Turning poop into profit: Cost-effectiveness and soil transmitted helminth infection risk associated with human excreta reuse in Vietnam

PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2017 Nov 27;11(11):e0006088. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0006088. eCollection 2017 Nov.

Abstract

Human excreta is a low cost source of nutrients vital to plant growth, but also a source of pathogens transmissible to people and animals. We investigated the cost-savings and infection risk of soil transmitted helminths (STHs) in four scenarios where farmers used either inorganic fertilizer or fresh/composted human excreta supplemented by inorganic fertilizer to meet the nutrient requirements of rice paddies in the Red River Delta, Vietnam. Our study included two main components: 1) a risk estimate of STH infection for farmers who handle fresh excreta, determined by systematic review and meta-analysis; and 2) a cost estimate of fertilizing rice paddies, determined by nutrient assessment of excreta, a retailer survey of inorganic fertilizer costs, and a literature review to identify region-specific inputs. Our findings suggest that farmers who reuse fresh excreta are 1.24 (95% CI: 1.13-1.37, p-value<0.001) times more likely to be infected with any STH than those who do not handle excreta or who compost appropriately, and that risk varies by STH type (Ascaris lumbricoides RR = 1.17, 95% CI = 0.87-1.58, p-value = 0.29; Hookworm RR = 1.02, 95% CI = 0.50-2.06, p-value = 0.96; Trichuris trichiura RR = 1.38, 95% CI = 0.79-2.42, p-value = 0.26). Average cost-savings were highest for farmers using fresh excreta (847,000 VND) followed by those who composted for 6 months as recommended by the WHO (312,000 VND) and those who composted for a shorter time (5 months) with lime supplementation (37,000 VND/yr); however, this study did not assess healthcare costs of treating acute or chronic STH infections in the target group. Our study provides evidence that farmers in the Red River Delta are able to use a renewable and locally available resource to their economic advantage, while minimizing the risk of STH infection.

Publication types

  • Meta-Analysis
  • Review
  • Systematic Review

MeSH terms

  • Agriculture / methods*
  • Ancylostomatoidea / isolation & purification
  • Animals
  • Ascariasis / parasitology
  • Ascariasis / transmission*
  • Ascaris lumbricoides / isolation & purification
  • Body Fluids / parasitology
  • Cost-Benefit Analysis
  • Feces / parasitology*
  • Hookworm Infections / parasitology
  • Hookworm Infections / transmission*
  • Humans
  • Linear Models
  • Soil / parasitology*
  • Trichuriasis / parasitology
  • Trichuriasis / transmission*
  • Trichuris / isolation & purification
  • Vietnam

Substances

  • Soil

Grants and funding

Travel support for RJL, JMS, and LEM was provided by Global Affairs Canada and the Veterinarians Without Borders Volunteer Cooperation Program (https://www.vetswithoutborders.ca/). Stipend support for JMS was provided by the Integrated Training Program in Infectious Diseases, Food Safety and Public Policy (https://www.usask.ca/wcvm/graduate_programs/ITraP_program/index.php). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.