Overview of the INSOIL project

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or Circular Bio-Based Europe Joint Undertaking. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them. The project is supported by the Circular Bio-Based Europe Joint Undertaking and its members. Introduction to INSOIL project 21 October 2025 Speaker: Amparo Verdú, ITENE Project Outline Duration in months: 48 (1st June 2025 to 31st May 2029) •Call identifier: HORIZON-JU-CBE-2024 •TOPIC: HORIZON-JU-CBE-2024-IA-01 Bio-based materials and products for biodegradable in-soil applications. •Project Number: 101214144 –INSOIL •Total budget: 4-year project is 8,12M€ and total funding representing 6,57M€ •Project coordinator: ITENEPackaging Transport and Logistics Research Institute •Project Coordinators: Amparo Verdú –Miriam Gallur Project Overview Selection of three high-risk (high volume of use and toxicity) agricultural plastic applications that are singleuse and have low collectability: •Mulch films •Plant guards •CRFs These applications have different intended useful life, from the shortest CRFs (1-6 months) through to mulch films (3-8 months) and plant guards (1-2 years). Collectability and durability of common agri-plastic used in crop production. Adapted from Hofmann et al (2023) Commun. Earth Environ. General Objective Develop, deploy and validate three families of functionalized, PHAbased, in-soil biodegradable agriproducts to replace widespread singleuse agricultural plastics. Two versions of mulch films, plant guards and controlled release fertilisers (CFRs), including bio-based additives for programmed in-soil biodegradation, tailored to target climate and crop will be developed. These alternatives will be based on PHA obtained from industrial biogenic CO2 emissions. INSOIL Agriproducts Mulch film family (2 categories) •Incorporation of selected biodegradation and functional bio-based additives into the film compound to enhance PHA performance and programmed biodegradation rate for the intended use. •Integration of selected active bioproducts into the film compound, as well as PHAmicroencapsulated, and applied as a coating. INSOIL Agriproducts Plant guard family (2 categories) •Incorporation of selected biodegradation and functional bio-based additives into the film compound to enhance PHA performance and programmed biodegradation rate for the intended use. •Integration of selected active bioproducts into the film compound, as well as PHAmicroencapsulated, and applied as a coating. INSOIL Agriproducts CRF family (2 categories) •Incorporation of microencapsulated organic NPK powder. •PHA-based shell materials, blended via extrusion compounding with selected biodegradation and functional bio-based additives for enhancement shell material performance,as well as to allow for gradual and programmed fertiliser release tailored to specific needs. Methodology & Implementation Partners: INSOIL Value Chain