Producing advanced bio-based fertilizers from fisheries wastes

Project Information

SEA2LAND

Grant agreement ID: 101000402

DOI

10.3030/101000402

Project closed

EC signature date 11 September 2020

Start date 1 January 2021

End date 30 June 2025

Funded under

• SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Food security, sustainable agriculture and forestry, marine, maritime and inland water research, and the bioeconomy

Total cost

€ 8 853 401,54

EU contribution

€ 7 748 383,50

Coordinated by

NEIKER-INSTITUTO VASCO DE INVESTIGACION Y DESARROLLO AGRARIO SA
Spain

Periodic Reporting for period 3 - SEA2LAND (Producing advanced bio-based fertilizers from fisheries wastes)

Reporting period: 2024-01-01 to 2025-06-30

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Over 50% of the fertilisers used in Europe are synthetic fertilisers from third countries (high logistical costs, high GHG emissions and high dependence on third, often unstable countries). Besides, fossil fertilisers contribute to GHG emissions. Agriculture demands more than 1,900 tonnes/year of P that are currently obtained from mines, which have a high impact and are non-renewable. An agriculture dependent on others may have problems to produce food in sufficient quantity and at a reasonable price if the market for fertilisers becomes more expensive or destabilised. Society must have a guaranteed food supply without being dependent on third parties who can make the availability of fertilisers more expensive, or use the availability of fertilisers as a commercial weapon.
But each year, the discards from fisheries exceed 20 million t (25% of total catches), and include "non-target" species, fish processing waste and by-products which composition can exceed 9% N, 2% P and 0.6% K.
The main objective of the SEA2LAND project is to provide solutions to help overcome future challenges related to food production, climate change and waste reuse by improving and adapting technologies for nutrient recovery to produce bio-based fertilisers (BBFs) and Tailor Made fertilisers (TMFs) from fishery and aquaculture by-products generated in Europe.
Once finished, we can say that SEA2LAND has succeeded in nutrient recovery, fertilizer innovation, sustainability, business viability, and stakeholder engagement. The technologies tested show they can produce bio-based fertilizers (BBFs) that could replace conventional ones, with the potential to cover up to 10% of current use.

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

Across its work packages, SEA2LAND delivered a coherent set of advances that moved well beyond initial expectations. WP2 mapped nutrient imbalances for N, P, Ca, K, and Mg at the NUTS3 level using national and regional datasets, while also surveying end‑user requirements and consumer acceptance, with 1,516 responses across 5countries confirming broad support for biostimulants derived from fish and aquaculture by‑products. WP3 recovered nutrients from fishery and processing residues in three pilot regions using 11 technologies, producing 13 intermediates and 14 BBFs—including three tailored mineral fertilizers (TMFs)—and surpassing its KPI with 3,437 kg of BBFs generated alongside process upscaling and mass/energy balances. WP4 treated aquaculture by‑products in 4 case studies, achieving energy‑efficient steam drying, scaling thermo‑mechanical extrusion to TRL7, recovering up to 76% P through acid extraction, and developing freshwater processing with screw press and reverse osmosis to reclaim water and nutrients. WP5 tested 26 BBFs on 10 crops across 5 countries, showing strong agronomic performance: FER3 achieved the highest N mineralization (65%) and CAT1 the best P use efficiency (45%), while modelling and ecotron trials confirmed BBFs can perform comparably to mineral fertilizers under warming and elevated CO2, with manageable environmental trade‑offs. WP6 focused on quality and safety, confirming high mineralization rates for FER3 and CAT1, identifying GHG emissions profiles, and detecting microplastics in all BBFs, while soil health studies showed enhanced microbial activity and biomass carbon despite some declines in soil fauna. WP7 assessed sustainability through LCA, LCC, and SLCA, identifying extrusion and drying as energy hotspots, and concluding that BBFs are viable when energy use is optimised, with outputs integrated into a web‑based decision support tool. WP8 developed 8 business plans and 7 case studies, analysing 62 scenarios and proving that cost‑based pricing ensures profitability, while nutrient‑based pricing leads to losses; market research across 9 EU countries highlighted regional preferences and confirmed economic viability when inputs are internalised. Finally, WP9 led communication and dissemination, exceeding targets with 45 scientific papers, 98 practice abstracts, 42 press releases, and 194 media articles, reaching over 13,000 stakeholders and engaging 261 end users, thereby ensuring uptake, replication, and alignment with EU policy objectives.

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)

At the core of its achievements is the creation of high‑resolution nutrient maps at the NUTS3 level, accompanied by a geographic viewer that provides land owners and policymakers with unprecedented precision in identifying surpluses and deficits. This enables more targeted and practical nutrient management strategies. On the technological side, SEA2LAND developed 26 novel bio‑based fertilizers (BBFs) from underutilized fishing and aquaculture residues, 6 of which demonstrated biostimulant potential. This not only expands the range of fertilizer products but also introduces higher‑value applications that go beyond simple nutrient replacement. Agronomic studies validated their performance in terms of nutrient release, yield effects, and pest interactions, confirming that BBFs can substitute up to 10% of conventional fertilizers.
The project advanced soil science by examining microbial community responses to BBFs, an area where uncertainties remain but where SEA2LAND’s work contributes new insights into how organic compounds and biostimulants interact with soil ecosystems. In parallel, it pioneered a specialized technique for detecting microplastics, revealing their presence in all tested matrices and underscoring the need for continuous monitoring of environmental contaminants. Importantly, the project integrated environmental, economic, and social life cycle assessments, moving beyond the traditional focus on environmental impacts alone. Pilot‑scale trials highlighted inflated costs and impacts, but industrial‑scale projections demonstrated strong performance, with energy and transport identified as major hotspots. Techno‑economic assessments confirmed that industrial‑scale BBF production is viable. SLCA revealed both opportunities and challenges: BBFs can generate employment and support coastal communities, but they also face issues related to health and safety, gender equity, and human rights.
SEA2LAND innovated in commercialization by producing 8 business plans based on 6 pilot case studies, covering local fertilizer production, high‑value products for specific crops, and technological services. Four Business Model Canvases were also created for farmers, fisheries/aquaculture, the fertilizer industry, and technology suppliers, giving stakeholders tools to assess feasibility and value chains. The project demonstrated that pricing strategy is decisive: nutrient‑based pricing models lead to losses across all products, while cost‑based pricing ensures profitability with high margins and ROI above 12%.
Strategically, SEA2LAND’s technologies could reduce Europe’s dependency on imported P by 0.4 million tons/year equivalent to 13% of current imports—by replacing it with renewable, P‑containing BBFs. Treating 5 million tons of waste could recover 100,000 tons of P from fishing and aquaculture by‑products, sufficient to fertilize 1.5 million has of agricultural land.
Taken together, SEA2LAND’s achievements go well beyond the state of the art: it has delivered precision nutrient mapping, novel fertilizers with biostimulant potential, soil microbiome insights, microplastics detection technolog integrated sustainability assessments, and robust business models.

WP interactions