Value of food waste-derived fertilisers on soil chemistry, microbial function and crop productivity

Article

O'Connor, James, Mickan, Bede S., Gurung, Sun K., Buhlmann, Christopher H., Jenkins, Sasha N., Siddique, Kadambot H.M., Leopold, Matthias and Bolan, Nanthi S.. 2024. "Value of food waste-derived fertilisers on soil chemistry, microbial function and crop productivity." Applied Soil Ecology. 198. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsoil.2024.105380
Article Title

Value of food waste-derived fertilisers on soil chemistry, microbial function and crop productivity

ERA Journal ID5246
Article CategoryArticle
AuthorsO'Connor, James, Mickan, Bede S., Gurung, Sun K., Buhlmann, Christopher H., Jenkins, Sasha N., Siddique, Kadambot H.M., Leopold, Matthias and Bolan, Nanthi S.
Journal TitleApplied Soil Ecology
Journal Citation198
Article Number105380
Number of Pages13
Year2024
PublisherElsevier
Place of PublicationNetherlands
ISSN0929-1393
1873-0272
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsoil.2024.105380
Web Address (URL)https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0929139324001112
AbstractFood waste management through composting and anaerobic digestion are sustainable waste management processes that can promote sustainable agricultural practices by recycling nutrients, reducing reliance on synthetic fertilisers, and conditioning soils. However, compost and digestate (anaerobic digestate effluent) are low nutrient value fertilisers, limiting their use within agriculture due to the large volumes required for land application. Alternatively, food waste-derived fertilisers could be used alongside chemical fertilisers to improve crop growth further and reduce demand on synthetic fertilisers. Therefore, this study evaluated the impact of food waste-derived fertilisers (compost, liquid digestate (LD), and solid digestate (SD)) on plant growth (Ryegrass) when applied at a rate of 50 kg N·ha−1 in combination with synthetic fertiliser (Urea Ammonium Nitrate (UAN)) at a rate of 0 or 50 kg N·ha−1. Ryegrass growth, soil chemistry, and rhizosphere microbial communities were investigated. SD in combination with UAN yielded the largest shoot biomass, while sole UAN at any application rate was not significantly different from the control. Beneficial plant growth phyla were in higher abundance in all treatments amended with food waste-derived fertilisers, and putative genes encoded for N fixing were found in higher abundances in all soil amendments compared to control. This highlights the value of food waste-derived fertilisers within agriculture. However, while drying would logically reduce costs associated with digestate transport, ammonia volatilisation led to significant N losses, reducing the fertiliser value of SD. Future studies should explore methods to mitigate ammonia valorisation to enhance the final fertiliser value of SD.
KeywordsCompost; Food waste ; Digestate; Sustainable; Soil chemistry ; Micro-organisms
Contains Sensitive ContentDoes not contain sensitive content
ANZSRC Field of Research 2020410699. Soil sciences not elsewhere classified
Byline AffiliationsUniversity of Western Australia
Cooperative Research Centre for High Performance Soils, Australia
Richgro Garden Products, Australia
Centre for Agricultural Engineering
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