Good practice:

Turning wool into eco-fertilizer

With over 2.3 mils. sheep, Centru Region ranks the 1st place among Romanian regions on wool production (21.3 % of the total Romanian wool) => innovative solutions for using the wool are needed
One of these solutions was implemented by 2 young entrepreneurs from Sibiu county, Romania who made a business from transforming the wool into a valuable eco-fertilizer.
The project idea started after they talked with the shepherds in the area, who complained that they were throwing away the wool after each shearing. After intensive research, they discovered that producing fertilizer pellets is the best idea for using this wool, so they started a small pellets factory.
The wool is harvested from the sheep from all around the Carpathian mountains. The product is 100% organic and stays in the soil for up to six months, where it constantly releases fertilizer for the plant. The plant needs low-capacity irrigation, the pellet absorbing up to four times its own weight water. In addition, after the period of use, the pellet is biodegradable.
Eco-fertilizer functions as a physical substrate to which the plant attaches, bringing nutritional values of nitrogen, phosphorus, and other elements.
The product is ideal for any type of crop, from greenhouse to field. It can be used mainly as an alternative for periods and places where crops are affected by drought. Besides the innovative product created this project is also a very good example of using wool in a sustainable way.

Initial investment 200.000 euro
Operating phase - Human Resources needed -4 employees

Initial production capacity -10 tons/month; after several months, taking into consideration the market request, the production capacity raised up to 25 tons and the employees started to work in shifts. It is estimated that the sales of approx 4 mil euro estimated for the first year will double in the following years.
An important aspect of this project's success is the existence of raw material for producing the pellets - in the Centru region, there is a great amount of unused wool.

Due to COVID-19 pandemic, the activity of this plant started later than has been scheduled as the German engineers in charge of installing the machines were not able to travel.

Taking into account that the EU has a substantial livestock population (over 63 mil sheep) this practice can be implemented in any area with sheep breeders.
This practice is affordable and has a high transfer potential as all that is needed is the raw material (wool), a wool pelleting machine, and 2 employees/shift.