On September 17th, ECOFI joined with the European Biostimulants Industry Council (EBIC), the European Sustainable Phosphorus Platform (ESPP), and Eurofema to present our joint webinar ‘Animal By-Products in the EU Fertilising Products Regulation: Nutrient Circularity, Food Chain Safety and Consumer Confidence’.
Although the EU recognises the importance of the circular economy in delivering on a more economically and environmentally sustainable future for Europe, current policy incoherencies stand in its way. These inconsistencies often prevent companies from bringing innovative, circular fertilising products to market. Manufacturers of organic-based fertilising products derived from animal by-products which would otherwise be discarded, are faced with many complex regulatory challenges when trying to access the EU market, despite the stated intentions of the EU Fertilising Products Regulation.
This webinar also featured a section where ECOFI members could learn more about the current regulatory process behind populating the Component Material Category 10 (animal by-products) in the EU Fertilising Products Regulation. Attendees heard from, and were able to put questions to, Theodora Nikolakopoulou from the Fertilising Team at the Directorate General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG GROW) and Matjaz Klemencic from the Animal Health and Welfare Unit of the Directorate General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE).
The opening of the webinar set the scene for the ongoing work ECOFI and other associations are doing on the missing animal by-products in Component Material Category 10 in the EU Fertilising Product Regulation 2019/1009. Including the joint industry letter, which ECOFI co-signed, calling on the European Commission to undertake a comprehensive review of the European Union’s approach to the regulatory frameworks governing materials from animal origin and ensure policy coherence between the Animal By-Product Regulation and the Fertilising Products Regulation.
ECOFI president Chiara Manoli gave a presentation about Hydrolysed Proteins. Manoli discussed the benefits farmers get from using organic-based fertilisers and organic soil improvers that contain hydrolysed proteins. She also discussed how these products are already placed on the market in many EU member states under national authorisations, but policy incoherence at EU-level means these products, which have been used safely by farmers for years, are still unable to access the CE-mark.
Attendees also heard about other missing animal by-products from the European Biogas Association and the European Compost Network, the European Fat Renderers and Processors Association (EFPRA), the Norwegian Food Safety Authority and ESPP.
Some key takeaways from the webinar for ECOFI include:
- Use of animal by-products in fertilising products not only helps boost the EU’s open strategic autonomy but also helps farmers to access a wider variety of fertilising products, essential to ensure a competitive future for European farming
- The Animal By-Products Regulation currently lacks clarity which causes confusion for producers of organic-based fertilisers when looking to bring their products to market
- ECOFI emphasised how important it is for EU regulatory frameworks to ensure companies competitiveness is not negatively affected by the regulations requiring them to disclose sensitive commercial information such as their production process to access the market. Chiara highlighted the long history of safe use of hydrolysed proteins in organic-based fertilisers in Europe, with numerous products containing hydrolysed proteins currently approved for use under various national authorisations across the EU for many years.
- ECOFI seized the opportunity of the joint webinar to – once again – ask DG SANTE for clarity on the scope of hydrolysed proteins currently under evaluation for inclusion in Component Material Category 10 of the Fertilising Products Regulation
You can also watch the webinar recording and see the various slide decks from the webinar attendees.
ECOFI would also like to thank our co-organisers, particularly EBIC and ESPP, all the speakers, and all the active participants.
The European Consortium of the Organic-Based Fertiliser Industry (ECOFI) is an association representing the interests of producers of organic fertilisers, organo-mineral fertilisers, and organic soil improvers. If you are a producer interested in ECOFI, you can learn more about what ECOFI can do for your business on our website or by reaching out to our Secretariat (jessica@prospero.ag).
In July 2024, ECOFI launched our manifesto, which outlines the benefits of organic-based fertilisers and organic soil improvers and their potential benefits for the circular economy, soil health and building sustainable food systems.
