The Rural BioReFarmeries (RBRF) project is rethinking how we can build local, circular and sustainable value chains for bio-based products. By focusing on small-scale and decentralised green biorefineries, the project aims to unlock the potential of rural areas across Europe — reducing waste, boosting local economies and supporting the EU’s green transition.
To successfully achieve the project’s mission, the 19 partners that conform the RBRF consortium are joining forces across 8 work packages. This article focuses on Work Package 2 (WP2), led by Munster Technological University (MTU).
WP2 in a nutshell
Title: Rural Green Biorefineries
WP Leader: James Gaffey, MTU Circular Bioeconomy Research Group (CIRCBIO).
One of the biggest challenges in establishing a sustainable bioeconomy is ensuring that biomass production and processing can happen year-round, in a local, cost-effective and environmentally responsible way. That’s exactly what WP2 sets out to tackle, specifically by developing flexible green biorefinery systems based on upstream processing that can be adapted to a range of feedstocks, local contexts and operational scales — from farm-level setups to regional hubs.
Key objectives
WP2 is driven by the following main goals:
- Enable year-round production by expanding the variety of green feedstocks that can be processed.
- Demonstrate a range of rural green biorefinery systems, adapted to different scales, feedstocks and product goals.
- Optimise both on-farm and decentralised processing models, tailored to the realities of rural supply chains.
- Generate data and produce products and intermediate materials for use in downstream testing and further product development.
Main tasks and technical activities
To achieve these objectives, the WP2 team is carrying out several interconnected tasks:
- Biomass assessment: Evaluating a variety of green feedstocks (including fresh grass, silage and crop residues) to determine their suitability across different processing setups.
- On-farm biorefinery optimisation: Testing and refining small-scale biorefinery systems at farm level, designed to be simple, low-cost and locally implementable.
- Decentralised green biorefinery system: Exploring a hybrid model where wet fractionation occurs locally and juice processing happens centrally via more sophisticated cascading processes, creating a more efficient supply chain and reducing transport needs.
- Data collection and monitoring: Capturing key performance, efficiency and environmental metrics across demonstration sites to guide optimisation and future scale-up.
A collaborative effort
Although MTU leads the work package, WP2 brings together a strong network of partners including Aarhus University, Carbery, University College Dublin, University of Galway, Barryroe Cooperative, Carhue Piggeries and Wageningen University & Research. Together, they contribute technical expertise, feedstock supply and downstream processing capabilities, ensuring that knowledge is shared across regions and that each biorefinery model is designed with real-world rural conditions in mind.
Another key collaborative aspect of WP2 is the involvement of two of the Rural BioReFarmeries demonstration sites in Ireland and Denmark. Both the Aarhus University’s Green Biorefinery Demonstration Platform and the Farm Zero C Integrated Green Biorefinery and AD demonstration facility will play a central role in WP2’s strategy to develop flexible, scalable, cascading biorefinery systems that can be replicated in other rural regions across Europe, by starting with pilot testing and gradually scaling to full demonstration.
Expected outcomes
As WP2 progresses, the Rural BioReFarmeries team is set to deliver:
- A comprehensive report on feedstock suitability for green biorefinery systems.
- Interim and final results from the implementation and optimisation of decentralised, farm-scale biorefineries.
- A better understanding of how to scale flexible biorefinery models in rural areas, while keeping logistics local and benefits within the region.
By building adaptable biorefinery systems that can process a variety of green materials throughout the year, Work Package 2 is laying the groundwork for a new generation of local bio-based value chains. These systems will not only reduce waste and emissions but also empower farmers and rural communities to take part in the bioeconomy on their own terms.
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