The EU’s 2030 energy and climate targets and the goal of climate neutrality by 2050 place Renewable Energy Systems at the core of Europe’s transition. While wind and solar dominate this effort, their intermittency underlines the need for complementary, dispatchable renewable sources. In this context, biogas from livestock manure represents a mature but underexploited solution that supports circular economy principles, provides renewable baseload energy, reduces emissions from manure management, improves nutrient recycling and creates additional income streams for farmers. Despite its potential, uptake remains constrained by investment risk, regulatory complexity, social acceptance challenges and fragmented market support. Against this background, the ALFA project aimed to unlock the biogas potential of livestock farming to support the wider uptake of RES, increase the role of bioenergy as a reliable baseload source and contribute to climate mitigation, rural development and job creation. Acting as a catalyst in six EU Member States (Belgium, Denmark, Greece, Italy, Slovakia and Spain), ALFA addressed barriers at farm, market and policy level. Over its lifetime, ALFA moved from analysis and co-creation to implementation. Through six Regional Hubs, the project delivered demand-driven financial, business and technical support to 53 livestock farming actors, improving feasibility assessment, reducing investment risk and identifying efficient biogas utilisation pathways (direct heating, CHP and biomethane). These actions were supported by co-created digital tools, notably the ALFA Decision Support Tool, translating farm-level data into quantified economic, environmental and social insights. In parallel, capacity-building activities and mutual learning strengthened stakeholder capabilities, while awareness-raising campaigns across the six countries addressed social acceptance barriers and improved public perceptions of biogas benefits. Social sciences and humanities were embedded throughout the project, informing stakeholder analysis, perception studies, behavioural insights and co-creation processes, ensuring that technical solutions were aligned with societal needs and local contexts. Overall, ALFA provides a solid foundation for increased biogas uptake, reduced emissions from livestock manure, enhanced energy system resilience and stronger rural economies, supporting the scalable deployment of sustainable biogas solutions beyond the project’s lifetime.
