactériosol, there was no compacted zone whereas on the traditional side, the soil was compacted starting at 40 cm deep. When we started digging that hole, there was a foul-smell of mould, of asphyxia. It was amazing. And at 1 m deep, there was water...

You have to have trust when you start with this method. You have to be ready to face the man from the Coop when they come and say: “How much fertiliser do I put for you this year?”You have to look at him and say without batting an eyelid: “No thanks, I am trying something else”. It is not as easy as you can imagine. Nowadays, farmers, even young ones, are too dependent from what is revolving around the agricultural world, and which is meant not to help us but mainly to steal your money.

For me, being independent again is crucial.

That is what I would put forward if I had to convince someone to work with Bactériolit and Bactériosol. I would talk to him about the environment, of course, that is one of the main preoccupations nowadays. And then would talk about himself and about the flexibility he is going to find. You can spread manure from August until the begin¬ning of November and then, for the whole coming year you don’t have anything else to do.

All the same, it is great. You can even spread when the cattle is out on the meadows

Moreover, I have not given any minerals to the cattle for 3 years. With everything that SOBAC’s process is bringing, it is not necessary anymore. Before, I used to have an important percentage of non-pregnant cows. Results have been much better for 3 years... When you go to an agricultural show, minerals, trace-elements, they are all going crazy! 10 or 15 years ago, we had to give the cattle beta-carotene, after we were allowed to give them iodine and then selenium. Next year, it is going to be something else, and I will not be part of it.