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In northern Senegal, due to the recent surge in the price of chemical inputs and the need to diversify the methods of fertilization and amendment of plots of agrobusinesses, manure has become in a few years the black gold of the region. The manure value chain is a relatively young sector; thus, it has not yet been the subject of research, despite its potential for expansion and impact on the territory. This study aims to assess its sustainability in social, economic and environmental terms, by considering and comparing different governance mechanisms in the value chain. Through semi-directive interviews with stakeholders all along the value chain, we identified three different sub-value chains based on what kind of stakeholder take the lead in manure processing. This can be made by specialized processors, manure producers (pastoralists), or consumers (agrobusinesses). The three sub-value chains have different impacts in terms of sustainability, depending mainly on job creation, the appropriation of added value, and rangeland degradation coming from manure grabbing. In any case, and depending on the governance mechanisms put in place to regulate the transactions, manure seems to have great potential for poverty reduction and crop soil fertilization. Indeed, it not only helps to strengthen the structure and fertility of soils; but also, its use for energy purposes allows more than 80 households to cook and reduce their expenses. Other rural households in the area use the sale, collection or transport of manure to supplement their income. Nonetheless, the manure value chain may have negative impact on family farming. Peasants struggle to obtain manure due to competition with manure collectors. Also, agribusinesses have diversified their manure supply strategies by switching to compost production, thus reducing the share of added value that other stakeholders – be they pastoralists or specialized processors – achieve to grab from the processing activity.