European recycled phosphorus can be exported to Canada

In a new collaboration, the innovation company EasyMining and the German utilities company Gelsenwasser will start developing a market for a premium feed product together with Friesen Group, a second-generation family-owned Canadian feed company.

EasyMining aims to recycle high-quality phosphate from incinerated biosolids within their joint venture, Phosphorgewinnung Schkopau, together with Gelsenwasser. The phosphate is suitable as a feed raw material, being safe and highly digestible in animals.

- If we are serious about creating a sustainable society, we need to use the resources we already have, over and over again. Therefore, signing this Letter of Intent with Friesen Group, with the purpose of developing a world market for recycled phosphorus, is a major step, says Jan Svärd, CEO of EasyMining.

For the first time globally, recycled phosphate from biosolid ash will be developed into premium feed products aimed for the North American market.

- I am very happy that we at Friesen have the possibility, together with EasyMining, to first develop and then supply the market with recycled phosphorus. The better environmental footprint will be a winning concept, says Marvin Friesen, CEO of Friesen Group.

The planned facilities will utilise the Ash2Phos technology to extract more than 90 percent of the phosphorus from the ashes of incinerated biosolids. Developed and patented by EasyMining, this process also removes nearly all contaminants, enabling a circular flow of phosphorus. The first plant is expected to be up and running within 3-4 years.

The final product will be cleaner than any mined phosphorus on the market today. However, EU legislation prohibits its use in several applications, like organic farming or as feed phosphate since the original biosolids are classified as waste.

- We are pleased that Canada’s progressive policies allow for the use of recycled phosphorus as a feed ingredient. We do know that it will take time to have all regulatory approvals in order, and therefore we have already started now, says Dr. Sara Stiernström, Product Manager at EasyMining who will lead the work going forward.

The world’s population is expected to increase by two billion people in just 30 years, with a much larger share living in cities, according to the UN. Having enough to eat without increasing the strain on the planet’s limits requires new and innovative attitudes to food production.

- Without phosphorus there will be no life, but today we are dependent on imports from traditional sources. At the same time, we have plenty of phosphorus right here in our wastewater - we just have to start using it and that’s what we are going to do, together with Friesen, says Jan Svärd.

For further information, please contact:
Jan Svärd, CEO at EasyMining, +4670 978 64 74, jan.svard@easymining.com
Marvin Friesen, CEO at Friesen Group, marvin@cgmilling.com
Sara Stiernström, Product Manager at EasyMining, +4670-927 28 85, sara.stiernstrom@easymining.com
Emma Ranerfors, Press Officer at Ragn-Sells, +46709272416, press@ragnsells.com 

 

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About the Ash2Phos technology
EasyMining’s Ash2Phos process extracts phosphorus from the ash of biosolids after incineration, along with other commodities such iron chloride and aluminium products. It can recover more than 90% of the phosphorus present in the ash.

The phosphorus content in the renewable, domestic resource biosolid ash is many times higher than that of mined phosphate rock. The potential in putting it to use is enormous. By separating out the metals in the ash, the Ash2Phos technology enables domestic production of cleaner, safer phosphates. Read more

About Friesen
The Friesen Group of Companies proudly serves poultry, dairy and hog farms in British Columbia, the Canadian prairies and the northwest, southern and mid-western United States with high-quality feed, nutritional consulting and poultry breeding and hatching. Read more

About Phoshorgewinnung Schkopau (PGS)
In 2021, Phoshorgewinnung Schkopau GmbH was formed by GELSENWASSER and EasyMining to build the first Ash2Phos-plant. The Ash2Phos-plant will be built at the Schkopau Chemical Park (Saxony-Anhalt, Germany) and have a capacity of 30 000 tonne ash from incinerated biosolids per year. The plant will receive ash from the Gelsenwasser incineration plant in Bitterfeld-Wolfen but will also be able to treat ashes from other incineration plants. Phosphorgewinnung Schkopau is owned 50/50 by GELSENWASSER and EasyMining

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