The Valencian orchard has been transformed into a veritable test scenario for circular fertilizers Designed from organic waste. In the heart of the metropolitan area, traditional agricultural plots coexist these months with technical trials that seek to demonstrate that it is possible to nourish the soil by reusing byproducts that, until recently, were considered simply waste.
This work is part of the European project BioSolutions, in which Valencia has participated for several years through Valencia Innovation CapitalUnder this umbrella, the city acts as a Living Lab or agricultural living laboratory, in which we experiment on the ground with how to respond to a problem that is increasingly concerning the sector: the progressive degradation of agricultural soil and the need to move towards more sustainable and circular fertilization.
Valencia, European Living Lab for circular fertilizers
In this Living Lab, the peri-urban garden is used as full-scale demonstration areawhere treatments are compared and their effects on crops and soils are observed. The idea is simple, but ambitious: to test whether the circular fertilizers developed within the BioSoilutions framework are capable of improve soil quality and maintain productivity, while reducing the environmental impact associated with conventional fertilizers.
The Innovation Department of the Valencia City Council, through its participation in the project, promotes a model in which farmers, technicians and scientists They share information continuously. The traditional agricultural district thus becomes a space where solutions are tested that, if they work, can to be replicated in other Spanish and European regions with similar problems of loss of fertility and erosion.
As explained by the municipal official in charge of the area, Paula LlobetBioSoilutions is positioned as a firm commitment to aligning local policies with European objectives In terms of sustainability and soil protection, the fight against degradation and the improvement of soil structure are addressed, in this case, not only with regulations, but also with innovation applied directly to the farms.
Living Lab's approach also ensures that decisions are not made solely in offices. In each campaign, observations are gathered from those who work the land daily, compared with the results measured by research teams, and then... They adjust the formulations of circular fertilizers to adapt them to the real conditions of the Valencian orchard.
Organic waste that is turned into circular fertilizers
One of the pillars of the project is the valorization of local organic wasteBioSoilutions works with currents that already exist in the Valencia area and which, when treated and formulated appropriately, are transformed into fertilizer products capable of providing nutrients and organic matter to the soil.
Among the starting materials, the following stand out: Animal blood from the Mercavalencia slaughterhouseA byproduct of the meat industry that, through treatment processes, can be converted into a source of slow-release nitrogen. It is also used fly phrase (the excrement generated in insect facilities), which provides both nutrients and microorganisms and organic compounds of agronomic interest.
Along with these waste products, two crystalline salts are being used, N-struvite and K-struvite, recovered from the potato industry wash waterThese struvites concentrate key nutrients such as phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium, basic elements for plant growth and whose recovery fits perfectly into the principles of the circular economy, preventing them from ending up dumped or wasted.
From the combination and processing of these components, the following are formulated: soil-improving fertilizers Specifically designed for typical garden crops. The goal is not only to provide nutrients, but also increase organic matter and improve soil structure, so that its capacity to retain water increases, compaction is reduced, and greater biological activity is promoted in the soil profile.
The trials carried out so far focus on observing how crops respond in the medium term, what impact these products have on parameters such as cation exchange capacity, porosity, and aggregate stability and how they perform compared to more conventional fertilization practices based on synthetic fertilizers.
The vegetable garden as an open-air classroom: training and co-creation
In addition to the strictly technical aspects, BioSoilutions incorporates an important training dimension, which aims to ensure that the knowledge generated in the project is integrate into agricultural education and reach those who will be the professionals in the field in the coming years who are interested in the circular garden.
In that context, the students of IES La Garrigosa de Meliana, who is studying the Intermediate Cycle of Agroecological Production, has participated in practical workshops for testing circular fertilizers in real plots of the orchard. The students have been able to follow the entire process, from the explanation of the original materials to the application of the products and the initial evaluation of results on the crops.
During these days, the group has received explanations from both staff of Valencia Innovation Capital as representatives of the Vega Farmers' Society (SAV), the entity that coordinates the project at the European level, and the organic farmer Quico Espinosa, which provides the vision of someone who knows firsthand the particularities of working in the Valencian orchard.
