Pomace pulp used to produce soil conditioners and organic fertilizers

When olives are processed in a mill to produce oil, the result is a by-product with multiple possibilities for reuse, among these is the formulation of fertilizers and soil conditioners: we are talking about virgin olive pomace, consisting mostly of the pulp and peels of the drupes (pomace pulp) and to a lesser extent fragments of pits fragments of kernels (pits meal).

Like many other by-products of the transformation of agricultural products, if reused, pomace also contributes to increasing the sustainability of the supply chain of origin, reducing waste and the costs deriving from managing their disposal which, since it involves organic waste, requires special attention and compliance with specific regulations.

Virgin pomace represents about 30 — 50% by weight of processed olives and its composition (in particular its content in water) varies depending on the method adopted to extract the Extra virgin olive oil and olive oil.

Virgin pomace contains 20 to 30% of water and 60 to 75% of solid materials (pulp and pits), as well as residual oil, in a percentage ranging from 4 to 12% by weight, which can be extracted with the use of solvents (in most cases hexane), generating exhausted pomace as a by-product. However, since the market for pomace oil has reduced over time, virgin pomace continues to increase as the by-product of oil mills.

The pulp or pitted pomace, can be used for generating biogas in anaerobic digestion plants, while the pit meal is used as a solid fuel . Pomace can also be an excellent supplement for foods intended for certain domestic species, in order to improve the quality and shelf life of the meat produced. Finally, pomace is rich in antioxidants and nutraceutical substances — polyphenols in particular — that are used in the food industry and cosmetics. 

Perhaps lesser known, is that from pomace powder we can obtain a film used to preserve foods, interesting both for its biodegradability and its ability to bioactively protect foods from oxidation.

Even less known, and recently introduced, is its use in a clay mixture for the production of porous bricks with high acoustic insulation power.

Furthermore: when mixed with synthetic resins, the pomace of pits can produce a material called Pòmesin, which be used to create furnishing items.

The pulp is useful in the production of soil conditioners and organic fertilizers. With a dry matter percentage of 85-90%, pomace is interesting from an agronomic point of view due to its  organic matter, organic carbon and humic and fulvic carbon content, to which nitrogen in the form of proteins is added, as well as potassium, calcium and phosphorus.

For Agribios, in particular, pomace represents an especially interesting raw material for creating products intended for Vegan supply chains, which require the total exclusion of animal products, and to the zero waste supply chain, reserved for residue-free crops. As explained in the Plant Special: program for 100% plant and zero-residue fertilization, contemplating 100% plant-based solutions for the physical and chemical fertility of soils does not simply mean satisfying the needs of a rapidly growing niche market, but rather more focusing in general on the maximum enhancement of organic matrices, in an evolved concept of agriculture, which aims to become as circular as possible, returning to the soil what cultivated plants have removed during their crop cycle. In fact, it is estimated that around 3 million tons of olive pomace are produced annually in Italy.

Humovegetal by Agribios is an organic soil conditioner made of selected organic vegetable matrices, including olive pomace. Accepted for use in organic agriculture and developed specifically for horticulturists, it is distinguished by a C/N ratio promoting the creation of an adequate soil structure . Humovegetal humic acids stimulate the crop and improve the nutritional efficiency of mineral fertilization, thanks to the specific chelation of the elements. The natural zeolites contained improve the cation exchange capacity and the availability of nutrients provided. Each Humovegetal production batch undergoes specific multi-residual chemical analysis to rule out the presence of unwanted elements, which are increasingly common in plant materials of other origins.

Bio Aktiveg is a soil activator made of 100% plant-based humidified organic matter and bacterial and fungal inoculums. In addition to providing organic matter and nutrients, it promotes and directs the proliferation in the soil of useful microorganisms. Its particular microbial composition, rich in mycorrhizae, Trichoderma harzianum, T. viride and  rhizosphere bacteria, limits through various mechanisms of action the development of pathogens responsible for certain diseases of the root system, such as Fusarium, Pythium, Armillaria, Sclerotinia, Phytophtora, Rhizoctonia, etc.  As a result, Bio Aktiveg improves the health status of the crop, while increasing yields.