TERRITORIAL CIRCULAR SYSTEMIC SOLUTION FOR THE UPCYCLING OF RESIDUES FROM THE AGRIFOOD SECTOR

Project Information

Agro2Circular

Grant agreement ID: 101036838

DOI

10.3030/101036838

Project closed

EC signature date 27 September 2021

Start date 1 October 2021

End date 31 March 2025

Funded under

• SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Climate action, Environment, Resource Efficiency and Raw Materials

Total cost

€ 16 701 559,07

EU contribution

€ 14 074 828,28

Coordinated by

ASOCIACION EMPRESARIAL DE INVESTIGACION CENTRO TECNOLOGICO DEL CALZADOY DEL PLASTICO DE LA REGION DE MURCIA
Spain

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - Agro2Circular (TERRITORIAL CIRCULAR SYSTEMIC SOLUTION FOR THE UPCYCLING OF RESIDUES FROM THE AGRIFOOD SECTOR)

Reporting period: 2023-04-01 to 2025-03-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

PROBLEM/ ISSUE BEING ADDRESSED: The Region of Murcia (Spain) has an important agri-food industry. The management of two types of waste generated by this industry are susceptible to improvement. Fruit & vegetable waste is used for animal feeding while it has been demonstrated to be an excellent source of natural bioactives of interest as an alternative to synthetic additives for the food, cosmetic and nutraceutical industry, so this kind of waste can be upcycled to obtain high value substances and as a result and develop more cost-effective waste management systems. On the other hand, many tonnes of post industrial multilayer metallised plastic packaging waste & multilayer plastic agricultural waste are annually produced by this industry, being currently landfilled due to the lack of a viable recycling process. Proper circular solutions are necessary for these two industrial wastes to improve the environmental sustainability of the agri-food industry in the Region of Murcia.

WHY IT IS IMPORTANT FOR SOCIETY: The improvement of the sustainability and circularity of regional economic sectors contributes to the preservation of natural ecosystems, to the reduction in the exploitation of natural resources & finally in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, which is beneficial to society as a whole.

WHAT ARE THE OVERALL OBJECTIVES: To develop the first value chains for the upcycling of most representative agrifood sector waste, demonstrating the technical & economic viability of specific routes for the valorisation of agrifood waste (fruits and vegetables and multilayer plastics). To provide a technological solution with a circular systemic approach by building a multidimensional model enabling the solution's territorial deployment and its replication and scalability, maximising the project impacts.

The main conclusions of the action, as part of the Agro2Circular systemic solution, highlight groundbreaking advancements across two key value chains for the upcycling of plastic and fruit & vegetable waste. First, the project developed new technologies for the recycling of flexible multilayer plastic waste that did not previously exist on the market and represent an important milestone in the state-of-the art, such as the optical sorting of flexible plastic waste, delamination (layer separation) with aluminium recovery, and new enzymes for the enzymatic depolymerisation of plastics. Second, as another important milestone, the project successfully demonstrated the upcycling of fruit and vegetable waste at a semi-industrial scale. This was achieved through new environmentally friendly extraction and bioconversion technologies, resulting in safe, sustainable ingredients for food, nutraceutical, and cosmetic formulations, as well as through a new process for the bioproduction of biodegradable plastic.The value chains were supported by a digital traceability and decision-making tool (DIS) which served as a case study for the Digital Product Passport (DPP). All technologies were integrated and show-cased in 10 demonstrators built and available in the Region of Murcia, Spain. Besides the technological outcomes, Agro2Circular produced important results in terms of new methodologies, knowledge and tools that facilitate the implementation of Circular Territorial Solutions. In this regard, it is important to mention two specific studies that evaluated the replication of Agro2Circular model in Lombardy and Lithuania, laying the groundwork for European-wide implementation. The Agro2Circular outcomes are explained in more detail in the public deliverables also available in Agro2Circular Zenodo Community (https://zenodo.org/communities/agro2circular/records?q=&l=list&p=1&s=10&sort=newest).

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

39 technologies were integrated into 10 demonstrators for the upcycling of plastic and fruit/vegetable waste, producing 18 different secondary raw materials and a data integration system, which constitute the upcycling routes of two connected value chains as a circular solution for the Region of Murcia:

An innovative valorisation routes for Organic Agri-food Waste (fruit & vegetable waste) that includes extraction technologies (2 routes) to obtain antioxidants and fibres for food, nutraceutical and cosmetic formulations , and two cell factories able to use this waste as a nutrient to produce microbial oil and biodegradable plastic (polyhydroxy alkenoates). These technologies were integrated and scaled up in 6 demonstrators included the validation of the new products by the end users in cosmetic, food, nutraceutical and plastic formulations for agricultural and packaging applications.

Several technologies were developed for the upcycling of multilayer flexible plastic waste such as decontamination, sorting, delamination, aluminium recovery, enzymatic depolymerisation, upcycling into building blocks and compounding . The technologies were scaled up and integrated in 4 demonstrators. The feasibility of replicating Agro2Circular solution in other European regions was addressed  by studying and evaluating its implementation  in Lombardy-Italy and Lithuania.

These chains are supported by a Data Integration System (DIS) for real-time traceability and decision support. Beyond technology, the project delivered circular business models, training toolkits, and public engagement strategies. Environmental impact was continuously monitored via Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and a circularity framework. Important works have been done on joining clusters and other projects to find collaboration and synergies.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

Among the large number of outcomes from Agro2Circular, 61 Key exploitable results have been identified (29 commercial, 11 non-commercial, 21 with both commercial & non-commercial potential), 45 results are individual,16 joint. Agro2circular results encompass a wide range of types: processes, formulations, methodologies , models, products, advancements in knowledge, services, and standards.Nine scientific publications were produced in the context of the project, and we reached over 500,000 people through A2C's social media/website and participation in over 300 events.

The societal impact has to do with the benefits for the environment and local economy. The regional deployment of these two circular value chains will contribute to the reduction of finite resources' consumption and greenhouse gases emissions by providing the agri-food , cosmetic, nutraceutical and plastic industry with secondary raw materials. Natural ecosystems will be protected by contributing to zero landfilling through the upcycling of tonnes of residues that are currently considered low-value or under a poorly profitable management or, what is worse, sent to landfill sites. The local economic benefits are clear, by the creation of new local circular business and circular clusters, contributing to job creation at local level in the short to medium term and to the transition to a circular and more sustainable economy at the local level. The impact will also be at the European level as the Agro2Circular solution will be built as a multidimensional circular model, assessing its replicability and scalability in other regions of Europe or for other industrial sectors.

Demonstrator 5: Production of biodegradable plastic

Demonstrator 1: Upcycling of multilayer plastic waste

Demonstrator 3: Upcycling of fruit & vegetable waste

Products developed in A2C