Biffa’s ‘liquid gold’ fertilizer awarded PAS 110 accreditation

The organic bio-fertilizer is produced at Biffa’s Poplars plant in Cannock, one of the largest anaerobic digestion plants in Europe, which processes 300 tonnes of source-segregated food waste every single day from commercial food producers and local authorities.

The Poplars plant is one of Europe’s largest in terms of electricity generation, producing 3000 cubic metres of methane gas every hour which is converted into renewable energy. It also produces an energy-rich digestate and it is the exceptional quality of this digestate which has secured the PAS 110 quality mark, an industry standard accreditation which signifies it is the highest quality digestate available to farmers and can be applied to agricultural land.

Biffa’s general manager at the plant, Chris Savage, commented: “The bio-fertilizer produced at Poplars is ‘liquid-gold’ for farmers as it offers the agricultural industry an effective organic alternative to chemical fertilizer. It is wonderfully rich in nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus and other elements required for healthy plant growth and fertile soil.

“Through investment into anaerobic digestion technology at our Poplars plant, we have been able to demonstrate the value that can be recovered from food waste, rather than for it to be lost to landfill. Returning the food back to the land via our accredited bio-fertilizer underpins the importance of contributing to the circular economy.”

Biffa’s Poplars facility operates 365 days a year with the capacity to deal with 120,000 tonnes of food waste every year, producing approximately 6.5 megawatts of electricity – enough to power 15,000 homes.