understanding and marketing digestate - wrap and marketing... · understanding and marketing...

Understanding and marketing digestate

Matt Taylor, ADAS

David Tompkins, Aqua Enviro

Scope of this course

Our focus is on:

Land/soil-based markets

Digestates certified to PAS110

The following are out of scope:

Marketing of digestate fibre for combustion

Marketing of fertiliser products extracted from digestates

Marketing of other ‘added value’ digestate extracts

Completing natural nutrient and carbon

cycles

Why digestate?

Overview of digestate benefits

What are the main benefits?

1. Nutrients– N, P, K, S, Mg– Trace elements

Users are most interested in crop available nitrogen

2. Organic matter (fibre)– Soil physical quality Available water capacity Workability Drainage

Save money

Reduce carbon footprint

MT

Overview of digestate benefits

Livestock slurry values taken from “The Fertiliser Manual (RB209)”

Food-based digestate adapted from Taylor et al. (2010)

Overview of digestate benefits: nutrients

Typical nutrient content of food-based digestate and livestock slurries (kg/m3)

High readily available N >30% total N (NVZs) RAN Organic N

Food-based digestate

70%Pig slurry

Cattle slurry

Green compost

Green/food compost

<3% 5%

80%

45%

Readily-available N (ammonium-N) [potentially crop-available]


Units Cattle slurry

Manure-

based

digestate

Crop

(maize)

based-

digestate

Fibre crop

(maize)

based-

digestate

Application ratet/ha or

m3/ha30 30 30 40

Norfolk experimental site

Dry matter % 7 5 8 16

pH 7.8 8.2 8.1 8.3

Total N kg/ha 90 98 142 230

Ammonium-N kg/ha 52 59 77 6

Gleadthorpe experimental site

Dry matter % 7 8 8 22

pH 7.5 8.3 8.3 8.5

Total N kg/ha 91 112 180 270

Ammonium-N kg/ha 56 59 163 121


MUST be product (batch?) specific

Organic matter additions

Whole digestate (or separated liquor) applies very little organic matter

Three years of additions as part of DC-Agri applied c.2 t/ha of organic matter –a single compost/FYM addition applied >5 t/ha (based on 250 kg N/ha application)

Fibre digestate is a valuable source of stable organic matter, applying c.5 t/ha of organic matter (based on 250 kg N/ha application)

Overview of digestate benefits: organic matter

Potential carbon savings – whole digestate

NutrientCO2e (kg CO2e /kg

nutrient)

Food-based digestate nutrient content (kg/m3)

CO2e (kg/t) saving

Crop available Nitrogen

6.2 3.0 18.6

Total phosphate-P2O5

0.7 0.5 0.4

Total potash-K2O 0.5 2.0 1.0

Total 20.0

CO2e figures from Brentrup and Paliére (2008)Based on crop available N = 60% of total N applied

Overview of digestate benefits: carbon savings

Digestate properties

Liquid – it flows and is heavy!

Limited application windows

Not ‘odourless’

Need to secure local landbank

Digestate is:

– expensive to transport

– awkward to store

Perceptions around waste status and safety/quality

Key issues in recycling digestate to land

Non-agricultural markets

OMK004 – landscape and regeneration

Biomass crops on landfill (SRC, miscanthus)

Energy crops on landfill (rye grass, biodiverse mixes)

Soil manufacture

Sports turf

OMK006 – horticulture

Fertiliser in containerised nursery stock

Growing medium (fibre digestate) for nursery stock and vegetable transplants

Fertigation of table-top strawberries

Hydroponic production of salad crops

Non-agricultural markets for digestate

Digestate can work in these markets, but there are challenges

Regulations

– Many uses not covered by AD Quality Protocol or Standard Rules Permits

Chemical

– Electrical conductivity can be high; some crops need nitrate instead of ammonium; odour may be intolerable in some markets

Physical

– Bulky (compared to conventional alternatives); suspended solids can clog application equipment; physical contaminants may be intolerable in some markets; heavier than growing media alternatives; water-holding in fibre digestate poorly understood

