Periodic Reporting for period 2 - RECOVER (Development of innovative biotic symbiosis for plastic biodegradation and synthesis to solve their end of life challenges in the agriculture and food industries)
Reporting period: 2021-12-01 to 2023-05-31
Globally, 360 million tons of plastic are produced annually, of which up to 40% and 3.5% are consumed by the food packaging and agricultural sectors, respectively. Currently, just above 30% of plastic waste generated in the EU is recycled, while the rest is incinerated, disposed of in landfills or released to the environment. More than half of the used food packaging collected in municipal wastes cannot be recycled using currently available techniques due to their heterogeneity and the presence of leftover products. The industry needs to establish different systems to close the circle of plastic material.
To address these challenges, RECOVER will provide novel biotechnological solutions using the combined action of enzymes and organisms (microorganisms, earthworms, and insects) for the removal of plastics pollution in agro-fields, and the conversion of non-recyclable agri-food waste plastic streams into biofertilizers and bio-plastics for agricultural and food packaging applications.
The ultimate objective of the project is to generate a set of RECOVER biotechnological tools and test them under real mixed plastic waste streams and polluted environments. To this end, simple environmental conditions will be established that can be replicated in the farms or municipalities as a profitable activity, treading the path for future exploitation and supporting the EU effort to switch to circular models and tackle plastic pollution.
The project also has the following specific objectives:
• Quantify and characterise agri-food waste plastics, and define feasible logistics for collection, sorting and pre-treatment.
• Develop a range of biotech tools with capabilities for degrading plastics wastes from agriculture and food packaging
• Validate the use of the resulting biotech solutions for the bioremediation of soil and organic matrices contaminated with plastic and for the biotransformation of plastics into added-value products
• Progress in the use of the by-products from the process (chitin, chitosan and organic leftovers) as active molecules, in particular for the production of agricultural and packaging items as well as biofertilizers
• Assess the environmental impacts and economic feasibility of the process.
• Provide recommendations for suitable business approaches for the new process and resulting added-value products from an integrated bio-based value chain perspective.
To address these challenges, RECOVER will provide novel biotechnological solutions using the combined action of enzymes and organisms (microorganisms, earthworms, and insects) for the removal of plastics pollution in agro-fields, and the conversion of non-recyclable agri-food waste plastic streams into biofertilizers and bio-plastics for agricultural and food packaging applications.
The ultimate objective of the project is to generate a set of RECOVER biotechnological tools and test them under real mixed plastic waste streams and polluted environments. To this end, simple environmental conditions will be established that can be replicated in the farms or municipalities as a profitable activity, treading the path for future exploitation and supporting the EU effort to switch to circular models and tackle plastic pollution.
The project also has the following specific objectives:
• Quantify and characterise agri-food waste plastics, and define feasible logistics for collection, sorting and pre-treatment.
• Develop a range of biotech tools with capabilities for degrading plastics wastes from agriculture and food packaging
• Validate the use of the resulting biotech solutions for the bioremediation of soil and organic matrices contaminated with plastic and for the biotransformation of plastics into added-value products
• Progress in the use of the by-products from the process (chitin, chitosan and organic leftovers) as active molecules, in particular for the production of agricultural and packaging items as well as biofertilizers
• Assess the environmental impacts and economic feasibility of the process.
• Provide recommendations for suitable business approaches for the new process and resulting added-value products from an integrated bio-based value chain perspective.
During the first 18 months, covering from M1 (01/06/2020) to M18 (30/11/2021), the activity of the consortium has been focused on defining the agri-food waste plastic types and the logistic approach, selecting the organisms and enzymes for their degradation/conversion, and starting the upscaling for their combined production. The current plastics used in agriculture and food packaging, as well as end of life management have been reviewed. According to the presence in the waste streams and potential biodegradability, four plastic polymers will be the targets, i.e. polystyrene (PS), low-density polyethylene (LDPE), linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). A logistic chain approach has been proposed for the collection, transport, treatment, and re-use of plastic waste. An automatic sorting system has demonstrated efficiency to identify materials composition and detect toxic substances, and plastic abiotic pre-treatment operations have been proposed to render waste plastics amenable for biodegradation.
