No Agricultural Waste: Innovative approaches to turn agricultural waste into ecological and economic assets
Updated on 19.09.2023
Driven by a ‘near zero-waste’ society requirement, the goal of the NoAW project was to generate innovative, efficient approaches to convert growing agricultural waste issues into eco-efficient bio-based products opportunities with direct benefits for the environment, economy and EU consumers.
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To achieve this goal, the NoAW concept relies on developing holistic life cycle thinking that is able to support environmentally responsible research and development innovations on agro-waste conversion at different technology readiness levels, in the light of regional and seasonal specificities, not forgetting risks emerging from circular management of agro-waste (e.g. accumulation of contaminants).
By involving all agriculture chain stakeholders in a territorial perspective, the project:
- developed innovative eco-design and hybrid assessment tools of circular agro-waste management strategies and addressed related gaps of knowledge and data via extensive exchange through the Knowledge Exchange Stakeholders Platform;
- developed breakthrough knowledge on agro-waste molecular complexity and heterogeneity in order to upgrade the most widespread mature conversion technology (anaerobic digestion) and to synergistically eco-design robust cascading processes to fully convert agro-waste into a set of high added value bio-energy, bio-fertilizers and bio-chemicals and building blocks, able to substitute a significant range of non-renewable equivalents, with favourable air, water and soil impacts;
- obtained insights into the complexity of potentially new, cross-sector business clusters in order to fast track NoAW strategies to the field and develop new business concepts and a stakeholder platform for cross-chain valorisation of agro-waste on a territorial and seasonal basis.
Relevance for Circular Systemic Solutions
The resulting NoAW solution is a robust toolbox of technologies, which is able to convert a wide range of agricultural residues into high added-value biogas, biochemicals and biodegradable plastic, while overcoming residues’ complexity, seasonality and regionality. The NoAW toolbox is relevant for cities and regions if the Circular Systemic Solution includes the upcycling of waste into high value products.
Main results and lessons learnt
NoAW’s solution is a cascading biorefinery of agricultural residues from livestock farming, fruits, vegetables, cereal and wine sectors. To enhance anaerobic digestion, a wet explosion process (booster pre-treatment) was developed to degrade the recalcitrant lignin of ligno-cellulosic residues into accessible substrate in subsequent processes. A two-step anaerobic digestion process has been developed to produce biogas (H2, CH4, CO2) as well as volatile fatty acids (VFAs) and nutrient rich digestate. The biogas has been upgraded by microbial electrosynthesis into biomethane and biohythane for use as an automotive biofuel or to be injected into the natural gas grid. The safe use of the digestate and nutrient load was optimised in a Bavarian farm with a near infrared technology. The volatile fatty acids were used to produce polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) able to partially substitute oil-based plastics.
The final packaging materials were formulated with lignocellulosic fillers and antioxidants from winery waste. Other cascading options were explored, most of them successfully, to valorise winery, fruit and vegetable wastes, digestate and VFAs. Based on NoAW’s findings, a whole technology chain was elaborated with quantified positive environmental benefits and fitting business models for upscaled industrial practice.
Supported by a large international stakeholder platform, agro-waste management strategies were both driven and evaluated by life cycle analysis coupled with territorial metabolism and multi-criteria decision analysis. The developed decision-support tool was successfully used to support NoAW’s concept and its applicability at regional level. A geographic information system tool was developed for mapping waste management, and new practices for handling vine shoots have been adopted by winegrowers in Serbia.
Horizon programme(s) and/or topic(s)
Programme:
- H2020-EU.3.2. - SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Food security, sustainable agriculture and forestry, marine, maritime and inland water research, and the bioeconomy
Topic:
- WASTE-7-2015 - Ensuring sustainable use of agricultural waste, co-products and by-products
Budget
€ 7 816 232.50 (EU contribution: € 6 887 570)
Responsible organisation and contact details
Institut national de recherche pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement
Project consortium partners
- Innoven SRL
- Rise Research Institutes of Sweden AB
- Universita degli Studi di Roma la Sapienza
- Schiessl Peter
- Alma Mater Studiorum - Universita di Bologna
- Danmarks Tekniske Universitet
- Institut za Arhitekturu i Urbanizam Srbije
- Campden bri Magyarorszag Nonprofitkft
- Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnologica
- Fraunhofer Gesellschaft zur Forderung der Angewandten Forschung EV
- Institut Francais de la Vigne et du Vin
- Ethnicon Metsovion Polytechnion
- Université de Montpellier
- IBBK Fachgruppe Biogas GmbH
- Aalborg Universitet
- Sofies SA
- Stichting Wageningen Research
- Confederazione Generale dell Agricoltura Italiana
- Ecozept GBR
- Agriport A7 B.V.
- Industrial Technology Research Institute Incorporated
- City University of Hong Kong
- Sun Yat-Sen University
- Institute of Agro-Products Processing Science and Technology
- Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
- Inrae Transfert SAS
- Preduzece za Proizvodnju Promet i Usluge Vinarija Aleksandrovic DOO
- Vermicon Aktiengesellschaft
- Biovantage.Dk APS
- Ningbo Tianan Biologic Material Co. Ltd
- Association pour l'environnement et la securité en Aquitaine
- Inosud SAS
predominantly urban regions, intermediate and predominantly rural regions, refer to TERCET typology NUTS 3 region