Non-agricultural markets for digestate: Summary

Financial

– High value of crop vs low cost of nutrients (and hence low value of digestate)

– Land restoration operators expect to be paid

Biological

– Human and plant pathogens must be demonstrably absent

Inherent variability of material

– May need bespoke approaches for each AD site

Need to stabilise fibre before use in growing media

Separating out fibre still leaves majority of volume behind

Non-agricultural markets for digestate: Summary

Farmers need: A reliable service

– Digestate delivered and spread when needed

– Confidence

– They can make adjustments to fertiliser application rates with confidence

– Use of the product will not adversely affect their business

Communication

– Sufficient information is provided for farmers to make decisions quickly and easily

– Any concerns are addressed promptly

Assurance

– There will be no issues with selling their produce

– Using digestate can add value to their business

Quality

– A product which will not contaminant their land or harm their crop

Providing a service to farmers

ALOWANCE landbank estimator

http://web1.adas.co.uk/alowancehome/

Providing a service – estimating available landbank/market size

http://web1.adas.co.uk/alowancehome/

Different crops have different nutrient requirements

Providing a service – estimating available landbank/market size

Crop nutrient requirements vary through the year

Grassland may offer multiple spreading windows

Oilseed rape has an autumn nitrogen demand

There are various tools to help –including the RB209 fertiliser planning manual

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fertiliser-manual-rb209

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fertiliser-manual-rb209

How can we assess nutrient content?

Standard values??

– Effect of:

– Different feedstocks

– Post-digestion processes

– Where do you look?

Measure it!

– Laboratory analysis

– Rapid on-the-spot analysis

– Quantofix

– Agros

Providing a service – understanding nutrients in digestate

Total, readily available or crop-available?


Essential to understand difference, as this impacts on crop nutrient planning and the price you can charge for digestate

Total Readily available Crop-available

Livestock slurry values taken from “The Fertiliser Manual (RB209)”

Food-based digestate adapted from Taylor et al. (2010)

Total nutrients (kg/m3)


High readily available N >30% total N (NVZs) RAN Organic N

Food-based digestate

70%Pig slurry

Cattle slurry

Green compost

Green/food compost

<3% 5%

80%

45%

Readily-available N (ammonium-N) [potentially crop-available]


Overall cross-site N-use efficiency


There are tools to help…

www.planet4farmers.co.uk


http://www.planet4farmers.co.uk/

End of waste for defined source-segregated biodegradable wastes

Two parts:

– Anaerobic Digestate Quality Protocol

– Approved specification (PAS110)

If an operator complies with both and is independently certified to both, then the biofertiliser is no longer a waste and can be used as a product

http://www.biofertiliser.org.uk

End of waste for digestate in E, W & NI

Providing a service – understanding Codes of Practice and Regulations

Agriculture and forestry and soil/field-grown horticulture

Quality separated fibre only may be used for land restoration

Use of digestate as a growing medium and for amateur or hobby gardening and similar uses is specifically prohibited

http://www.biofertiliser.org.uk/adqp

End of waste for digestate in E, W & NI


End of waste for digestate in Scotland

http://www.biofertiliser.org.uk/pdf/SEPA-Position-Statement.pdf


Cost waste route vs product route


Legal ban on grazing (or harvesting herbage for feed) land treated with ABP-derived digestates

You must alert users to this when supplying digestate (keep a paper trail)

In England the grazing ban is 8 weeks for pigs and 3 weeks for all other farmed animals

Check with APHA whether need to register to haul digestate

User of digestate needs to keep records of their use to demonstrate grazing/harvest ban compliance

Using digestate: ABPR


Supplying digestate to Organic farms

What they can accept is covered by Regulation (EC) 889/2008

Annex I lists accepted inputs, including digestate

– Can only be derived from ‘household’ food waste

– PTE limits are different to PAS110

Annex I was amended in 2014, but no guidance yet agreed

– ‘Not of factory farming origin’

– Farmers should consult with their Organic CB before accepting digestate

– It is in your interests to ensure this happens (fit-for-purpose)


NVZs – organic manure N field limit

In each field, in each 12 month period: no more than 250 kg N/ha of total N from all organic manures

– includes digestate, composts, biosolids, FYM etc.


