The business of selling manure is being fueled by the high cost of commercial fertilizer, the growth of large livestock farms and farmers' need for extra income.

For a price, farmers and brokers are taking animal waste from cattle farms, hog barns and chicken coops, trucking it miles away, and spreading it on fields that will later bloom with corn, soybeans and wheat.

"Back in the late '80s, I was told you'd never sell manure," said Kevin Elder, executive director of the Ohio Department of Agriculture's livestock environmental permitting program. "Today, there are a large number of farms that broker it, that sell it to grain farmers."

More people are getting into the business, drawn by annual sales ranging from a few thousand dollars to more than half a million.

In 2003, only one person in Ohio was licensed to buy and apply large amounts of manure. Today, there are 30 — with 48 more in the process of getting their permits.

In Iowa, the number of certified commercial haulers increased from 1,385 in 2005 to 1,447 last year. In Illinois, 12 companies have sought certification to haul manure since certifying began in 2002.

Source: USA Today