MTU to lead €9m biorefinery demonstration initiative
Munster Technological University is to lead a first-of-its-kind decentralised green biorefinery demonstration initiative. The €8.7 million Rural BioReFarmeries – funded under the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU) – will advance the development of farm-centred bioeconomy approaches through the deployment of green biorefineries across grassland regions of Europe.
Two primary green biorefinery and anaerobic digestion demonstration sites in Ireland and Denmark will optimise the conversion of grasses, clover and green biomass residues sourced from local farms into value-added products such as human and animal grade protein, bio-based food packaging, flavours, anti-microbials, fertiliser and energy, in collaboration with upstream research and industrial sites in Netherlands, Ireland, Denmark and Poland.
Rural BioReFarmeries will test a decentralised approach, in which the biorefining activity begins in the farm, combining the smart production and harvesting of sustainable local biomass with decentralised processing close to the farm, and the subsequent transfer centrally of biorefinery co-products to relevant downstream sites for further product development.
Project coordinator James Gaffey, co-director, CircBio, MTU, said: “Grassland valorisation and emerging grass-based value chains represent a major strategic opportunity for the EU bioeconomy. By improving the efficiency and circularity of our vast European grasslands, we can produce, not only forage, but also food, high value materials and energy. Green biorefineries are a key enabling technology which can help rural grassland farmers to address challenges such as income diversification, accessing sustainable inputs for their farms, displacing unsustainable products and contributing to our climate and sustainability targets. Rural BioReFarmeries builds on the latest research of various EU countries to optimise green biorefineries by overcoming existing limitations and implementing these business models on the ground with farmers, cooperatives and other industries across multiple sectors”.
The project will work intensively with primary producer partners on the ground, including within the dairy and pig sectors, while also linking these farms to upstream industries (e.g., food and flavour, animal nutrition, packaging, microalgae, fertilisers) creating new value chains and replicable business models and training activities which will be transferred across rural regions of Europe.
Kevin O’Connor, Director of BiOrbic Centre at University College Dublin, said: “Farms and farmers are central to the Bioeconomy. Biorefining on farms will be a critical part of the circular bioeconomy operational systems where both food and non-food products will be produced. On-farm biorefining will help the integration of farmers into new value chains allowing them to diversify their business and promote greater wealth creation for them. Rural BioReFameries is the co-operation of researchers and stakeholders in the value chain to help bring this vision closer to reality.”
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