Sustainable renewable energy VALUE chains for answering FARMers’ needs

Project Information

VALUE4FARM

Grant agreement ID: 101116076

DOI

10.3030/101116076

EC signature date 21 June 2023

Start date 1 September 2023

End date 28 February 2027

Funded under

• Climate, Energy and Mobility

Total cost

€ 6 866 486,25

EU contribution

€ 6 377 839,88

Coordinated by

INAGRO, PROVINCIAAL EXTERN VERZELFSTANDIGD AGENTSCHAP IN PRIVAATRECHTELIJKE VORM VZW
Belgium

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - VALUE4FARM (Sustainable renewable energy VALUE chains for answering FARMers’ needs)

Reporting period: 2023-09-01 to 2025-02-28

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

The overall objective of Value4Farm is to demonstrate the effectiveness, sustainability and replicability of three renewable-based local value chains coupling sustainable food production and renewable-energy production, with the aim of contributing to the defossilisation of the agricultural sector by matching local needs in terms of electricity, heat, mobility, residual bioresources and land management.

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

During RP1, a lot of work has already been done. Within the first 6 months, the project partners mostly focused on ‘setting the scene’ by collecting the necessary information. Farmers’ needs were collected via a survey and discussed in detail via dedicated Focus Group Sessions in the demonstration and replication countries. Also, the requirements and specifications for the three demonstration sites were identified. After defining the regulatory framework, the project partners were able to develop the three sustainable crop protocols, which created the basis for the preparation of the three demo sites. At the same time, the framework for the decision support tool was developed and the design of the micro-20 turbine was finalized. Via partners’ websites and newsletters, social media and participation to events, a good communication and dissemination outreach was achieved. An overview per Work Package can be found below:

WP1
UREAD coordinated and completed:
• T1.1 the collection of farmer needs to help inform the modification of crop protocols and the setting up of demonstration sites and,
• T1.4 the provision of a framework of a decision-support tool (DST) which allows farmers to explore the adoption of integrated food and energy production on their farms
• Initiated the development of an Open Online Course on integrated energy and food production on EU farms, with a specific focus on Biogas and agrivoltaics
UCSC completed:
• T1.2 collection of essential information and requirements to ensure the successful demonstration of value chains in T3.2 T3.3 and T3.4 including land and soil characteristics, technical specifications, and renewable energy technology requirements for agrivoltaic and biomethane integration in the demonstration sites.
UFZ completed:
• T1.3 outline of the policy landscape and current sector developments relevant to the promotion of sustainable food production and renewable energy focussing on the demonstration countries and the replication countries

WP2
INA coordinated:
- The design of the MITIS micro-20 microturbine – which will be demonstrated at INA in WP3 - is reported in D2.1.
- Sustainable agriculture crop protocols in the Atlantic pedoclimatic region (D2.3) and the Mediterranean pedoclimatic region (D2.4) and the protocol of good practices for handling already existing residual crop streams and usage of digestate (D2.5) were successfully developed.
- A comprehensive modelling study for off-grid biomethane plants was developed (D2.6) by UCSC, showcasing the most economic feasible option to produce biomethane without the need to be connected to the electricity grid.

WP3
INA coordinated:
• Preparations of all demonstration sites in Italy, Belgium and Denmark from month 9-14, which took place successfully. Only, heavy rains in one of the Italian sites hampered the establishment of crops in the 2024 season. Also, some delays are occurring at the Belgian demo site. However, these do not impact the continuation of the project.
AU coordinated:
• Intensive activities on crop, PV power, and biogas production as well as on biorefining were succesfully initiated across the three countries. Only, at one of the Italian sites, the crop yields were very low due to excessive rains, and the sampling of soil was delayed for the same reason.
• Plans for the 2025 season have been outlined to continue and optimise the activities from 2024.
• Demonstration sites have started planning for the invitation of farmers and other stakeholders to the sites.

WP4 Although this WP only officially started in M18, some meetings already took place to discuss need and harmonisation of data collection. This will ensure a kick start of this WP.

WP5 This work package only starts in M24.

WP6 WBA and EQY completed the DEC plan

WP7 Early in the project, EQY developed several tools to facilitate project management. These were presented to the consortium and discussed in the project management plan (D7.1) as well as the frequency of meetings. By M6, INA made the Data Management Plan (D7.2) available to the consortium, which will be updated whenever there is a need to.

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)

Every demonstration will go beyond the state-of-the-art. During RP1, the focus was mainly on preparing everything, but it is expected that several innovations will be demonstrated throughout the next RP, such as maximising solar energy capture per land unit via the implementation of innovative crop protocols for agrivoltaics, a novel microturbine suitable for biogas, using the green biorefinery as an important step in closing energy and nutrient loops and assessing several valorisation processes for biogas. An overview per Work Package can be found below:

WP1 Research undertaken provided a summary of user needs in relation to the use of biogas and agrivoltaic systems in farming systems where rotations could be potentially adapted to enhance overall farm productivity. The outcomes have helped inform the final design of the demonstration sites and provide clear messaging and focus for the work to be undertaken in WP4.

WP2 Novel and innovative protocols were developed, increasing on farm energy production without sacrificing the crop growth. Furthermore, it is described how agroresidues can be reduced to a minimum by valorising them as input for anaerobic digestion. Next to this, the microturbine goes beyond the state of the art because of its adaptation to biogas, reduced NOx emissions and a long maintenance interval.

WP3 Demonstration just started in month 14, so no conclusive results yet.

WP4 Just started at the end of the RP in M18.

WP5 Not started yet.

WP6 A major objective of WP6 is to secure engagement from stakeholders. Activities to date have resulted in:
- website: 3,202 visits between M6 and M18
- social media: 548 followers, 685 views per post
- newsletter: 176 subscribers
- other communication activities (press articles, popular science articles, radio campaign, partners’ newsletters…): over 1 million people reached
- dissemination events: 44
- advisory board members: technology providers: 12 / end-users: 11.
Work is ongoing to deploy collaborative activities such as joint events, site visits and webinars to achieve further engagement and future uptake and continue communication campaigns to increase awareness among the whole range of audiences. Knowledge sharing will also be achieved with the publication of scientific papers in due course.

WP7 As WP7 is merely intended to ensure timely completion of all objectives, milestones and deliverables, it does not deliver results as such but supports the realisation of all results and thus the realisation of the potential impacts.

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