ReLEAF

The ReLEAF project is based on the advancement and widespread demonstration of a suite of extraction techniques to produce key BBF ingredients from waste streams prevalent across Europe – sewage sludge, fish processing waste and wastewater, mixed food waste, and agri-food residues.

The formulation and production of cost-effective bio-based fertilisers will address the serious issues of externalities from fertiliser production and use in European soils together with security of supply and waste valorisation on a regional level. 

Effectiveness and replicability of the BBFs will be assessed within the varying climate conditions and soil ecosystems of 4 Field Demonstration Sites. In addition, co-creation activities will allow for regional engagement with stakeholders to promote widespread acceptance, while industrial involvement will facilitate a rapid scale up and industrialisation of proposed technologies, thus contributing to the “A Soil Deal for Europe” Mission objectives, and expand the BBF knowledge base throughout Europe

Objectives

The overall objective of ReLEAF is to formulate, produce, and demonstrate agronomic and environmental performance of safe, sustainable, and efficient BBFs that can compete in the European and global fertilisers market by optimising, integrating, testing, and validating innovative technologies to efficiently recover and deliver agronomic added-value ingredients (nutrients and biostimulants) and other relevant products (biopolymers) from widely available bio-wastes, while creating new value chains and reducing the environmental impact linked to urban and agri-food wastes and the agriculture sector.

  • Increase nutrient recycling from the selected bio-waste streams by up to 70% through the optimisation and demonstration of novel technologies for fertilising ingredients production
  • Prevent the presence of microplastics (MP) in soil through advanced bio-based, biodegradable, and biocompatible materials as coatings for Controlled-Release Fertilisers (CRFs) that are harmless to the soil microbiome

  • Reduce nutrient losses by up to 60% and nutrient inputs to soil by up to 30% through the optimisation and pre-industrial scale production of controlled-release, growth stage targeted, and biostimulant-doped BBFs

  • Ensure efficiency, effectiveness, safety, and marketability of the developed BBFs through real environmental agronomic assessments

  • Establish local and cost-effective circular supply chains to produce BBFs that increase resource efficiency and decrease reliance on imported materials by up to 20%

  • Follow a transdisciplinary, multi-actor approach with active stakeholder engagement and co-creation to ensure industrial uptake and social acceptance

  • Accelerate the transition towards bio-based fertilisers 

Project information

Website: www.releafproject.eu

Project coordinator: Acondicionamiento Terrasense Association - LEITAT

Duration: 1 June 2024 - 31 May 2028

Funding program: European Union’s HORIZON JU Innovation Actions 

Grant Agreement no: 101156998 

 

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