Top Six Bio-Based Fertiliser Production Cases from Open Call Published – CiNURGi evaluation results available

Through an open call launched in late 2024, CiNURGi invited companies to submit innovative nutrient-recycling solutions that transform various organic waste streams into market-ready products. The call attracted 24 submissions, of which 11 cases were longlisted for in-depth evaluation in 2025. From that evaluation six companies were shortlisted for the CiNURGi recognition prize the Best Nutrient Recycling Award. Now the evaluation of the six shortlisted companies that participated in the open call has been published.

CiNURGi assessed each shortlisted case using its custom evaluation model, incorporating indicators such as Nutrient Recycling Impact (NRI) and Direct Emission Impact (DEI). The model was used to determine the value chain impact on environment, climate and social economy in a comparable way. In addition, the CiNURGi project evaluated each case for market potential, end-user acceptance and relevant policy barriers.

Overall, the environmental, climate and socio-economic impacts show a large variability, also for the shortlisted cases, which means that BBF production should not be viewed as a single, uniform solution. Instead, it represents a range of context-specific strategies whose performance must be evaluated in comparison to alternatives currently on the market. A challenge detected in the study was that even among the six best cases, the average socio-economic value is rather limited, and only three of the cases were in fact evaluated to have a positive impact on the social economy. In addition, the production cost of the recycled nitrogen and phosphorus was on average double that of conventional mineral fertilisers and none of the cases could produce fertilisers at a market competitive price. These findings highlight why both research and policy efforts are urgently needed to realise higher nutrient recycling from organic wastes.

The study found that bio-based fertiliser production generates the highest socio-economic value when it replaces conventional waste treatment methods that destroy nutrients, such as incineration, pyrolysis and composting. These treatments typically lead to complete or substantial losses of the available nutrients and organic matter.

The Top 6 Selected Companies and Their Solutions were:

• Agriculture category: Planteo and BioPir
• Municipal category: Soepenberg and Sanitation360
• Industrial category: Gyllebo and Bio10

In the agriculture category Planteo produces manure pellets from separated digestate solids, allowing nitrogen-rich liquids to be used locally while phosphorus-rich solids can be transported to regions with lower phosphorus levels. BioPir’s digestate separation technology was also recognised for demonstrating how relatively simple and cost-effective processes can significantly improve phosphorus utilisation from liquid manures.

In the municipal category, the Soepenberg approach focuses on producing struvite fertiliser from activated wastewater sludge. The resulting fertiliser contains nitrogen, phosphorus and magnesium in a relatively clean and concentrated form, although nutrient release can be slower and the wastewater origin may raise concerns for some users. The Sanitation360 concept explores fertiliser production from human urine. Urine contains substantial quantities of nitrogen and could potentially contribute to crop nutrition if collection systems and specialised sanitation infrastructure become more widespread.

In the industry category that covers all sort of industrial waste and side streams Gyllebo produces fertiliser pellets produced from meat and bone meal, which were highlighted as a particularly effective way to reintegrate organic by-products into agricultural nutrient cycles. Bio10’s system for separating digestate fractions from co-digested municipal and industrial waste highlights the growing role of anaerobic digestion in organic waste management.

These cases represent the most promising nutrient-recycling innovations currently emerging in the Baltic Sea Region.

Award to Be Announced in Brussels

The two best nutrient recycling cases from each waste category will be presented during the ESNI-NERM conference in Brussels in late April, where CiNURGi will also announce an overall best-performing case.

The findings from the evaluation highlight both the promise and the challenges of bio-based fertiliser production. While nutrient recycling remains a key pillar of circular agriculture, the CiNURGi study shows that achieving real environmental, economic and market benefits will depend on careful case-by-case evaluation, supportive policy frameworks and continued product innovation.

These results are part of newly released report into the emerging market for recycled nutrient products in the Baltic Sea Region, highlighting both business opportunities and the challenges companies face when scaling nutrient-recycling technologies. The latest assessments in market evaluation and the development of markets in recycled nutrients, combined with the results of CiNURGi’s open call to companies, have resulted in the release of two reports, available on the project homepage.

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