New Irish Grass Biorefinery Opens as Demonstration Site for CBE JU-Funded Rural BioReFarmeries

September 15, 2026

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(Circular Bio-based Europe) Ireland’s first on-farm demonstration-scale biorefinery integrating grass biorefining and anaerobic digestion was inaugurated in Cork, Ireland, today. Funded by Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, the €3 million facility will serve as the Irish demonstration site for Rural BioReFarmeries, which receives approximately €7.35 million in CBE JU funding.

Coordinated by Munster Technological University (MTU), Rural BioReFarmeries brings together 19 partners from eight countries to test a farmer-centred, small-scale biorefinery model under real farming conditions and assess its potential for replication across Europe’s grassland regions.

The inauguration was led by Ireland’s Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon, at Farm Zero C, located at Shinagh Estates Demonstration Farm near Bandon in West Cork. Virginia Puzzolo, Head of Programme at CBE JU, joined representatives of public authorities, research organisations, industry and the farming community.

Held during Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of the EU, the inauguration highlighted how coordinated European and national investment can strengthen the competitiveness and resilience of rural bioeconomies.

Highlighting the potential benefits for farmers, Minister Heydon said:

Instead of just using grass for one purpose, animal feed, this facility will show at a pre-commercial level how we can make further use of our grass and open up new business models and income streams for our grassland farmers.

Martin Heydon, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

National infrastructure supporting European demonstration

The national and CBE JU investments have distinct but complementary roles. The Irish Government funded the demonstration infrastructure, while CBE JU supports the validation of the model and its wider deployment.

This facility shows how European funding and national investments can work together to bring bio-based innovation to demonstration scale. Through the CBE JU-funded Rural BioReFarmeries project, partners are testing a small-scale, farmer-centred green biorefinery model under real farming conditions and assessing its potential for replication in other European grassland regions.

Virginia Puzzolo, Head of Programme, CBE JU

Testing the model under real farming conditions

The facility is designed to process fresh grass through mechanical fractionation, separating a fibre-rich press cake from grass juice.

The fibre fraction can be used for livestock feed but will also be evaluated for other material applications. Protein and other valuable components can instead be recovered from the liquid fraction for feed and other potential ingredients for food applications, subject to further development and regulatory assessment. Remaining streams can be directed to anaerobic digestion to produce renewable energy and nutrient-rich digestate, with potential for use as a bio-based fertiliser subject to applicable requirements.

James Gaffey, coordinator of Rural BioReFarmeries, outlined how the consortium will use the site:

This facility gives Rural BioReFarmeries the conditions needed to move beyond pilot-scale testing. With CBE JU support, partners will assess technical performance and product quality in a working farm environment. The evidence will help determine whether the model can operate viably and what farmers and cooperatives need to adopt it in practice.

James Gaffey, Rural BioReFarmeries project coordinator, Munster Technological University and BiOrbic

Using grass to strengthen Europe’s protein supply

Grass is a widely available but underused European resource. Biorefining can recover protein and other bio-based ingredients from grass while retaining a fibre fraction suitable for ruminant feed. Demonstrating this approach at scale could contribute to strengthening the EU’s strategic autonomy, while helping farmers and cooperatives generate more value locally from available biomass.

The work also supports the EU Protein Action Plan, which recognises CBE JU’s role in strengthening Europe’s protein supply, reducing import dependence and supporting more resilient food and feed systems.

Evidence generated in Cork will inform future deployment in other European grassland regions. This connects a concrete Irish investment with European collaboration while contributing to stronger rural economies and more efficient resource use. READ MORE

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Minister Heydon opens Ireland’s first on-farm integrated grass-biorefinery and anaerobic-digestion demonstration plant (Ireland Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)

Excerpt from Ireland Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon TD, today officially opened Irelands first on-farm demonstration plant integrating grass biorefining and anaerobic digestion at the Shinagh Estates Demonstration Farm, Co. Cork.

Opening the facility, Minister Heydon said:

“Today is another significant milestone for the Irish bioeconomy with the opening of the €3 million integrated grass biorefining and anaerobic digestion demonstration plant here as part of the Farm Zero C project on Shinagh Estate’s dairy farm in Co. Cork.”

