Supporting Recycled Nutrient Fertiliser Production

To support this objective, the project has established Support Centres coordinated by the Institute of Fluid-Flow Machinery, Policy Academy of Sciences (IMP-PAN), Research Institutes of Sweden (RISE), and the Natural Resources Institute Finland (LUKE), together with industrial partners including SF-Soepenberg GmbH, Green Circle and VA SYD. The project partners supported companies such as water, wastewater and waste management utilities, biogas plants and SMEs with testing out different fertiliser production methods, such as mechanical and thermal processing and chemical treatment of a variation of feedstocks. This exchange of knowledge and resources facilitated an essential feedback loop between experts and target groups, aiding the ambition to scale up nutrient recovery processes.

This ambition has been documented in the report “Circular Nutrients for a Sustainable Baltic Sea Region. Piloting NR with knowledge and processing support centres to produce recycled nutrient fertilizers.”

To summarize the report, it shows who was supported and in what way, detailing the different feedstocks tested to the methods used. The support offered was tailored according to the host organisations expertise, but the different host organisations also assisted each other when needed. These organisations provide expertise in areas such as nutrient recovery from wastewater, biomass processing technologies, and large-scale implementation across agricultural, municipal, and industrial sectors. Their role was to assist companies that wish to further develop nutrient recycling solutions, but they also provided expert feedback to the four project investments, carried out in collaboration with Sanitation360, RENDBEN, Br. Göransson and Tero Liukas.

Drawing on their experience working with different businesses, the partners have also produced a Case Studies Report that showcases real-world RNF technologies and business approaches.

To summarize the findings of the Case Studies Report: RNF Fertiliser Production Facilities in Baltic Sea Countries, the report supplements the previous reports by introducing mature cases with the technology focus broken down into agro, industry and municipal sectors. The report highlights a variety of methods for transforming agricultural, municipal, and industrial biomass streams into recycled nutrient fertilizers. Although these technologies differ in terms of maturity, nutrient composition, regulatory status, and market readiness, they collectively demonstrate the strong potential of RNFs to support more circular nutrient management systems.

The report shows that the choice of feedstock has a significant influence on both product quality and processing requirements. It also reveals that different technologies face varying levels of regulatory approval and market acceptance. As a result, achieving both circularity and economic viability across different regions will require a diverse mix of technological solutions. For example, manure- and digestate-based RNFs can improve soil quality, while technologies such as struvite recovery and urine-derived fertilizers provide nutrients in forms that are readily available to plants and suitable for precise fertilization practices. Products derived from processed animal by-products and struvite are already compliant with EU fertilizer regulations and can be marketed commercially. In contrast, fertilizers produced from source-separated human excreta or wastewater streams are subject to stricter regulatory requirements.

Overall, the findings indicate that nutrient recycling technologies are becoming increasingly advanced and have considerable potential to contribute to circular agricultural systems and improved regional nutrient management.

The project also carries out structured pilot implementation assessments. These are supported by Peer-to-Peer Reviews, in which external experts assess the technologies’ performance, scalability, and environmental impacts.

Task lead: IMP PAN

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