Hey Steve, very interesting & informational video about the VC business. Most of it doesn't really apply to 'home vermicomposters' (except the batch method, which quite a few youtubers apply in some way), but still good to know how the stuff commercially available is produced. 👍 (I can produce enough VC for me and even give some away to friends, in a quality I'd deem better bc of all the variety of foodstuff my worms get, so I'll stick to it 😊) Cheers from Switzerland! -Thomas
Hey Steve I love your videos. I actually live just a few miles from The Worm Farm and know Mark the founder personally through my job. I do frequent the business and buy worms and soil from John. I have seen their outdoor operation of windrows. Now i hear you and Zach Brooks say that wedges need to be under cover. Is there reason why one can be open and the other cannot? I believe Zach's reasoning is to maintain moisture in his Arizona summers. Any thoughts?
Very cool Shawna! I think that's probably true about the Arizona summers.... I also think that outdoor windrows just create a lot of variability (temps and moisture) that you don't get with covered operations.
So I'm the head grower at a greenhouse and have full access to unlimited compost. I'm new to this and still learning but can I feed my worms compost. Like that wedge system you was talking about could I do that with compost and just keep adding plant material that we cut off of our plants or plant we throw away on the edge of the pile.
I've heard of this idea many times but not heard of anyone actually doing it at scale. But here's my issue with it....from what I can tell, BSFL frass is more expensive than worm castings. From a purely economic standpoint, taking a more expensive product to create a less expensive product doesn't make business sense. I'm also not sure what benefit you'd get from worms eating frass that they wouldn't get eating pre-composted materials. I'm not saying there's no benefit, I'm just not aware of it. I'd love to talk to someone doing it though!
@@UrbanWormCompany disclaimer: writing all of this with no practical experience - I was envisioning a BSF set up that the benefit would be quick decomposition of food wastes (even meats, materials etc. that compost worms don’t like). The larvae (correct term?) self-harvest so good food for fish in pond, treats for chickens etc. and the frass (didn’t know it was called that) undergoes another transformation to make it less likely to harbor bad pathogens (e-coli was a concern in one thing I read). Side benefits of BSF is they supposedly keep away or deter other flies, or so I read. Still digging into the idea, but this was also my idea for personal use, not trying for commercial sales. Now if I got to live out what I could dream up, then this would on a scale to produce enough material for 5-10 acres of flowers and garlic which are intended for commercial use. Now I just need to survive the driveway, power installation and well process, and the buildings hahaha. That has not been too fun so far. I am so grateful we have people like you to learn from and one day I hope when I comment, it will be from actual experience.
Worm castings are nor inexpensive!! If you couldnt make any money on them. You wouldnt be doing the video. How much do castings sell for. When sild by the ton😊?