Minister Heydon continued:

“This is Ireland’s first on-farm demonstration facility at scale. The facility will process fresh grass to produce a range of products including high-protein animal feed, a grass fibre fraction that can be used for applications in packaging and livestock feed, bioenergy and biofertiliser, and with the potential for new human food ingredients in time. Instead of just using grass for one purpose, animal feed, this facility will show at a pre-commercial level how we can make further use of our grass and open up new business models and income streams for our grassland farmers.”

Ireland produces some of the highest yields of grass in the world, supported by a temperate climate, good quality soils and expert grassland-management. Currently, grass has one primary use – as a feed for livestock. However, research and innovation have developed technologies for green biorefining that allows grass to be processed into a range of new, high-value products, without adversely affecting its primary use as an animal feed source.

‘Green Biorefining‘ separates fresh grass into a fibre-rich press cake for livestock feed, and a juice stream from which protein and other biobased ingredients can be recovered. What remains can then be directed to anaerobic digestion to produce renewable energy and nutrient-rich material with potential for use as biobased fertiliser, subject to quality, agronomic and regulatory requirements.

The demonstration plant will act as a testing and learning platform. Its purpose is to generate operating evidence, validate feed and biobased products and business models, support farmer and industry engagement, and reduce the risk involved in wider deployment. The facility will also be used by Rural BioReFarmeries, a project coordinated by Munster Technological University and supported with approximately €7.35 million in EU funding through CBE JU, to assess the model’s potential for replication across European grassland regions.

Minister of State with responsibility for Food Promotion, New Markets, Research and Development Noel Grealish TD, said:

“Research and innovation underpins the development of the bioeconomy. It is an area my Department has invested more than €40 million over the last decade, including in the area of grass biorefining. This in turn has allowed for the establishment of the new demonstration facility being opened today and will be built on further by the €3 million ‘Grass4Value’ project that I announced earlier this year. Together, these projects will be instrumental in supporting the use of grass and legumes to produce feed, potential ingredients for food applications, subject to further development and regulatory assessment, renewable energy and biobased fertilisers.”

Commenting on the launch, Munster Technological University and BiOrbic’s James Gaffey said:

“The launch of this new state-of-the-art green biorefinery and anaerobic digestion plant, one of the largest facilities of its kind in the world, is a key development given the importance of grassland to our rural economy and farmers. This places Ireland firmly as a leading player in this emerging innovation space. These facilities will help us to unlock the full potential of our grasslands bringing significant national and regional benefits. The location of these new facilities at Farm Zero C at Shinagh Estates in collaboration with BiOrbic and Carbery Group, provides a unique on-farm environment for translating research into real world impact, and is aligned with the farm’s strong track record for sustainable innovation. The development builds on almost a decade of collaborative research between Munster Technological University, University College Dublin, Carbery Group and other public and private partners nationally advancing this area along with Irish-EU research collaborations such as Biorefinery Glas and the CBE JU-funded Rural BioReFarmeries.”

Also at the launch, Jason Hawkins, CEO of Carbery Group said:

“For Carbery Group, today’s launch represents an important next step in Farm Zero C’s mission to demonstrate that climate ambition and commercial viability can progress together. As a farmer owned business, we are focused on solutions that work in practice and can create lasting value for farm families. This facility applies the circular approach Carbery has followed for generations, together with our experience of anaerobic digestion at Ballineen, to the farm itself. By using grass as more than a single output resource, it will explore how the same biomass can provide animal feed, protein ingredients, renewable energy and recoverable nutrients. Crucially, this is a demonstration facility. It will enable the partners to assess performance, product quality, environmental and climate impacts, costs, regulatory requirements and viable business models under real farming conditions. That evidence will be essential before wider investment and deployment. Hosting this work at Shinagh ensures that farmer experience remains central as we identify solutions that are practical, scalable and capable of strengthening the resilience of dairy farming in West Cork and beyond.”

Attendees at the launch were also addressed by Virginia Puzzolo, Head of Programme at Circular Biobased Europe Joint Undertaking:

“This facility shows how European funding and national investment can work together to bring bio-based innovation to demonstration scale. Through the CBE JU-funded Rural BioReFarmeries project, partners are testing a small-scale, farmer-centred green biorefinery model under real farming conditions and assessing its potential for replication in other European grassland regions. Grass is a widely available but underused resource in Europe. Demonstrating its potential as a source of protein and other bio-based products can contribute to reducing the EU’s protein deficit while strengthening the EU’s strategic autonomy. This approach can also support rural economies and more efficient resource use, contributing to a more competitive, resilient and circular European bioeconomy.”