Student involvement is not limited to a one-off demonstration. The idea is that these workshops will serve to promote the co-creation of solutionsGathering opinions and questions from future farmers. The aim is for the circular fertilizers produced by BioSoilutions to be usable on the farm, adapted to the specific irrigation, management, and crop rotation needs of the land.
For many of these students, the experience also represents a first contact with the concept of circular economy applied to fertilizationBeyond the theoretical explanations in the classroom, seeing firsthand how a waste product from the food industry is transformed into an input that can nourish the soil helps to better understand the challenges and opportunities of changing the model.
Partnerships between farmers, companies and research centers
BioSoilutions is characterized by bringing together a wide variety of actors linked to the agricultural value chainThe workspaces created by the project involve farmers, cooperatives and companies from the primary sector, along with research centers, innovative startups, the fertilizer industry and representatives from the educational field.
These alliances allow information to flow in both directions: on the one hand, scientists and technicians share results about yields, soil health indicators, and nutrient behaviorOn the other hand, producers contribute their experience in irrigation management, work schedules, machinery limitations, and other very practical issues that condition the actual adoption of any new fertilizer technology.
The fertilizer industry is also part of this system, interested in exploring new formulations based on local resources that align with European targets for reducing emissions and dependence on imported raw materials. The project thus opens a space to analyze potential avenues for developing commercial products based on the concept of circular fertilizers.
Likewise, the municipal and regional dimension plays a prominent role, since the administrations must integrate the lessons learned in the project with regulations on waste management and soil protectionThe experiences gathered in Valencia can be useful when designing incentives, aid plans or regulatory frameworks that favor the use of circular origin fertilizers over more fossil resource intensive alternatives.
This collaborative approach reinforces the idea that the transition to more sustainable fertilization does not depend on a single actor. Coordination between field, industry and administration It appears as a necessary condition for circular fertilizers to cease being a pilot project and become permanently integrated into European agricultural systems.
European projection: living laboratories also in Murcia and Belgium
Although the Valencian orchard acts as the visible image of the project, BioSoilutions has a clear European dimensionAlongside the Living Lab in Valencia, two other living laboratories have been launched and are operating in Murcia and Belgiumextending experimentation to different agronomic and climatic contexts.
The presence of a Living Lab in Murcia allows these to be tested circular fertilizers in irrigation systems with semi-arid conditionsIn this region, pressure on water resources and soil salinization pose specific challenges. Analyzing how products perform in typical crops helps determine their versatility and adjust dosages for situations of water scarcity and high temperatures.
In the case of Belgium, the living laboratory works in an environment with temperate humid climate and differentiated crop rotationsThis broadens the range of tests. There, the trials focus on aspects such as the risk of nutrient leaching and adaptation to very demanding regulations regarding nitrates, two key factors when validating circular fertilizers in the context of the European Union.
The exchange of data between the three Living Labs makes it easier to compare how climate, soil type, and farming model influence the agronomic effectiveness of fertilizersThus, results obtained in the Valencian orchard can be complemented with those from other areas, contributing to defining usage recommendations that take into account the diversity of conditions found in the European territory.
In addition, the network of living laboratories serves as a platform for technical teams, companies, and farmers from different countries to share experiences on the utilization of organic waste and innovation in circular fertilizationIn this way, BioSoilutions positions itself as a project that goes beyond the local sphere and aspires to influence the way crop nutrition is conceived in Europe in the coming years.
With these types of initiatives, fertilization ceases to be based solely on synthetic products and opens up to the possibility of incorporating inputs from food and livestock chains existing ones, provided their safety, efficacy, and compatibility with environmental requirements are demonstrated. The experience of Valencia, Murcia, and Belgium suggests that circular fertilizers can become a relevant tool for regenerating soils, closing nutrient cycles, and reducing dependence on external raw materials in European agricultural systems.