In parallel, the candidate organisms/enzymes and the basic conditions required to degrade the plastic types have been selected. Four microbial combinations (consortia) showed the promising capability to use the full range of plastic polymers as carbon sources, especially LLDPE/LDPE. Two novel enzymes exhibited a great activity and stability (thermo-) on LLDPE, and further homologues that degrade LLDPE and PS are being synthesized. Earthworm species for soil bioremediation and vermicomposting scenarios survived and induced plastic-degrading enzymatic activity in the presence of plastic. Three insects that ingest the plastics were selected at this stage, whereas another was kept for application in a cascade approach. .
During the period covering from M19 (01/12/2021) to M36 (30/05/2023), the activity of the consortium has been focused on upscaling formulations for selected biotech tools and defining the protocols for their combined application at pilot scale; testing pilot scale ex-situ (composting/vermicomposting and insect culture) and in-situ (soil bioremediation) AWP degradation/conversion; and developing added-value downstream products (biofertilizer and chitin-based materials). These activities have served for techno-economic analysis and risks and social assessments and a preliminary logistic for the implementation of the RECOVER value chain for a defined area has been proposed.
In parallel, the candidate organisms/enzymes and the basic conditions required to degrade the plastic types have been selected. Four microbial combinations (consortia) showed the promising capability to use the full range of plastic polymers as carbon sources, especially LLDPE/LDPE. Two novel enzymes exhibited a great activity and stability (thermo-) on LLDPE, and further homologues that degrade LLDPE and PS are being synthesized. Earthworm species for soil bioremediation and vermicomposting scenarios survived and induced plastic-degrading enzymatic activity in the presence of plastic. Three insects that ingest the plastics were selected at this stage, whereas another was kept for application in a cascade approach. .
During the period covering from M19 (01/12/2021) to M36 (30/05/2023), the activity of the consortium has been focused on upscaling formulations for selected biotech tools and defining the protocols for their combined application at pilot scale; testing pilot scale ex-situ (composting/vermicomposting and insect culture) and in-situ (soil bioremediation) AWP degradation/conversion; and developing added-value downstream products (biofertilizer and chitin-based materials). These activities have served for techno-economic analysis and risks and social assessments and a preliminary logistic for the implementation of the RECOVER value chain for a defined area has been proposed.
Novel microbial consortia and enzymes with activity on a wide range of plastic polymers, besides earthworms and insects capable to digest plastics on complex organic matrices, have been identified. These are critical to achieving the degradation/conversion of mixed plastics with organic traces and the removal of plastics from the soil. The further integration of biocatalytic systems (hydrolytic enzymes, microbial, insects, and earthworms) is expected to i) maximize the transformation yields, ii) be more flexible allowing the treatment of mixed plastic waste streams, and iii) make it possible to convert fossil fuel plastic into biodegradable counterparts in a single step. The design of novel enzymes that will overcome the inefficacy of the existing ones for the breakdown of the polymers that make up the plastics will reinforce the capabilities of the living organisms to deal with a material that is difficult to convert or remove by biological means.
The RECOVER project will make a valuable contribution by offering solutions to the major problems posed by agri-food plastic waste. In addition, it will also establish a new circular cross-sectorial interconnection in the bio-based economy, specifically involving waste management and biotechnology. It will also create three new effective bio-based value chains linking standard plastics with insects/microorganisms and enzymes providers, and remodel existing value chains by substituting petrochemical-derived products with biofertilizers and bioplastics for agricultural and food packaging applications.
In addition, the RECOVER project will have a positive environmental impact. It offers huge potential advantages by decreasing the generation and dispersion of plastics in our fields and reducing the large amount of plastic currently being buried in landfill or incinerated, with the implications this has for GHG release. The novel bio-recycling solution is expected to increase plastic recycling in the EU by 12 %, generating new jobs, and avoiding around 80% of CO2 emissions caused by common incineration of plastic.
The RECOVER project will make a valuable contribution by offering solutions to the major problems posed by agri-food plastic waste. In addition, it will also establish a new circular cross-sectorial interconnection in the bio-based economy, specifically involving waste management and biotechnology. It will also create three new effective bio-based value chains linking standard plastics with insects/microorganisms and enzymes providers, and remodel existing value chains by substituting petrochemical-derived products with biofertilizers and bioplastics for agricultural and food packaging applications.
In addition, the RECOVER project will have a positive environmental impact. It offers huge potential advantages by decreasing the generation and dispersion of plastics in our fields and reducing the large amount of plastic currently being buried in landfill or incinerated, with the implications this has for GHG release. The novel bio-recycling solution is expected to increase plastic recycling in the EU by 12 %, generating new jobs, and avoiding around 80% of CO2 emissions caused by common incineration of plastic.