Organic Improvement in Agricultural Waste and Byproducts

A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Agricultural Biosystem and Biological Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 May 2025 | Viewed by 1727

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Institute of BioEconomy—National Research Council of Italy (IBE-CNR), 10 Via Madonna del Piano, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
Interests: rearing systems; forage systems; agricultural byproducts; climate change impact and mitigation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of BioEconomy—National Research Council of Italy (IBE-CNR), 10 Via Madonna del Piano, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
Interests: bioeconomy; LCA; agricultural byproducts
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of BioEconomy—National Research Council of Italy (IBE-CNR), 10 Via Madonna del Piano, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
Interests: bioeconomy; agricultural byproducts; wool; agroforestry

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The increasing demands of a rapidly expanding global population require substantial agricultural outputs, which in turn generate significant amounts of agricultural waste and byproducts (AWB). Agricultural and livestock systems have a profound environmental impact, particularly in terms of water consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, and more. The management of AWB is a worldwide challenge with serious environmental consequences. A large portion of AWB is frequently burned or buried, leading to soil, air, and water contamination, with negative effects on biodiversity, food chains, and climate. Agriculture heavily influences global nitrogen (N) and carbon (C) cycles through land use changes and agronomic practises. Currently, there is increasing interest in exploring the potential recovery and reuse of agricultural byproducts to reduce carbon and nitrogen losses, while enhancing efficiency and productivity. It is therefore essential to urgently support sustainable agriculture and the food supply chain by developing strategies that exploit AWB, add value to them, and ensure food security while preserving human health. AWB are generated from various sources, including livestock and crop activities, aquaculture, fisheries, and agro-industries. Historically, livestock and crop waste have been used in subsistence economies for fuel, animal feed, composting, and soil mulching. Today, the scarcity of fossil fuels, along with their detrimental effects on climate change, calls for increased investment in circular bioeconomy research on the production of goods based on renewable resources. This research can generate the knowledge and data necessary to develop sustainable alternatives to fossil resources that can meet market demand. Circular bioeconomy research can enhance the use of lignocellulosic and keratinic residues (such as wool, feathers, leather, etc.) to produce value-added products, including biofuels, bioenergy, organic acids, industrial enzymes, and biofertilizers. The circular bioeconomy framework focuses on "reduction", "reuse", and "recycling" to develop effective management solutions for AWB. This Special Issue invites research, case studies, analyses, and field trials on the chemical, physical, and biological properties of AWB. We welcome manuscripts that explore the long-term potential of AWB, Contributions addressing the application of AI to optimize waste management are also encouraged. Studies on a local, regional, or global scale are highly valued.

Dr. Aldo Dal Prà
Dr. Pierpaolo Duce
Dr. Francesca Camilli
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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Keywords

  • bioeconomy
  • agricultural byproducts
  • wool
  • agroforestry

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

24 pages, 7672 KiB  
Review
Turning Waste Wool into a Circular Resource: A Review of Eco-Innovative Applications in Agriculture
by Francesca Camilli, Marco Focacci, Aldo Dal Prà, Sara Bortolu, Francesca Ugolini, Enrico Vagnoni and Pierpaolo Duce
Agronomy 2025, 15(2), 446; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15020446 - 11 Feb 2025
Viewed by 1351
Abstract
Agriculture significantly impacts the environment in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, soil nutrient depletion, water consumption, and pollution and waste produced by intensive farming. Wool has great potential and can be a valuable resource for agriculture due to its high nitrogen, carbon, and [...] Read more.
Agriculture significantly impacts the environment in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, soil nutrient depletion, water consumption, and pollution and waste produced by intensive farming. Wool has great potential and can be a valuable resource for agriculture due to its high nitrogen, carbon, and sulfur content and good water absorption and retention properties, benefiting soil carbon storage and fertility, as well as decreasing the risk of water contamination due to the slow decomposition and nitrogen release. This review aims to provide an overview of bio-based solutions that can benefit agroecosystems as a circular bioeconomy practice. Raw wool and wool hydrolysate are the most common applications, but also wool pellets, wool compost, and wool mats are interesting treatments for plant growing. Waste wool showed positive effects on soil fertility by primarily increasing nitrogen and sulfur content. Improved water retention capacity and microbial activity were also recorded in several studies. The use of wool as mulching is effective for weed control. Attention to the plant species tested aimed at identifying the most promising cultivations in terms of treatment efficiency, possibly lowering environmental impact on the agroecosystem. To eco-design and scale-up processes that strengthen the circular use of wool into widespread practices, further research should be encouraged in conjunction with environmental impact assessments and economic evaluations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Organic Improvement in Agricultural Waste and Byproducts)
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