INSOIL
Safe bio-based and biodegradable IN-SOIL solutions for circular and sustainable crop production
Project details
- Type of project
- Innovation Action - Demonstration
- Project focus
- Crop protection & fertilisation
- Feedstock origin
- Agri-food waste
- Feedstock type
- Crop residuesFood industry sidestreamsLignin & wood residues
- Project period
- 1 June 2025 - 31 May 2029
- Status
- Upcoming
- CBE JU Contribution
- € 6 577 684,80
- Call identifier
- HORIZON-JU-CBE-2024
Summary
Agri-plastic pollution poses a global risk by degrading soil health, reducing soil fertility, threatening biodiversity, and contaminating water sources. Moreover, plastic production and disposal significantly contribute to GHG emissions. INSOIL tackles these challenges by developing and selecting sustainable, biodegradable alternatives to conventional plastic used in agriculture.
INSOIL aims to demonstrate scalable, cost-effective solutions for creating bio-based, in-soil biodegradable products that replace conventional plastic in farming. The focus is on biopolymers, biodegradation accelerators, and active bioproducts derived from sustainable feedstocks, such as agricultural residues, plant-based materials, and other renewable resources.
These bio-based products not only replace conventional plastic, but they also offer additional benefits for soil and plant health. The project will validate their performance, biodegradation rates, and agronomic benefits at pilot scale. It will also engage with key stakeholders and policymakers to ensure market adoption, regulatory compliance, and alignment with EU's bio-based economy.
- Develop in-soil biodegradable and bio-based product components, such as biopolymers, biodegradation additives, functional additives, and active bioproducts.
- Design and optimise three distinct families of bio-based agriproducts, tailored to meet specific regional needs and crop types.
- Validate the characteristics, biodegradation rates, and agronomic performance of the products at the pilot scale, including their effects on soil health.
- Authenticate the industrial production and field deployment of these agriproducts through regional validation trials in collaboration with primary producers.
- Identify and engage key stakeholders across the EU, including primary producers, policy experts, and industry leaders.
- Demonstrate the enhanced safety of the products in line with the safe-and-sustainable-by-design framework.
- Ensure regulatory compliance and facilitate the market uptake of the bio-based agriproducts, while monitoring their industry-wide impact.
- Maximise the visibility and public awareness of the project, engaging key stakeholders and end-users.
- Secure food supply contribution and boost the sustainability, circularity, autonomy, and competitiveness of EU bio-based value chains.
- Develop six innovative agriproducts such as two mulch films, two plant guards, and two fertilisers.
- Enable European farmers to save up to €17.4 million, while allowing primary producers and value chains to save €156.6 million, generating €283.5 million in revenue by 2050.
- Replace 5,820 tonnes of European agricultural plastic with in-soil biodegradable biopolymers in the first five years after the project, based on the estimated production of each type of agriproduct.
- Reduce the release of (micro)plastic particles in agricultural soils by 2,153 tonnes in Europe, in the first five years after the project.
- Substitute 4,000 tonnes of agrichemicals with sustainable active bioproducts.
- Reduce fertiliser emissions to the environment by 18,000 tonnes by 2050.
- Reduce the application of 42,6 tonnes of pesticides by 2050 with improved mulch film and plant guards.
- Contribute to safer and more sustainable food systems, increasing consumer awareness and adjusting regulatory framework.
- Advance knowledge in biodegradable agriproducts, bio-based feedstocks, and environmental/agronomic performance, through 40 events, six project workshops, four training workshops, ten industry events, and a final event, all supported by the INSOIL facility.
Consortium map
Project coordination
- INSTITUTO TECNOLOGICO DEL EMBALAJE, TRANSPORTE Y LOGISTICA Paterna, Spain
Consortium
- NOVAMONT SPA Novara, Italy
- UNIVERSITAT JAUME I DE CASTELLON Castellon De La Plana, Spain
- CO2BIOCLEAN GMBH ESCHBORN, Germany
- IVL SVENSKA MILJOEINSTITUTET AB Stockholm, Sweden
- HOCHSCHULE FUR ANGEWANDTE WISSENSCHAFTEN HAMBURG Hamburg, Germany
- TEKNOLOGIAN TUTKIMUSKESKUS VTT OY Espoo, Finland
- SABIO SRL Lugo, Italy
- CAPSULAE LA ROCHELLE, France
- BOERENBOND PROJECTEN Leuven, Belgium
- PARTICULA GROUP DRUSTVO S OGRANICENOM ODGOVORNOSCU ZA ISTRAZIVANJE RAZVOJ I PROIZVODNJU Rijeka, Croatia
- ALMA MATER STUDIORUM - UNIVERSITA DI BOLOGNA Bologna, Italy
- EUROPEAN BIOPLASTICS EV BERLIN, Germany
- ASOCIACION VALENCIANA DE AGRICULTORES Valencia, Spain
- NORMEC OWS GENT, Belgium
- NORCE NORWEGIAN RESEARCH CENTRE AS Bergen, Norway
