In the face of intense competition, not only among themselves but from EU-based manufacturers, UK companies building muckspreaders and slurry handling equipment continue to hold their own with a decent chunk of this relatively high-volume market.

Muckspreaders have long been a speciality of UK makers, with those in England and Scotland, in particular, leading the way with well-established designs.

This includes dual-purpose chain flail and impeller spreaders, that have stood the test of time, as well as heavy-duty, ever larger rear discharge machines for bigger farms and contractors.

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When it comes to slurry equipment, companies based in Northern Ireland cover pretty much every size and equipment category, as do their counterparts in Ireland, catering for small livestock units and high-volume contractors alike.

Manufacturers in continental Europe, meanwhile, have most success exporting large, professional-class slurry and digestate tankers, and contractor-scale – often self-propelled – manure spreaders.

Great Britain

There are some very familiar names in the muckspreader business based the length and breadth of Great Britain.

From Aberdeen-based Charles J Marshall to Teagle Machinery in the far south-west near Truro, Cornwall, and from Harry West on the England/Wales border at Prees to Richard Western’s Framlingham base outside Ipswich, Suffolk.

Add to that list Agri-Hire, also close to Ipswich at Bramford, the GT Bunning operation at Gressenhall near Dereham, Norfolk, and Ktwo – now under the same ownership as Northern Ireland’s Redrock Machinery – near Aylesbury, Bucks.

All produce their own take on large-wheeled, rear discharge spreaders, a layout now ubiquitous across the farmscape.

Agri-Hire, Bunning with the Lowlander range, Teagle (Titan), Harry West (Maelstrom) and Richard Western (Delilah) build machines to a similar layout, while Marshall’s Vesuvius is unique with its hydraulic push-out system in place of bed chains and slats.

Apart from the Maelstrom, Harry West specialises in the capabilities of its Dual Spreader in successfully applying strawy manure and liquidy slurry from a low, side-mounted impeller drum.

This layout is also evident in the Side Discharge Spreader from Richard Western and the Powerspread built by another manure spreader maker, Shelbourne Reynolds, at its Stanton base near Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk.

Slurry tanker manufacturers are less prolific – Marshall has the most comprehensive range, producing sizes from 5,500-15,900 litres, while Gissing Farm Equipment at Brigg, 20 miles north-east of Lincoln, focuses on larger sizes up to 33,000 litres and features that can include a hydraulic suction pipe arm.

Irrigation specialist Greencrop, part of the Burgess Group at Beeston near Kings Lynn, Norfolk, has re-entered the tanker market with an expanded range culminating in an 18,000-litre model.

Farmers and contractors needing an umbilical pumping trailer can turn to Tramspread and the built-from-scratch factory at Mendlesham, mid-Suffolk, completed in 2021, that doubled production and warehousing space.

The company produces bespoke pump and reel sets, as well as tractor- and tanker-mounted drop tube dribble bars and trailing shoe applicators.

Across the country at Worleston near Nantwich, Cheshire, Spreadwise also builds engine-powered pump sets as part of an extensive slurry handling range.

Northern Ireland

Over the water in Northern Ireland, producing slurry spreading equipment is an added activity for firms such as trailer makers Herron Engineering at Castlewellan, County Down, approaching 30 miles south of Belfast, and Redrock Machinery further to the west at Collone, County Armagh.

Agquip at Ballymoney, north-west of Belfast, SlurryKat at Craigavon and Slurryquip in Clough near Downpatrick, both 25 miles south of the city, specialise in tractor-mounted dribble bars and trailing shoe applicators.

SlurryKat’s dribble bar range now extends to 24m and Slurryquip produces a novel front-mounted dribble bar installation for its Cerberus tanker.

Agrimac at Londonderry, Fleming Agri just a few miles away at Newbuildings, and NC Engineering in Hamiltownsbawn, 50 miles west of Belfast, build tankers as part of a wider product range that also includes manure spreaders.

That activity is matched by Nugent Engineering, whose factory is in Galbally, 50 miles west of Belfast.

SpreadPoint at Downpatrick (better known for trailed lime/fertiliser spreaders) and Tusk Machinery, based nearby Ballynahinch, both a little more than 20 miles south of Belfast, respectively produce rear discharge and side-flinging muckspreaders, the latter also by Quad-X, a Blaney Group business at Ballymena, 40 miles north of Belfast, but on a mini scale for ATVs.

