Production of bio‐fertilizer by biotransformation of poultry waste enriched with molasses and algae

This research work consists on valorizing poultry waste by biotransformation into biofertilizers, associating this agro‐industrial waste with algae (abundant natural resources) and molasses (a by‐product of the sugar refining industry) ensuring a good contribution of nutritional chemical elements and obtaining a balanced formulation. A total of seven different formulations of the above three components, were examined in a simplex centroid design. A fungal inoculum of Aspergillus niger was used as a fermentation agent for better quality of biotransformation. The monitoring of this biotransformation is ensured during 15 days by following the evolution of physicochemical and microbiological parameters and, to understand the bioconversion of the simple compounds of the biofertilizer mixture such as short aliphatic chains, sugar, and amino acids into soluble mineral compounds, a Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis was carried out before and after biotransformation. Finally, germination and fertilization tests were performed to evaluate the efficiency of the final product on a barley crop. The overall results of the present study showed that the mixture which contained 68.75% poultry waste, 12.5% molasses, and 18.75% algae presented the better microbiological and chemical safety criteria required for a good biofertilizer according to NF U44‐551 standard.