Adding value is at the core of what a grass-biorefinery does, according to Enda Buckley, director of sustainability with Carbery Group.
“We are generating, in this case, at least four co products from plain grass. We present grass to the system, we squeeze all the liquid out of the grass using an extruder and we generate a liquid fraction. Within the liquid faction there are at least three products we are after. One is a protein concentrate, which is a really good replacement for soya.
"There is a sugar in there called FOS (fructooligosaccharides) and there is also a grass whey, which we are using as a feed stock for anaerobic digestion.
"The other fraction is a solid fraction called press cake, which is a winter feed for your cattle,” says Enda.
Learning platform
The demonstration plant launched on 1 September in the Shinagh Estate will act as a testing and learning platform. Its purpose is to generate operating evidence, validate feed and biobased products and business models, support farmer and industry engagement and reduce the risk involved in wider deployment.
“We are bringing this to grass, and we would like to think there are opportunities. It’s early days, but we are already seeing in Denmark where there are commercial opportunities; we think it has a bright future,” says Enda.
With regards to the commercial reality of the grass-biorefinery, Enda says it is the ‘unknown’.
Research and innovation
“That’s why we have this facility, where we can test all the various outputs. There are some very interesting products. I mentioned the prebiotics, there is also volatile fatty acids, we can generate from the AD process, which we know are quite valuable,” Enda adds.
The plan, according to Enda, is that through testing, research and innovation they can find the products that make the most sense for the Irish system.
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