Newrock Engineering at Lisburn, 12 miles south-west of the city, is set for a revival under new management, building slurry pumps and tankers.

Ireland

The counties of Ireland are another hotbed of slurry tanker and muckspreader production, with Belmac Engineering at Belmont, Grass Technology (better known for zero-grazing kit) near Borris to the south, Major Equipment in Ballyhaunis, south of Galway, and Mastek, based 75 miles north of Dublin, all focused on slurry kit.

Agri-Spread, a neighbour of Major Equipment, with its VB Pro rear beater machines.

Keenan down in Borris, with the novel farmer-inspired Orbital front rotor and forward-pushing bulkhead design, concentrate on muckspreaders.

Having a foot in both camps is the preferred approach for Abbey Machinery, with side impeller and flail spreaders built at Toomevara in the south-west of Ireland, Conor Engineering (flail and rear beater designs) based south of Galway at Tubber, and Cross Agri near Rathangan, County Kildare, with its Super-Spread rear beater machines.

Hi-Spec Engineering, at Begnalstown, County Carlow, also produces tankers and spreaders, the company’s unique Xcel spreader design, with its bed conveyor feeding muck into a bank of shrouded chain flails for a pair discs below to throw far and wide, has recently had a shot in the arm with an up-scaled version of the 12t model hitting 20t capacity.

Diverse fabrication firm Rainbow Engineering at Ballyshiel, 80 miles west of Dublin, builds chain flail side spreaders, including sizes for compact tractors supplied in Britain by Siromer.

Belgium

Joskin Group dominates slurry and muck spreading equipment production in Belgium – and has a strong presence in neighbouring France with two production facilities, and also one each in Luxembourg and Poland.

At 25ha, the facility in Poland is the largest of the group’s five plants, while the new factory in Luxembourg, which should be completed later this year, will expand capacity for building Joskin muckspreaders.

France

Across the Channel, France has just two manufacturers selling into Great Britain, both located in the north-west dairy region of Brittany.

Rolland focuses on muckspreaders with its Rollforce large wheel and Rollmax multi-axle machines.

The Pichon factory in Landivisiau, built just nine years ago, manufactures slurry tankers and a rear discharge spreader range.

Pichon was acquired by Samson Agro in 2019.

The Netherlands

A contractor’s first port of call when looking at self-propelled applicators may well be one of three Dutch manufacturers – Vervaet, based in Biervliet in the south of the country, Vredo located 60 miles south of Amsterdam, or Oxbo, which previously operated as Ploeger Machines, headquartered at Roosendaal, 40 miles south of Rotterdam.

Vervaet, represented here by J Riley Beet Harvesters, builds the four-wheel Quad and three- or five-wheeler Hydro Trike with a maximum 20,000-litre capacity and up to 530hp, while Vredo, through 2024-appointed dealer Kirby Ag, supplies four- and six-wheel machines.

These go to 32,000 litres with 710hp and a choice of surface injectors, while a Tebbe spreading body is an option for solids.

Agco’s now defunct Terra-Gator is the inspiration for Oxbo’s three-model range following the Dutch operation’s appointment to provide parts and service support for Terra-Gators still in service.

The 500hp four-wheel drive/steer, 400hp three-wheel drive/steer and 550hp five-wheel drive/steer machines can be equipped for slurry or muck application, peaking with the AT5105’s 25,000-litre tank or 25t spreader body, the latter recently adapted to drop manure in front of a trailed cultivator for immediate incorporation.

Kaweco is closely associated with big-capacity mounted and towed slurry tanks for the Claas Xerion, creating a four-wheel self-propelled unit with up to 462hp and 16,000-litre capacity or up to 30,000 litres in the articulated format.

Late last year, parent group Royal Reesink closed the business, but it has been resurrected by Garant slurry equipment maker Kotte Group with a new base in Baak, 20 miles south-west of Appledoorn and close to its original home.

Elsewhere in the Netherlands, Veenhuis at Rijssen, 80 miles east of Amsterdam and part of the SVGroup with Schuitemaker, builds slurry tankers and large-scale umbilical equipment including the Rotamax hose reel and injector combination; the firm’s UK agent is Agri Industry Solutions in Suffolk.

