Circular fertilisers key for efficient agriculture and food systems
Brussels, 19 February 2025, 3-year European research project FER-PLAY sheds light on current challenges and drivers for the rollout of circular fertilisers in Europe at final event, ending today, as Commission presents its Vision for Agriculture and Food. The Vision will guide all future thinking on agrifood policy over the next five years, helping to reconcile green goals with the economic realities of farming.
Conventional fertilisers are made using finite, often imported, resources and employing in some cases energy-intensive production processes. To ensure high yields, these fertilisers are optimised for the fast release of nutrients, making them an attractive choice for farmers but a threat to soil and ecosystem health. Meanwhile, circular fertilisers are sourced from homegrown residues or by-products, decreasing EU dependence on fertiliser imports and boosting resource efficiency. They provide yield benefits while minimising the risks associated with fast-acting conventional fertilisers, protecting the soil and water from nutrient enrichment. Their adoption is fostered by several legislative pieces at EU level, such as the Soil Monitoring Law or the Common Agricultural Policy.
Over the past three years, the FER-PLAY consortium, gathering expertise from different EU countries, has worked to protect ecosystems, decrease EU dependence on fertiliser imports, and improve resource efficiency through the promotion of circular fertilisers. During that time, the project has been mapping and assessing circular fertilisers made from secondary raw materials, highlighting their multiple benefits to foster their wide-scale production and application as a key element of the agro-ecological transition. Thorough dialogues with farmers, producers and local administrations allowed to include valuable insights to the market uptake recommendations.
This uptake is strategic since, by 2050, the rollout of circular fertilisers could replace 3.77 M tonnes of conventional fertilisers. Such reduction of conventional fertiliser consumption could cut CO2 and N2O emissions by 88% and 87%, respectively. The replacement of conventional fertilisers by circular ones could also help reduce fertiliser imports by 20%, leading to up to €689.38M savings per year.
Despite their advantages, the socio-economic and environmental benefits of circular fertilisers are still largely unknown by fertiliser producers, farmers and policymakers alike. The adaptation of the existing technical and legal framework, as well as targeted support to innovation on nutrient recycling, will facilitate the broader use and production of circular fertilisers across Europe. All publicly available project outcomes are available on the project website and Zenodo.
“The information generated in FER-PLAY paves the way for untapping the full potential of circular fertilisers, enabling farmers and agrifood industries to make sustainable and informed choices on fertilisation and soil management protocols. Both access to information and a coherent framework are required to avoid putting the future of our food and agriculture systems in jeopardy.” Jose Martín Soriano Disla, Project Coordinator, CETENMA
About FER-PLAY
FER-PLAY has worked to facilitate the uptake of circular fertilisers, to protect ecosystems, decrease EU dependence on fertiliser imports, foster circularity and improve soil health. The project has mapped and assessed circular fertilisers made from secondary raw materials and highlighted their multiple benefits in order to promote their wide-scale production and use on field.
The project is coordinated by CETENMA (ES) and brings together in total 12 partners from 6 different European countries from across the sector: CIC (IT), EBA (BE), NURESYS (BE), INAGRO, CETAQUA (ES), DRAXIS (GR), REVOLVE (BE), ACR+ (BE), COLDIRETTI (IT), NATURLAND (DE) and ASAJA (ES).
The 30-month-long project was launched in September 2022 and has received a total grant of 2 million euros from the European Commission within Horizon Europe under the ‘’Food, Bioeconomy Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment’’ programme. Grant agreement ID: 101060426.
Media contact
Jose Martín Soriano Disla Project Coordinator – CETENMA martin.soriano@cetenma.es
Angela Sainz Communication Lead – European Biogas Association sainz@europeanbiogas.eu