The activities that will take place at this facility align with several ambitions and actions in the new EU Protein Action Plan and EU Livestock Strategy. The Protein Action Plan, for example, recommends Member States to reduce dependence on imported protein, including making better use of grass by extracting protein for monogastric animals such as pigs and poultry. The Livestock Strategy also highlights how grass and associated co-products can contribute to achieving greater resilience, strategic autonomy and sustainability of the EU protein system. The range of products and services that grass biorefining could deliver will also contribute to reducing exposure to volatile international markets and energy costs, while developing new, diversified economic opportunities for grassland farmers.

Project partners include Munster Technological University, University College Dublin, Carbery Group, Shinagh Estates, BiOrbic Research Ireland Centre for Bioeconomy and University of Galway.

Notes

The bioeconomy is a major economic and employment driver. EU biomass-producing and converting activities supported 17.1 million jobs and generated €863 billion in value added in 2023, equivalent to around 5% of EU GDP. When related services are included, the wider bioeconomy-relevant economy is estimated to generate €1.9 trillion to €2.7 trillion in value added and support between 42 million and 60 million jobs across the EU.

What is grass biorefining, and what will the Shinagh Integrated Grass Biorefinery and Anaerobic Digestion Demonstration Plant will demonstrate:

Fresh grass enters the facility and is mechanically processed.
A technique known as wet fractionation separates a fibre-rich press cake from the grass juice.
The press cake can be conserved and used as ruminant feed (similar to grass silage).
Protein concentrate and other fractions can be recovered from the juice for use in feed and, following further development and regulatory assessment, potential food applications.
Residual process streams are directed to anaerobic digestion, where microorganisms break down organic material in controlled conditions to produce biogas and nutrient-rich digestate with potential for use as a biobased fertiliser, subject to quality, agronomic and regulatory requirements.
The integrated system at Shinagh can test different variables involved in the biorefining and anaerobic digestion process in order to assess how the integrated process can improve resource efficiency and generate additional value from grass. This will also involve research that explores additional products such as volatile fatty acids and higher-value ingredients for use in the food industry and elsewhere.
This is a demonstration-scale facility, so one step beyond pilot-scale. As a demonstration facility, it will generate evidence on product performance, environmental impacts, operating costs, market demand and regulatory requirements before decisions are made on wider deployment.”
The €3 million facility was funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine through Carbon Tax Fund resources.

About BiOrbic

BiOrbic is Ireland’s National Bioeconomy Research Centre focused on the development of a sustainable, circular bioeconomy. The Centre is a collaboration between twelve Irish universities and research organisations and provides a platform for knowledge, bringing bioeconomy researchers, industry professionals, policymakers and communities together to solve grand societal challenges. Through innovation and collaboration, BiOrbic works to restore our natural ecosystems, harvest biological resources sustainably, develop alternatives to fossil products and repurpose waste. https://biorbic.com/

About Shinagh Estates and the Farm Zero C Project
Shinagh Estates Dairy Farm is a commercial demonstration farm located near Bandon in West Cork.The approximately 102-hectare farm supports a spring-calving herd of around 240 cows and was originally established to demonstrate efficient, profitable grass-based milk production. Today, it is the home of Farm Zero C, a collaboration between Carbery, BiOrbic and others to create a climate-neutral, economically-viable dairy farm. The project takes a holistic approach, combining a range of technologies and practices to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase the productivity and resilience of the farm.

About MTU’s Circular Bioeconomy Research Group

The Circular Bioeconomy Research Group (CircBio) based at Munster Technological University is one of Ireland’s leading research groups in this emerging space. Founded in 2019 and based at CABR Centre MTU, the group is comprised of researchers from a wide variety of disciplines working to address different societal challenges through delivery of bioeconomy innovations. CircBio and MTU are members of the BiOrbic National Bioeconomy Centre.

About the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking

The Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU) is a €2 billion partnership between the European Union and the Bio-based Industries Consortium. Operating under Horizon Europe, the EU’s research and innovation programme, CBE JU funds projects that advance competitive and circular bio-based industries across Europe. It brings together actors from across the bioeconomy, including primary producers, researchers, businesses and industry, to address technological, regulatory and market challenges. READ MORE