NVZs – Nmax

Crop available N from all organic manures now count towards Nmax

No ‘standard figures’ for digestate, so have to provide evidence:

– MANNER-NPK


NVZs – closed spreading periods

Applies to all soil types and all organic manures with a high readily available N content

– defined as over 30% of the total N content

– e.g. slurry, poultry manure, food-based digestate (potentially even fibre digestate)


NVZs – closed spreading periods

Grassland Tillage land

Sandy or shallow soils

All other soils Sandy or shallow soils

All other soils

1 Sept – 31 Dec

(4 months)

15 Oct – 31 Jan

(3½ months)

1 Aug – 31 Dec*

(5 months)

1 Oct – 31 Jan

(4 months)

*Tillage land: On sandy or shallow soils, application is permitted between 1 Aug and 15 Sep inc., provided a crop is sown on or before 15 Sep

From end closed period until end of February, no more than 30m3/ha of slurry or 8 t/ha of poultry manure in a single application and no repeat applications within 3 weeks


Some farmers may not have manure risk map

Codes of Good Agricultural Practice/cross compliance


Nutrient and financial value of a ‘typical’ food-based digestate application (30 m3/ha)

Food-based

kg/ha £/hab

Crop available Na 90 81

Total phosphate 15 10

Total potash 60 27

Total £118

aAssuming spring bandspread application

bAssuming N = 85 p/kg, P2O5 = 65 p/kg, K2O = 45 p/kg

Providing a service – addressing myths and risks: digestate value

Financial issues

Spring bandspread application worth c.£4/m3

– Transport £3/m3 (based on 10 miles)

– Application £3/m3 (based bandspread)

Therefore…

Need to maximise value to break-even (demonstrate value to farmer)

But…

Autumn bandspread application worth c.£1.50/m3

Providing a service – addressing myths and risks: digestate value

Source: Taylor et al. (2010); Defra “Metals in Soils” project

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

Food-based

digestate

Cattle slurry Pig slurry

kg

/ha

/yr

Zinc

Copper

Metal loadings to soil

Providing a service – addressing myths and risks: digestate quality

Source: Taylor et al. (2010); Defra FIO-FARM project

0

40000

80000

120000

CF

U (

g/f

w)

<10

Food-based

digestate

Manure-based

digestate

Pig

slurry

Cattle

slurry

2700

[ABPR/PAS 110 upper limit 1000 CFU/g FW]

E. coli


Film plastic in digestate


PAS110 limits may not meet the demands for all markets

This can apply to a range of digestate parameters, not just plastics:

– Stability

– PTEs

Source: Taylor et al. (2010); Defra Water Code (1998)

0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000

30000

1 2 3 4 5

BO

D (

mg

/lit

re)

Manure-based

digestate

Food-based

digestates

Cattle slurry* Pig slurry* Dirty water*

BOD (biochemical oxygen demand)

[‘Typical’ sewage works discharge consent = 20 mg/litre]


“Confidence in digestate”

Risk-based guidance for the use of source-segregated anaerobic digestates in GB agriculture

Project code OAV036-008

Providing a service – addressing myths and risks: digestate safety

Other relevant work

Providing a service – addressing myths and risks: digestate safety

Check WRAP website for publication

Bandspreading/shallow injection reduces ammonia

losses and odour nuisance

Trailing hoseSurface

broadcast

Precision spreading

Providing a service – different spreading techniques

Digestate storage

Digestate needs to be applied at the correct time (legal restrictions plus beneficial use)

Therefore storage is required, but:

– Where? (site production, on farm)

– How much? (landbank dependent)

– How? (uncovered, aero cover, fixed)

Providing a service – digestate storage

Overall – how to market digestate to farmers

Highlight digestate benefits

Address any objections

Consider the local landbank

Work out the logistics

Use the local farming community

Target appropriate farm types / farmers

Build a business model and marketing plan

Roll it out!

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