Bomech, Evers Agro and TBL Techniek – all roughly 100 miles east of Amsterdam and represented by J Riley Beet Harvesters – are Dutch specialists in tanker- and tractor-mounted dribble bars and injectors, as are Roelama at Alphen, 50 miles south of Rotterdam, whose products are imported by Tramspread, and Schouten Machines at Uddel, 54 miles west of Amsterdam, represented by Wox Agri.

Austria

From its headquarters in Voitsberg, 140 miles west of Vienna in southern Austria, the Bauer Group oversees production of slurry tankers at its German subsidiaries while manufacturing slurry pumps, separators and other ancillary equipment.

Germany

Big ticket self-propelled slurry spreading kit is a specialism of Holmer Maschinenbau, part of the Exel Industries group and located at Schierling, 80 miles north of Munich.

The Terra Variant is produced in two models with up to 652hp and 21,000-litre capacity, using a tank system sourced from slurry specialist Zunhammer, located 400 miles further north near Munster.

Bauer Group’s Eckart subsidiary, located in Schauffling to the south-west of Nuremburg, also taps into this sector with mounted and fifth-wheel trailed tankers for the Claas Xerion previously built by SGT and culminating in a 30,700-litre tandem or triple-axle version.

Eckart specialises in polyester tank construction, while steel tankers are built by another Bauer subsidiary, BSA at Marktschorgast, north-east of Nuremberg.

Vogelsang, meanwhile, specialises in tractor- and tanker-mounted dribble bars, and trailing shoe and strip cultivation slurry applicators, while its macerating distributor units are widely used by manufacturers of similar kit.

Other producers of tankers available in Britain include Kotte Landtechnik at Rieste, near Osnabruck in northern Germany, with its Garant units available through Continental Soil Technology in Gloucestershire, and Kumm-Technik, based 40 miles south-west of Cologne, whose newly appointed agent is J Riley Beet Harvesters.

Fliegl Agrartechnik builds tankers and spreaders at Mühldorf am Inn, 50 miles east of Munich, while Strautmann’s muckspreaders, supplied by Opico, come from the headquarters factory at Bad Laer near Osnabruck in north-east Germany, using some parts sourced from the company’s component plants in Poland and Hungary.

Ludwig Bergmann also builds “traditional” rear discharge spreaders at its Goldenstedt factory, 30 miles south-west of Bremen – Samagri has just become its southern England distributor, with RMV Services covering the North.

At Bissendorf in Germany, Tebbe Landmaschinen builds trailed muckspreaders, but its principal involvement in Britain, where products are supported by dealer Kirby Ag, is the supply of spreader bodies to Vredo and Oxbo for their self-propelled machines.

Denmark

Viborg in northern Denmark is home to Samson Agro, where the company manufactures both slurry tankers and manure spreaders destined mainly for large farming and contracting operations.

A new facility for the production of trailing shoe booms has recently been completed, adding about 30% to capacity.

And as a result of acquiring the Pichon Industries business in 2019, the group has production of small to mid-size farm muck and slurry kit in Poland and France.

Poland

The Joskin group’s largest production plant, covering 30ha, is in the west of Poland, and Samson Agro has a facility at Gieralcice in the south-west, acquired with its Pichon acquisition.

Poland is also the source of RS Agri’s new Atlas rear beater manure spreader, built to a spec suited to the UK market by the Hampshire company’s manufacturing partner located south-east of Poznan.

And Polish manufacturer Ando Tech, at Szlachcin in western Poland, supplies its tall wheel, rear beater machines in Britain through Machinery Sales Europe, based in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire.

Meanwhile, HF Evans & Sons at Cardeston, near Shrewsbury, brings in spreaders of the same style from Euro Milk, manufacturing in Wysokie Mazowieckie, 95 miles north-east of Warsaw.

The US

If a traditional low-slung muckspreader is just what is needed to run behind a modest agricultural or compact tractor, or even an ATV, then Meadow Machinery has the solution.

Millcreek’s small-scale machines are shipped all the way from Honey Brook, Pennsylvania, where the company makes seven sizes of pto- and ground-driven versions with low-slung beds for hand or machine loading.