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Could Bone Meal Cause Mad Cow?

by Bill Brikiatis

Updated: December 3, 2020

The question at hand is “could the soil amendment bone meal cause mad cow disease in humans or pets?” This is the risk according to the article on bone meal in the Smiling Gardner blog.

The article says that gardeners should not use this soil additive, especially for organic gardens because there is a danger of inhaling the dust and contracting Mad Cow Disease.

Bone meal has been used to add phosphorus to plants for some time. It’s made from ground up animal bones.

Related: I tested Neptune’s Harvest liquid fish and seaweed fertilizer. Read my review

Let’s take a sec to get the legal words out of the way. This article may contain affiliate links. That means if you click and buy from my partners, I will make a tiny amount of money at no cost to you. This in no way affects my recommendations.

Bone meal alternatives

In a follow-up article, the Smiling Gardner provides three alternatives to bone meal that allow plants to increase the phosphorus and other nutrients in their diet.

I don’t think it’s a good idea to use non-organic products when we are talking about the food you and your family eat.

— Suburban Hobby Farmer

These three alternatives are mycorrhizal fungi, sea minerals and liquid kelp. Keep in mind, that the Smiling Gardner admits that he used to sell these additives.

On the surface, the alternatives seem safer and more in keeping with organic gardening practices than ground up animal bones.

Whenever possible, I recommend organic alternatives when growing food. I don’t think it’s a good idea to use non-organic products when we are talking about the food you and your family eat.

Bone Meal
Bone meal alternatives include mycorrhizal fungi, sea minerals and liquid kelp.

The manufacturers have not been active in addressing the fear of contracting mad cow disease from their product – at least not in the blogosphere. The top search topic that comes up on Google under the keywords “bone meal and mad cow disease” is this Wikipedia article.

Related: What’s the Best Way to Use Chicken Manure Pellets?

But I know what I’ll be doing. I’ll be asking my wife not to add this stuff to her hydrangeas this year. Plus, I’ll also strongly consider using some of the alternatives rather than take the chance.

Unfortunately, the Smiling Gardener didn’t suggest an alternative for previously planted plants, just additives during planting.

Gardening Tips

How to Improve Soil

All the ways I know to improve your soil.

It’s too bad, bone meal seems to help hydrangeas. After adding bone meal, we have blooms for the very first time in about 10 years.

Related articles you might enjoy:

  1. How to Use Cover Crop in the Vegetable Garden
  2. How to Use Aquarium Fish Water for Plants
  3. Will Comfrey Mulch Help Your Strawberries?

Suburban Hobby Farmer is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

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Filed Under: 2. Intermediate -- A Little Difficult to Complete Tagged With: soil

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Meet the Blogger

Bill Brikiatis

Hello! I’m Bill Brikiatis. I started this website in 2010 to help you get better at growing organic food in your backyard.

I’ve been growing fruits and vegetables for nearly all my life. And I'm over 60.

That’s not to say that I don’t make mistakes. I make plenty, then I write about them so both you and I get better at growing great things to eat.

You can read more about me and Suburban Hobby Farmer on my about page.

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