ABSTRACT
Bedded pack barns in Netherlands can be divided into two groups. One group uses organic material, mostly compost, as a bedding material. The other group also uses organic material but with the aim to start a composting process in the bedding. In a study by Galama et al., the impact of bedded pack barns on farm economy, animal health and welfare, milk quality and environment was reported. One of the aspects of the environmental impact of bedded pack barns is the gaseous emissions of C- and N-compounds. However, gaseous emissions of bedded pack barns have not been measured extensively before. Emissions of deep litter systems for cows and pigs and other type of litter-based systems for dairy and beef cows have been researched. To gain insight into the absolute emission levels of three of the bedded pack barns, the emissions were also measured at the barn level.
