How VDB UK built an end-to-end circular economy venture — from lab science and festival pilots to forestry-scale deployment — securing over £2m in grant funding along the way. Sut y adeiladodd VDB UK fenter economi gylchol o'r dechrau i'r diwedd — o wyddoniaeth labordy a pheilotiaid gwyliau i ddefnydd ar raddfa coedwigaeth — gan sicrhau dros £2m o gyllid grant ar hyd y ffordd.
The UK uses approximately 1.5 million tonnes of synthetic fertiliser annually. Its production is carbon-intensive and a major source of agricultural ammonia emissions. Meanwhile, human urine — rich in nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (NPK) — is flushed away as waste every day. The raw materials for sustainable fertiliser exist in abundance; they are simply being treated as a disposal problem rather than a resource opportunity.
Mae'r DU yn defnyddio tua 1.5 miliwn tunnell o wrtaith synthetig yn flynyddol. Mae ei gynhyrchu yn ddwys o ran carbon ac yn ffynhonnell fawr o allyriadau amonia amaethyddol. Yn y cyfamser, mae wrin dynol — sy'n gyfoethog mewn nitrogen, ffosfforws, a photasiwm (NPK) — yn cael ei fflysio fel gwastraff bob dydd. Mae'r deunyddiau crai ar gyfer gwrtaith cynaliadwy yn bodoli'n helaeth; maent yn syml yn cael eu trin fel problem gwaredu yn hytrach na chyfle adnoddau.
VDB UK identified an opportunity to close this loop — not as a theoretical exercise, but as a practical, investable venture that could demonstrate circular economy principles at scale. The challenge was to move from concept through validated science to real-world deployment, securing the funding, partnerships, and evidence needed at every stage.
Nododd VDB UK gyfle i gau'r ddolen hon — nid fel ymarfer damcaniaethol, ond fel menter ymarferol, buddsoddiadwy a allai ddangos egwyddorion economi gylchol ar raddfa. Yr her oedd symud o gysyniad trwy wyddoniaeth ddilysu i ddefnydd yn y byd go iawn, gan sicrhau'r cyllid, y partneriaethau, a'r dystiolaeth sydd eu hangen ar bob cam.
To develop a validated biological process for recovering NPK nutrients from human urine, prove its agricultural viability through independent trials, and scale it from festival pilot to forestry deployment — building a fully evidenced circular economy model.
Datblygu proses fiolegol ddilysu ar gyfer adfer maethynnau NPK o wrin dynol, profi ei hyfywedd amaethyddol trwy dreialon annibynnol, a'i ehangu o beilot gwyliau i ddefnydd coedwigaeth — gan adeiladu model economi gylchol wedi'i dystiolaethu'n llawn.
This meant assembling the right scientific, engineering, and commercial capabilities under one roof — and securing the grant funding to sustain each phase from Innovate UK, Defra, the Forestry Commission, and the Co-op Carbon Innovation Fund.
Roedd hyn yn golygu casglu'r galluoedd gwyddonol, peirianneg, a masnachol cywir o dan un to — a sicrhau'r cyllid grant i gynnal pob cam gan Innovate UK, Defra, y Comisiwn Coedwigaeth, a Chronfa Arloesi Carbon y Co-op.
From festival toilets to farm fields — turning human waste into sustainable fertiliser through biological NPK recovery. O doiledau gwyliau i gaeau fferm — troi gwastraff dynol yn wrtaith cynaliadwy drwy adfer NPK yn fiolegol.
Developed a biological process using bacteria to break down urine and recover NPK nutrients. Established a wet lab at Future Space, UWE Bristol. Conducted independent crop trials at the Royal Agricultural University (RAU) through Agri-Epicentre. Result: bio-fertiliser performs comparably to synthetic alternatives. Datblygu proses fiolegol gan ddefnyddio bacteria i dorri wrin i lawr ac adfer maethynnau NPK. Sefydlu labordy gwlyb yn Future Space, UWE Bryste. Cynnal treialon cnydau annibynnol yn y Brifysgol Amaethyddol Frenhinol (RAU) trwy Agri-Epicentre. Canlyniad: mae bio-wrtaith yn perfformio'n debyg i ddewisiadau synthetig amgen.
Designed and built modular, transportable treatment units engineered for field deployment at outdoor events. Partnered with Peequal — manufacturers of chemical-free female urinals — for urine collection at scale, creating an integrated collection-to-processing pipeline. Dylunio ac adeiladu unedau triniaeth modiwlar, cludadwy wedi'u peiriannu ar gyfer eu defnyddio yn y maes mewn digwyddiadau awyr agored. Partneru gyda Peequal — gweithgynhyrchwyr urinalau benywaidd di-gemegol — ar gyfer casglu wrin ar raddfa, gan greu piblinell integredig o gasglu i brosesu.
Deployed at progressively larger events: Bristol Pride 2024 (~2,000 litres collected via Peequal urinals), Boomtown Festival 2025 (connected to 700-person toilet block, producing 540 litres of stabilised fertiliser product), and the TCS London Marathon 2025 (urine recovery partnership). Each deployment generated operational data and public engagement evidence. Defnyddio mewn digwyddiadau cynyddol fwy: Bristol Pride 2024 (~2,000 litr wedi'i gasglu trwy urinalau Peequal), Gŵyl Boomtown 2025 (cysylltu â bloc toiled 700-person, cynhyrchu 540 litr o gynnyrch gwrtaith sefydlog), a Marathon Llundain TCS 2025 (partneriaeth adfer wrin). Cynhyrchodd pob defnydd ddata gweithredol a thystiolaeth ymgysylltu cyhoeddus.
