Kettle Butte Dairy Farm, Idaho, USA

Integrated manure management supports continuous operation and bedding recovery at a 17,000-cow dairy farm

Customer profile

Located in Idaho, Kettle Butte Dairy Farm is one of the region’s largest intensive dairy operations, specialising in Holstein milk production. The farm manages approximately 17,000 dairy cows across two facilities: an original open-air barn housing around 10,000 cows and a modern covered barn accommodating approximately 7,000 cows.

The owner’s objective was to improve animal welfare and environmental conditions while supporting productivity. The new barn provides a protected environment and uses high-quality bedding to promote cow comfort and help sustain milk production.

The challenge

Kettle Butte invested in a fully covered barn designed to provide consistent living conditions throughout seasonal and weather-related fluctuations.

At this scale, manure management is a continuous operational requirement. The herd is milked three times a day, every day of the year, generating substantial volumes of manure that must be transferred and treated reliably.

The new barn produces approximately 500 m³ of raw manure per day. Kettle Butte therefore required a robust system capable of operating continuously, handling fibrous material and simplifying routine maintenance.

The solution

Manure from the new barn is collected in three reception pits and transferred to a central raw manure pit, which feeds the dedicated treatment area. The plant integrates pumping, agitation, primary separation and secondary filtration into a continuous process.

Each reception pit is equipped with two CHIOR® SPH 18.5 kW submersible chopper pumps. The pumps transfer slurry to the central raw manure pit and are designed to support reliable, continuous handling of the farm’s daily manure volume.

A CHIOR® SE 7.5 kW submersible agitator in each reception pit keeps the slurry homogeneous and helps prevent solids from settling, supporting consistent pump feeding.

For easier maintenance, the pumps and agitators are installed on CHIOR® PAS Hoist & Winch Systems. Operators can lift the submersible equipment for inspection and servicing without entering the pit or using additional lifting machinery. This arrangement improves access, reduces maintenance complexity and supports safer routine operations.

The central raw manure pit is equipped with two CHIOR® SE 11 kW submersible agitators, both mounted on CHIOR® PAS Hoist & Winch Systems. A CHIOR® HPD 22 kW chopper pump feeds the separation stage. Designed for high-solids manure, the pump combines shredding action with high hydraulic capacity to reduce fibrous material, help prevent clogging and maintain a continuous flow. One HPD pump feeds ten SEPCOM® SEPBEDDING® 260-3 separators simultaneously.

The separators produce a fibrous solid fraction with a lower moisture content than raw slurry. Easier to handle, stack and transport, this material is reused as bedding for the dairy cows. The approach provides a practical alternative to purchased bedding and supports the farm’s resource-recovery strategy.

Secondary treatment and solids recovery

After primary separation by the SEPBEDDING® units, the liquid fraction undergoes a second treatment stage to remove residual suspended solids and improve effluent quality.

Seven CHIOR® PCP 5.5 kW progressive cavity pumps, each dedicated to one MFT® microfilter, provide a smooth and consistent feed. This pump technology is suited to liquids containing residual solids and helps protect the downstream filtration equipment.

The MFT® microfilters capture finer particles remaining after primary separation. The clarified liquid is discharged into a collection pit and then flows by gravity to the storage lagoon. The concentrated sludge, which contains the recovered fine solids, returns to the raw manure pit for reprocessing.

This recirculation process increases solids recovery and limits the loss of organic matter from the slurry stream. Together, the SEPCOM® SEPBEDDING® separators, CHIOR® PCP pumps and MFT® microfilters create a multi-stage treatment system designed to produce a cleaner liquid fraction while recovering material for further use.

Operational value

The installation combines continuous manure transfer, controlled agitation, accessible maintenance and multi-stage separation in one integrated process. For Kettle Butte, the key value is a system designed around the demands of a large dairy operation: reliable handling of approximately 500 m³ of manure per day and recovery of separated solids for use as cow bedding.

To discuss an integrated manure management solution for your dairy operation, contact SAVECO®.