Reply #39: From what I've seen on DU and other sites, [View All]

[amandabeech]

the process at the turkey plant works well. However, when the plant was built, it was assumed that making animal feed from the use of inedible (for us) parts of the turkey would be prohibited as a method of getting rid of "mad cow." If that had been the case, then the turkey remains would be worth much less in the rendering process, which is where the animal feed is produced. Now that animal carcasses can still be used to make feed, the inputs to the TDP process are much more expensive.

However, the latest word is the CWT is talking with Europeans, where much more strict rules apply for using animal remains to make animal feed after the big "mad cow" or BSE scare in Britain, and the disposal of animal carcasses has become a real problem.

If people here get very upset about "mad cow," TDP for cattle and other ungulates that contract similar diseases, like sheep, goats and deer, would become much more profitable because the alternative disposable mechanism, rendering, would become much less profitable absent the ability to sell the resulting animal feed.

Frankly, since turkey and other poultry do not contract mad cow, I would have expected that their remains, perhaps along with those of hogs, would have high value in the rendering industry because the high-protein animal feed produced would not contain the prions causing "mad cow" and the horrible human variant. Thus it would be safe to feed to pets and cattle.

Nonetheless, I think that TDP has a future as a good method for recycling wastes. One thing that it can do is recycle all different kinds of plastics, as well as PVC and styrofoam, into usable oil. How much plastic we are now discarding every day and how much has accumulated in landfills. I know I've done my part with plastic wrap, yogurt containers and pantyhose over the years.