Advancing ACoD within the red meat industry: Digestate quality assessment and standardisation  

Chief investigators

Prof. Yang Liu, QUT

Fabiana Tessele (Tessele Consultants)

Purpose of project

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is being increasingly recognised as a critical pathway for decarbonising Australia’s red meat and broader food industries. However, while AD offers significant benefits, it is often constrained by the underutilisation of its digestate. Digestate holds promise as a sustainable biofertiliser, yet its variable composition and potential presence of contaminants and pathogens introduce uncertainty around its consistency and performance. As a result, digestate is often treated under regulatory frameworks designed for human biosolids, limiting its use and the implementation of AD.  

This project addresses these challenges by developing a comprehensive digestate assessment and standardisation framework. It will engage directly with regulators to produce science-based recommendations tailored to the regulator’s needs to support the development of fit-for-purpose digestate standards.  

The project will achieve this through: 

• Operation of two pilot-scale digesters running on industry feedstocks and locally available agricultural materials.
• Production and extensive testing of biofertilisers produced from digestate.
• Assessment of biofertiliser performance through extensive growth trials to assess plant and soil health.
• Development of expansive economic and lifecycle assessments to assess the benefits of biofertiliser production.
• Continuous engagement with regulators and production of a regulatory package to support the development of Australian biofertiliser standards. 

Impact of project

This project is expected to support the regulatory shift to a holistic, realistic, and science-based regulatory understanding of digestate use and biofertiliser production in Australia. This shift is anticipated to lead to the expanded development and installation of AD sites across Australia.  

Specific impacts include: 

• Improved regulatory awareness and confidence in digestate composition and agricultural value.
• Improved industry-wide confidence in the AD technology and biofertiliser production strategies, reducing regulatory risk and perceived uncertainty.
• Better energy production outcomes for remote and rural communities through clearer frameworks that support AD deployment.
• Clearer classification pathways for digestate and digestate-derived fertilisers.
• Improved national consistency in regulatory expectations across states and territories.
• Lower barriers to investment in AD and biofertiliser infrastructure.
• Enhanced soil health and nutrient recycling through increased uptake of digestate-derived fertilisers and substitutes or complements to synthetic fertilisers.
• Transferable frameworks and tools that can be applied to other bioenergy projects utilising other organic products.  

Project partners

QUT and Tessele Consultants (Lead), AMPC