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Food wastes as valuable resources producing agricultural fertilizers: a comprehensive review
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This review examines multiple methods for turning food waste into agricultural fertilizers, while flagging that the resulting products can carry microplastics, heavy metals, and pathogens if not carefully managed. As plastic pollution spreads through compost and organic waste streams, ensuring fertilizers are free of microplastics is critical for keeping contaminants out of farmland and food.
Globally, food production is increasing, leading to a concomitant rise in food waste (FW) generation, necessitating sustainable management strategies. This review critically examines various methods for converting FW into agricultural fertilizers, addressing the growing demand for sustainable nutrient management. FW, characterized by high moisture content and a diverse organic composition, presents both challenges and opportunities for fertilizer production. The review encompasses thermal methods (pyrolysis, gasification, hydrothermal carbonization, thermal hydrolysis), biological methods (composting, vermicomposting, anaerobic digestion), and innovative approaches such as hydrogel-based fertilizers. Furthermore, the review explores the risks associated with FW-derived fertilizers, focusing on potential contaminants such as microplastics, heavy metals, organic pollutants, and pathogenic microorganisms, alongside strategies for risk mitigation. The analysis highlights the potential of FW valorization to improve soil health, enhance crop yields, and reduce reliance on synthetic fertilizers, contributing to a circular economy. Future research directions are proposed, including optimization of existing technologies, long-term field studies, economic viability assessments, and the development of novel fertilizer formulations combining different processing methods. In conclusion, this review underscores the significant potential of FW as a resource for sustainable fertilizer production, emphasizing the need for continued innovation and rigorous evaluation to ensure its safe and effective application in agriculture.
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Microplastics in Composts, Digestates and Food Wastes: A Review
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Researchers reviewed microplastic contamination in composts, digestates, and food wastes, finding that plastic packaging mixed into food waste streams may inadvertently introduce microplastics into agricultural soils during composting or anaerobic digestion. The authors highlight critical research gaps and call for harmonized methods to better assess this potential pathway of soil microplastic contamination.
Impact of Biofertilisers on Crop Production Under Contaminated Soils
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Researchers reviewed how soil contamination from microplastics, agrochemicals, and industrial waste threatens crop production, and examined the potential of biofertilizers — beneficial microbes — to help restore soil health and improve yields in contaminated agricultural lands.
Quantification and Identification of Microplastics in Organic Fertilizers: The Implication for the Manufacture and Safe Application
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Researchers analyzed 25 commercial organic fertilizers and farm composts and found microplastics in all of them, with farm composts containing more than twice the concentration of commercial products. The findings suggest that organic fertilizer application is a significant and underregulated pathway for microplastic contamination of agricultural soils.
Microplastics in MSW-derived compost: release rate, characteristics, ecological risks, and mitigation strategies for sustainable agriculture
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Compost made from household trash often contains tiny plastic bits called microplastics, and surprisingly, the compost from industrial facilities had even more plastic contamination than the raw waste it started from. Since this compost gets spread on farm fields, these plastic fragments can build up in the soil where our food grows. The good news: simply sorting out plastic from food/organic waste before composting (rather than mixing everything together) dramatically cuts down on this contamination, suggesting better recycling habits at home and in waste facilities could help keep microplastics out of our agricultural system.
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