What are the desired properties of recycling-derived fertilisers from an end-user perspective?

The circular economy aims to promote the use of recycled products and to close the nutrient cycle loop by avoiding nutrient leakage and detrimental environmental effects, while also reducing the dependency on fossil fuels. The production of nitrogen is energy-intensive, requiring natural gas, whereas, finite resources like phosphorus and potassium are mined. Recent developments in nutrient recovery technologies have resulted in different types of recycling-derived fertilisers (RDFs) with the potential to substitute commonly used synthetic mineral fertilisers. This study aims to understand perceptions and preferences regarding the properties and parameters that end-users find important in RDFs. A better understanding of RDFs’ properties as valued by practitioners in the field, along with collation of information on end-user preferences will allow producers of RDFs to tailor novel products accordingly. Therefore, a survey was conducted in seven North-West European countries for extensive stakeholder engagement, with the participation of 1225 respondents. The outcome of the survey indicated that most of the properties found desirable in RDFs were common among the different participating countries, and included, known nutrients, high organic matter content, product cost, and ease of application of the RDFs. Identifying the desired properties of RDFs from an end-user perspective should enable producers to develop these products in line with end-user requisites, thus, increasing their market uptake.