Secured a £435,627 Forestry Commission grant for a 3-year project growing 4,500 native and threatened tree species — including beech and Scots pine — in Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons) using urine-derived fertiliser. Delivered in partnership with Stump Up for Trees, marking the transition from proof-of-concept to landscape-scale application. Sicrhau grant Comisiwn Coedwigaeth o £435,627 ar gyfer prosiect 3 blynedd yn tyfu 4,500 o rywogaethau coed brodorol a bygythiedig — gan gynnwys ffawydd a phinwydd yr Alban — ym Mannau Brycheiniog gan ddefnyddio gwrtaith a gafwyd o wrin. Wedi'i gyflawni mewn partneriaeth â Stump Up for Trees, gan nodi'r newid o brawf-o-gysyniad i gymhwysiad ar raddfa tirwedd.
Across the full programme, our team secured over £2 million in competitive grant funding from Innovate UK, Defra, the Forestry Commission, and the Co-op Carbon Innovation Fund — building a funding architecture that sustained each phase from laboratory research through to landscape deployment, with an 8-person multidisciplinary team. Ar draws y rhaglen lawn, sicrhaodd ein tîm dros £2 miliwn o gyllid grant cystadleuol gan Innovate UK, Defra, y Comisiwn Coedwigaeth, a Chronfa Arloesi Carbon y Co-op — gan adeiladu pensaernïaeth cyllido a gynhaliodd bob cam o ymchwil labordy hyd at ddefnydd tirwedd, gyda thîm amlddisgyblaethol o 8 person.
The circular economy is rich in promising concepts but short on ventures that have moved from laboratory validation through to real-world deployment. Many sustainability innovations stall at the proof-of-concept stage — unable to bridge the gap between a working prototype and the operational evidence, partnerships, and funding needed to scale.
Mae'r economi gylchol yn gyfoethog mewn cysyniadau addawol ond yn brin o fentrau sydd wedi symud o ddilysu labordy i ddefnydd yn y byd go iawn. Mae llawer o arloesiadau cynaliadwyedd yn arafu ar y cam prawf-o-gysyniad — yn methu pontio'r bwlch rhwng prototeip gweithredol a'r dystiolaeth weithredol, partneriaethau, a chyllid sydd eu hangen i ehangu.
From festival toilets to farm fields — proving that human waste can become a viable, validated input for sustainable agriculture and native forestry. O doiledau gwyliau i gaeau fferm — profi y gall gwastraff dynol ddod yn fewnbwn hyfyw, dilysu ar gyfer amaethyddiaeth gynaliadwy a choedwigaeth frodorol.
NPK Recovery bridged that gap. We assembled the scientific, engineering, and commercial capabilities needed under one venture — and then proved the model at progressively larger scales, from a wet lab at UWE Bristol to 700-person festival deployments and a multi-year Forestry Commission project in the Brecon Beacons. Just as importantly, every stage was backed by independent validation from the Royal Agricultural University and by competitive grant funding from bodies including Innovate UK and Defra.
Pontiodd NPK Recovery y bwlch hwnnw. Casglwyd y galluoedd gwyddonol, peirianneg, a masnachol sydd eu hangen o dan un fenter — ac yna profwyd y model ar raddfeydd cynyddol fwy, o labordy gwlyb yn UWE Bryste i ddefnyddiau gwyliau 700-person a phrosiect Comisiwn Coedwigaeth aml-flwyddyn ym Mannau Brycheiniog. Yr un mor bwysig, cafodd pob cam ei gefnogi gan ddilysu annibynnol gan y Brifysgol Amaethyddol Frenhinol a chan gyllid grant cystadleuol gan gyrff gan gynnwys Innovate UK a Defra.
NPK Recovery moved from an early-stage concept to a validated, grant-funded circular economy venture with live deployments, independent agricultural evidence, and a multi-year forestry programme. The project demonstrated that biological nutrient recovery from human waste is not only scientifically viable, but operationally practical and commercially investable.
Symudodd NPK Recovery o gysyniad cam cynnar i fenter economi gylchol ddilysu, wedi'i chyllido gan grantiau, gyda defnyddiau byw, tystiolaeth amaethyddol annibynnol, a rhaglen goedwigaeth aml-flwyddyn. Dangosodd y prosiect fod adfer maethynnau biolegol o wastraff dynol nid yn unig yn hyfyw yn wyddonol, ond yn ymarferol yn weithredol ac yn fuddsoddiadwy yn fasnachol.
Over £2 million in competitive grant funding was secured across the programme from Innovate UK, Defra, the Forestry Commission, and the Co-op Carbon Innovation Fund. A team of 8 specialists delivered the work across science, engineering, operations, and funding strategy. Partnerships with Peequal, the Royal Agricultural University, Agri-Epicentre, and Stump Up for Trees created an ecosystem that could sustain and scale the innovation beyond its initial pilots.
Sicrhawyd dros £2 miliwn o gyllid grant cystadleuol ar draws y rhaglen gan Innovate UK, Defra, y Comisiwn Coedwigaeth, a Chronfa Arloesi Carbon y Co-op. Cyflawnodd tîm o 8 arbenigwr y gwaith ar draws gwyddoniaeth, peirianneg, gweithrediadau, a strategaeth cyllido. Creodd partneriaethau â Peequal, y Brifysgol Amaethyddol Frenhinol, Agri-Epicentre, a Stump Up for Trees ecosystem a allai gynnal ac ehangu'r arloesedd y tu hwnt i'w beilotiaid cychwynnol.