b'PHOTO BY RUSSELL POWELL2 VERMICOMPOST Married couple Sohorab Hossain, left, and Sukdara Begum, right, show off the worms in their vermicompost in Hujuripara village, Bangladesh.Just like pit composting, farmers create vermicompost to transform livestock dung into a nutrient-packed substance for the soil. The key difference? Earthworms. Two-to-three-day-old animal manure is kept in a bowl and a special species of earthworm is added, said Dr. Majadur Rahman, senior program manager of animal well-being for Heifer Bangladesh. These earthworms eat the manure and produce valuable excreta.Once the food scraps and livestock dung pass through these tiny yet formidable creatures, farmers collectand dry the worm excrement for use as an exceptional fertilizer.Producing vermicompost requires more time and effort than pit composting, said Dilip Bhandari, Heifers senior director of programs for Asia. But the quality of vermicompost is excellent because its mixed thoroughly by the earthworms.Some farmers take this process one step further. Heifer Bangladesh, for example, trains its project participants to develop vermicompost efforts into agribusinesses, connecting them with farming cooperatives who help scale the ventures, and package, brand and promote the compost as a product at market.HEIFER.ORG |21'