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Suitability of Biowaste and Green Waste Composts for Organic Farming in Germany and the Resulting Utilization Potentials

Author

Listed:
  • Ralf Gottschall

    (ISA-Gottschall, Ingenieurbüro für Sekundärrohstoffe, Abfall-und Kreislaufwirtschaft, Karlsbrunnenstr. 11b, 37249 Neu-Eichenberg, Germany)

  • Maria Thelen-Jüngling

    (BGK-Bundesgütegemeinschaft Kompost e.V. (Federal Compost Association), Von-der-Wettern-Str. 25, 51149 Köln, Germany)

  • Martin Kranert

    (Chair of Waste Management and Emissions, Institute of Sanitary Engineering, Water Quality and Solid Waste Management, University of Stuttgart, Bandtäle 2, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany)

  • Bertram Kehres

    (BGK-Bundesgütegemeinschaft Kompost e.V. (Federal Compost Association), Von-der-Wettern-Str. 25, 51149 Köln, Germany)

Abstract

In this study, the suitability of biowaste and green waste composts in organic farming is presented based on quality assurance data of approximately 21,000 compost analyses from 2015 to 2020. The evaluation of compost suitability was based on both the legal regulations of the EU 2021/1165 and the requirements of the two largest German organic farming associations Bioland and Naturland. In 2020, 70.1% of the composts agreed with the above-mentioned regulations, 21.6% exceeded the limits for heavy metals and 7.3% exceeded the limits for foreign matter. The negative influence of the single elements regarding the suitability of composts for organic agriculture declined in the order Zn > Pb > Cd > Ni > Cu. In the bio-waste composts, the impurity content subsequently decreased by more than 50% from 2015 to 2020. In 2019 and 2020, approximately 2.5 million Mg fresh mass (FM) of the analyzed composts were suitable for organic farming. With an average compost application of 5 Mg FM per hectare (ha) and year, about 500,000 ha of arable land could have been supplied in 2020.

Suggested Citation

  • Ralf Gottschall & Maria Thelen-Jüngling & Martin Kranert & Bertram Kehres, 2023. "Suitability of Biowaste and Green Waste Composts for Organic Farming in Germany and the Resulting Utilization Potentials," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 13(3), pages 1-28, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jagris:v:13:y:2023:i:3:p:740-:d:1104540
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Benjamin Ruch & Margita Hefner & André Sradnick, 2023. "Excessive Nitrate Limits the Sustainability of Deep Compost Mulch in Organic Market Gardening," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 13(5), pages 1-13, May.
    2. Kailin Ren & Lide Su & Yong Zhang & Xiang He & Xuyang Cai, 2023. "Optimization and Experiment of Livestock and Poultry Manure Composting Equipment with Vented Heating," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-22, July.

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