Enabling the Circular Economy for recovered nutrients (SYSTEMIC H2020)

Exploring what needs to be done to create an enabling policy framework for the advancement of nutrient recovery and reuse in Europe.

Recovering valuable nutrients from biowaste (food waste, manure, sewage sludge etc.) and adapting them for reuse in agriculture, is fundamental part of shifting European agriculture away from its current linear model and an integral part of the New Circular Economy Action plan.

Experience from the H2020 SYSTEMIC project has shown that the major barrier to the uptake of nutrient recovery and reuse (NRR) is the lack of a market for the recovered products, thereby hindering the financial viability of nutrient recovery and reuse in Europe.

Much progress has taken place over the past months to move this agenda forward, most notably the Fertilising Products Regulation and the SAFEMANURE study and RENURE report linked to the Nitrates Directive. And whilst there remains much work to do on both these policies, things are moving in the right direction. However, this will not be enough.

In this workshop, the H2020 project SYSTEMIC aims to bring together experts and practitioners in the field of NRR and those working on the advancement of the New Circular Economy Action Plan to discuss what else needs to be done to create an enabling policy framework for the advancement of NRR in Europe.