RELEASAFE

Bio-based and biodegradable controlled-release fertilisers for safe and sustainable agriculture

Project details

Type of project
Research & Innovation Action
Feedstock origin
Sidestreams from industry
Feedstock type
Lignin & wood residues
Project period
1 September 2026 - 28 February 2030
Status
Upcoming
CBE JU Contribution
€ 3 484 760,50
Call identifier
HORIZON-JU-CBE-2025

Summary

Modern agriculture depends on fertilisers to sustain productivity, but the delivery of nutrients to crops, especially through non-biodegradable polymer-coated fertilisers, can harm soils by altering microbiomes and causing acidification or salinisation. Despite their fundamental importance, soils across Europe are increasingly threatened by degradation, contamination, and unsustainable inputs, placing ecosystems and farmers’ livelihoods at risk. 

RELEASAFE aims to develop a new generation of controlled-release fertilisers  by transforming underutilised bio-based feedstocks, such as lignin derivatives, dialdehyde starch, thermoplastic starch, wood materials, and polyhydroxyalkanoates , into advanced, biodegradable nutrient delivery systems.  

By using these materials as a flexible “toolbox,” the project will create biodegradable coated fertilisers for crops such as maize and tomato, enabling precise nutrient release while reducing environmental impact and supporting soil health and sustainable yields.

  • Develop circular and sustainable production processes for novel bio-based and biodegradable delivery systems for fertilising products.  
  • Assess the applicability and adaptability of the delivery systems to additional possible agricultural inputs such as pesticides and seeds. 
  • Validate the delivery systems for fertilising products (lab-scale and/or small-scale field trials), ensuring agronomic efficiency, safety, scalability, and sustainability with similar or improved properties compared with conventional systems. 
  • Assess the long-term effects and biodegradability of delivery systems when applied in natural soil conditions, via standard tests, methods, and protocols.  
  • Monitor and assess biodegradability-related aspects in freshwater, estuarine, or marine water (considering the risk of dispersion in water).  
  • Engage with farmers to develop, co-create, and test the newly established delivery systems and analyse the effects on plant development, soil health, and water.  

  • Reduce nitrogen application rates by 25 to 30% while maintaining maximum crop yields.  
  • Achieve competitive costs (€500–€600 per tonne), providing comparable fertiliser costs per hectare (€27.3–€29.3) with the RELEASAFE blend, compared with €30 under current practices  
  • Capture 5% of nitrogen fertiliser use in the EU by 2040.  
  • Mitigate 1.1 to 1.3 million tonnes of CO₂-equivalent emissions by reducing nitrogen production and use.  
  • Prevent the release of 45,109 tonnes of microplastics annually through the use of fully biodegradable alternatives. 
  • Create at least three new value chains by transforming black liquor (paper production byproduct), reclaimed starch, and forestry residues. 
  • Establish two fully operational local value chains from biomass providers to end users in Netherlands and Spain. 
  • Engage over 25,060 farmers early in the project to validate prototype performance. 
  • Generate new jobs through the growth of local processing and production industries.

Consortium map

Project coordination

  • FUNDACION AITIIP ZARAGOZA, Spain

Consortium

  • MTU AUSTRALO ALPHA LAB TALLINN, Estonia
  • HOLOSS - HOLISTIC AND ONTOLOGICALSOLUTIONS FOR SUSTAINABILITY, LDA. MONCAO, Portugal
  • LANDLAB SRL Quinto Vicentino (Vi), Italy
  • EVOENZYME SL MADRID, Spain
  • RB TS BV Bergen Op Zoom, Netherlands
  • FUNDACION CENER SARRIGUREN, Spain
  • ACONDICIONAMIENTO TARRASENSE ASSOCIACION Terrassa, Spain
  • Van Iperen International B.V. Westmaas, Netherlands
  • NUEVAS TECNOLOGIAS PARA EL DESARROLLO DE PACKAGING Y PRODUCTOS AGROALIMENTARIOS CON COMPONENTE PLASTICA SL Zaragoza, Spain