Here at Ixora Energy, we are trialling new “dewatering” machinery with the aim of supplying local farmers with fertiliser pellets, rather than liquid fertiliser.

Why is this important?

It is very beneficial for farmers and the environment for two main reasons:

Firstly, water is heavy, and 95% of liquid fertiliser’s content is water. Removing this water dramatically reduces the number of lorries needed, journeys taken and diesel consumed. UK agriculture is determined to reach Net Zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050, so we are looking at every innovation possible to play our part.

Secondly, pellets are much more efficient than liquid fertiliser, because small and precise amounts can be targeted on the ground right by the crop. This means that farmers can use smaller amounts of organic fertiliser to get the same results, making our natural fertiliser even more cost-competitive with the environmentally-harmful artificial fertilisers that many farmers currently use. (See our recent blog about how our digestate fertiliser is creating healthier crops for local farmers compared to artificial fertiliser).

How does AD help?

Our AD plants power 1,000s of local homes by using friendly bacteria to convert food and farm waste into gas and electricity. The digestate material that’s left over at the end makes perfect fertiliser as it is packed with nutrients, allowing us to deliver two major environmental benefits from each delivery of waste.

Darren Stockley, the Managing Director of Ixora Energy, says; “The new equipment being trialled by Ixora ultimately produces dry fertiliser pellets and clean water.   

It will enable fewer deliveries and lighter loads, which is another step towards helping Ixora and UK farming get closer and closer to being carbon-neutral as quickly as possible.  It will also make our locally produced natural fertiliser even more cost-competitive with artificial fertiliser, millions of tons of which is imported into the UK each year. 

As you might expect, the process involves dealing with quite a bit of regulation, so we are not expecting the switch from liquid to pellets to have been approved until next year.  After this, we can start deploying this technology in all our facilities.”