Using grape, orange and olive by-products as organic feed for sheep and poultry

The NEWFEED project, coordinated by the AZTI technology center, developed and tested new local ingredients for ruminant and poultry feed. Through innovative processes and laboratory and farm-based testing, the digestibility and nutritional value of grape combs, orange peel, and olive pomace were improved, allowing them to be included in animal diets without compromising health or product quality.

“Using food industry by-products as secondary feed will transform livestock production into a more sustainable system capable of meeting the growing demand for meat , dairy products and eggs in the Mediterranean region,” emphasizes David San Martin, AZTI food sustainability expert.

Three Circular Value Chains
The consortium worked with agri-food companies and research centres to validate three value chains that demonstrate how the circular economy can reduce waste and resource management costs while paving the way for innovative products such as functional additives or enriched and sustainable feed.

NEWFEED business opportunities were conceived in three different Mediterranean regions: Spain, Greece and Egypt. 

The study in Spain was coordinated by AZTI and involved collaboration with the NEIKER technology center, technology provider RIERA NADEU, and Bodegas Baigorri to validate the use of grape combs as a feed ingredient for sheep and dairy cattle. In Greece, the focus was on processing orange peel into protein for dairy sheep. And in Egypt, olive pomace was used as feed for broiler chickens.

"Each context has different technical, economic, and regulatory conditions, so successful implementation of these models in the future will require adapting the solution to local capabilities, developing collaboration with key stakeholders, and having tools to facilitate decision-making, such as methodological guidelines or digital platforms," ​​explains the AZTI expert. 

The NEWFEED initiative, funded by the EU PRIMA programme to the tune of over €2 million, involved 14 partners from four Mediterranean countries, including the Spanish Confederation of Compound Feed Producers (CESFAC), the Agricultural and Livestock Union of Álava (UAGA), and Bodegas Baigorri and Riera Nadeu in Spain.