1st Summit of the Organic and organo-mineral Fertiliser Industry in Europe (SOFIE 2019), 5 - 6 June, Brussels, Belgium
Organised by ESPP in partnership with IFS (International Fertiliser Society)
SOFIE 2019 took place back to the IFS Technical Conference, 4 - 5 June
Introduction
There is today considerable market potential for organic fertilisers, driven both by demand (recognition of the agronomic value of organic carbon, high-added value markets in specialist sectors such as greenhouses, horticulture …), both in Europe and for export (e.g. Middle East, Africa …). This is leading development of tailor-made and performance products adapted to farmers’ needs.
Industry is also being driven by the Circular Economy, with potential for valorisation of organic materials, digestate or composts from renewable energy production, food wastes, agricultural and food industry by-products …
At the European-level, the organic fertiliser industry faces new challenges and opportunities. Important EU regulatory developments include the new EU Fertilising Products Regulation (for the first time the organic fertilisers sector will have an EU regulatory framework), REACH, End-of-Waste and Animal By-Products. European policies also open new opportunities: Circular Economy and Bio-Economy policies, EU R&D projects (H2020, BBI …). At the same time, new markets are resulting from the need to export regional manure nutrient surpluses, the entry of new global technology players and from added-value markets for export outside Europe.
The organic fertilisers market is estimated at 2.1 billion €/year in Europe and is expected to grow at over 4%/year to 2023 (5.5 – 17 billion €/year for the global market, 12-13% growth to 2022 / 2026).The wide variation in estimates suggests an unclear definition of the industry sector and a lack of information available.
SOFIE conference
The first Summit of the Organic Fertiliser Industry in Europe (SOFIE) will bring together different parts of the fertiliser industry (organic, organo-mineral, mineral) and agronomists. The conference includes presentation of the new European Fertilisers Regulation by the European Commission DG GROW, and discussion of implementation and new standards for organic and organo-mineral fertilisers.
By bringing together organic and organo-mineral fertiliser producers from across Europe and beyond, this first Summit will enable dialogue on application, product and market development, and aims to help move nutrient recycling towards identifying farmers needs and how secondary nutrients can be processed into forms with a market.
Registration
Please register via this link: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/sofie-organic-fertilizers-summit-tickets-55703185728
The key target for this conference is industry, that is manufacturers, distributors and importers of organic fertilising products, although speakers will include leading agronomists and regulators. The registration fee structure is therefore fixed as follows (inclusive of VAT, includes networking light dinner cocktail after the conference 5th June and lunch 6th June)
- Special industry rate = 185 €
Reserved for SMEs and farmers cooperatives producing or distributing organic fertilisers - Reduced price = 125€
Reserved for Members of ESPP or of IFS, paying registrants at IFS Technical Conference - Standard registration = 450 €
Stands (industry, research, other selected organisations which are partners of SOFIE …):
1800 € inc. VAT (-50% for ESPP members = 900€) contact:
Programme
The programme of the conference can be downloaded here.
