Read time: 4.5 minutes
WE ASK THE EXPERTS
DR BRENDA RALSTON
Dr. Ralston is a Results Driven Agriculture Research (RDAR) scientist specializing in livestock health. She joined the Applied Research department at Lakeland College in 2021 after working for Alberta Agriculture for 35 years. In addition to her role at Lakeland College, she and her family manage a cattle ranch.
ANDREA HANSON
Andrea Hanson is a Research Assistant and Extension Specialist and has also worked for Alberta Agriculture in various roles.
DR BRENDA RALSTON
ANDREA HANSON
Q: Why did you become involved in the development of Nature’s Net Wrap?
Dr Brenda Ralston: Single-use plastic is a big problem in agriculture. Typically, there are three types: plastic grain bags; plastic for silage bales and silage pits; and net wrap and twine on bales. To give an idea of the size of the problem, according to Alberta Beef Producers between seven thousand and 12,000 metric tons of plastic is used by agriculture producers here in Alberta every year. That’s in one province, in one country.
Now there are two associated problems. First, this plastic is difficult to recycle. Typically, recyclers want clean and dry products that are free from debris, but when you’re taking plastic off bales or silage pits in the middle of winter, there’s a lot of plant material that can be frozen onto the plastic. It’s the same with twine and net wrap. So recyclers won’t accept it. The second problem is that twine and net wrap get into the fields where cattle graze. Even if you are very diligent in removing them, inadvertently there will always be some plastic left in the field from bales which can get caught up in equipment. We want to give producers a better option than traditional plastic net wrap.
On the left: Net wrap in nylon bags laid on the manure pile to be buried. On the right: Net wrap in nylon bags being buried in the brown soil zone.
Q: What happens when an animal eats plastic?
Dr Brenda Ralston: There’s a condition which has come to be known as software disease, which is when twine and net wrap ball up within cattle’s rumen [the largest of their four stomachs]. This can lead to blockages within the digestive system, diarrhea, loss of productivity and even death. And in winter, if a cow is pregnant and has a big ball of plastic in her stomach, she doesn’t have room to eat enough to maintain the fetus and herself. This can be fatal to both.
TO GIVE AN IDEA OF THE SIZE OF THE PROBLEM, ACCORDING TO ALBERTA BEEF PRODUCERS BETWEEN SEVEN THOUSAND AND 12,000 METRIC TONS OF PLASTIC IS USED BY AGRICULTURE PRODUCERS HERE IN ALBERTA EVERY YEAR. THAT'S IN ONE PROVINCE, IN ONE COUNTRY.
Q: What has been your input?
Dr Brenda Ralston: We work in animal health and wellness, and we’re interested in software disease. We know it doesn’t affect the meat, but it can kill the animals.
Larry Ruud and his son Austin, who invented Nature’s Net Wrap, conducted an initial test on a bales in western Canada. After 12 months, the wrap maintained 80% of its original strength. They approached us to help test how well and how quickly the wrap breaks down. So we’ve been looking at two things — how quickly it degrades once it has been removed from the bales, and what happens to it in animals’ stomachs.
Andrea Hanson: The Saskatchewan Cattle Association sponsored field tests under experimental conditions. In May 2024, we buried Nature’s Net Wrap inside nylon bags in a manure pile to simulate what happens to net wrap when it is piled from a winter-feeding site. We also buried similar bags in different soil zones in Alberta and Saskatchewan to replicate farm conditions where the net wrap is incorporated into a field from winter feeding sites. We also have one site above ground.
It’s still early days, but when we dug up the first bags in November after six months in the manure pile, we couldn’t pull out a single piece of Nature’s Net Wrap intact because it had disintegrated quite a bit. This result indicates a level of degradation, but it meant we couldn’t do tensile strength tests, which measures how strong something is. However, we are running tests over a shorter time frame to measure the degradation rate and get a better understanding of the process using the tensile strength measurement.
Dr Brenda Ralston: The second study looks at Nature’s Net Wrap in the rumen and is supported by the non-profit Results Driven Agriculture Research (RDAR) and the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership in collaboration with the Alberta Beef Producers. The first two phases of the study are being carried out at the University of Saskatchewan with research scientist Dr. Gabe Ribeiro. These tests have been approved by the Animal Care Committee and the animals involved are under continuous veterinary care.
The first phase involves looking at the breakdown of Nature’s Net Wrap in an artificial rumen. Next, Gabe will put samples for different periods of time into animals that have been cannulated — a portal has been inserted into their rumen — again to see the breakdown. The last phase of research will take place in early 2026. We will look at incorporating the wrap into high-forage rations for cattle and study the cows’ performance and any effects it might have on them. We should have some results from that by the end of 2026.
On the left: "New" Nature's Net Wrap under magnification. In the middle: Nature's Net Wrap under magnification after being buried in a manure pile for 7 months. On the right: Nature's Net Wrap dispersed in the manure (after 7 months in the pile) - the net wrap was placed in the manure pile as whole pieces.
IT'S STILL EARLY DAYS, BUT WHEN WE DUG UP THE FIRST BAGS IN NOVEMBER AFTER SIX MONTHS IN THE MANURE PILE, WE COULDN'T PULL OUT A SINGLE PIECE OF NATURE'S NET WRAP INTACT BECAUSE IT HAD DISINTEGRATED QUITE A BIT.
Q: Biodegradable plastic has been around for decades and became widely used in plastic shopping bags from the 1990s. Why hasn’t this happened earlier?
Dr Brenda Ralston: The plastic used to wrap bales operates under totally different conditions. It must be strong enough to run through baling equipment and the bale must stay intact for up to two years above ground. Such bales might be hay, green feed, or straw with different moistures and coarseness, which affects the wrap’s performance. But then we also want it to break down when it’s in a manure pile. It’s a tricky product and it has taken years to develop.
Q: What has been the industry reaction to the results so far?
Dr Brenda Ralston: RDAR, the Alberta Beef Producers and the Saskatchewan Cattle Association have all been very supportive. They see single-use plastics as a challenge for producers when it comes to disposing of them and an animal welfare issue with software disease. Nature’s Net Wrap is a solution that will give producers an alternative option. And when we talk to producers, they’re very interested, too.
NATURE'S NET WRAP IS A SOLUTION THAT WILL GIVE PRODUCERS AN ALTERNATIVE OPTION. AND WHEN WE TALK TO PRODUCERS, THEY'RE VERY INTERESTED, TOO.
Crew from Lakeland College and Nature's Net Wrap after burying the net wrap in the manure pile, May 2024.
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