The European agricultural sector is highly dependent on imported, non-renewable fertilisers. This dependency makes food production vulnerable to supply chain disruptions and leads to rising costs. At the same time, the excessive use of fertilisers contributes to environmental problems such as water pollution, soil degradation and greenhouse gas emissions.
The European project ReLEAF focuses on the development of biobased fertilizers (BBFs) from locally available waste streams. In doing so, the project contributes to the sustainability of the agricultural sector and the strengthening of circular economic processes.
Utilization of undervalued waste streams
ReLEAF is funded by the Circular Bio-Based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU), UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI). The project uses organic waste streams such as manure, sewage sludge, food waste and fish processing wastewater as a source of fertilizers.
Although these materials are rich in nutrients, biostimulants and biopolymers, they remain largely underutilized due to contamination and technical challenges in processing. ReLEAF develops and demonstrates technologies to safely recover nutrients and produce high-quality biobased fertilizers, with a special focus on sewage sludge and food waste streams.
Technological development and scaling up
An important part of ReLEAF is the development of innovative extraction techniques to isolate valuable fertilizer ingredients. This uses methods that focus on the production of controlled-release fertilizers. These fertilizers use biodegradable coatings, which reduces the risk of soil contamination by microplastics.
For the validation and scaling up of the technologies:
- Five technology demonstrators built;
- Two industrial production sites equipped for fertilizers;
- Four field test locations set up across Europe to test the performance of the fertilizers under different climatic conditions and soil types.
With this, ReLEAF aims to realize the transition from laboratory research to practical, pre-industrial applications.
Circular value chains and local production
The project contributes to the transition from traditional linear value chains to circular models. By processing locally available residual flows into fertilizers, transport costs can be reduced and the environmental impact limited. In addition, the dependency on imported fertilizers can be reduced, strengthening the resilience of European food production.
ReLEAF supports the goals of the European Green Deal and the mission “A Soil Deal for Europe”, which aim to restore and maintain healthy soils.
Objectives of ReLEAF
The main objectives of the project are:
- Optimization of new technologies for the extraction of fertilizer ingredients from alternative sources;
- Avoiding microplastic pollution by using biodegradable coatings for controlled release fertilizers;
- Reducing nutrient losses and optimizing fertilizer efficiency;
- Conducting agronomic assessments to demonstrate the effectiveness and safety of BBFs;
- Promote local production and circular supply chains to reduce dependency on external raw materials;
- Strengthening social acceptance and industrial adoption of bio-based fertilizers.
Challenges and market entry
In addition to technological development, the project focuses on the social and commercial embedding of biobased fertilizers. Obtaining consistent product quality from variable waste streams and demonstrating safety and effectiveness are essential to gain the trust of farmers and consumers.
Field trials are therefore an important part of the strategy to test BBFs in practice and substantiate the advantages over traditional fertilizers.
Composition of the consortium
The ReLEAF consortium consists of 17 partners from nine European countries, including research institutes, technology developers and industrial parties. The collaboration aims to link technological innovation to market-oriented applications, and thus contribute to the sustainability of the European agricultural sector.
The project has received funding through the CBE JU and is additionally supported by SERI and UKRI.
More information about the project: www.releafproject.eu
Source: innovationnewsnetwork.com
