Earlier this year Defra and the devolved UK administrations ran a Public Consultation on reforming the UK Fertilising Product Regulations (FPR). The topic of fertiliser products is going through a period of intensive review across Europe; and, since nutrients are both a problem and a key opportunity for the Environmental Biotechnology sector, the process and its results are relevant to a wide range of EBNet members.
The Defra Consultation sought views on proposals for the UK FPR and on overarching general product requirements; but did not attempt to consider specific limit values or other detailed technical parameters.
The Consultation and call for evidence, which closed on 10 June 2026, received 83 responses in total. Two of these were submitted by the Renewable Energy Association (REA), which has also played a key role in coordinating industry input into the development and implementation of the Anaerobic Digestate Resource Framework, and the Bio-based and Biodegradable Industries Association (BBIA). Copies of the original Consultation document and the REA and BBIA responses are available here.
Results of the Consultation are not yet available, but Defra is now working in partnership with the Scottish and Welsh Governments and the Northern Ireland Executive to organise technical workshops building on the outcomes. These are intended to inform ongoing policy development and the detailed parameters that apply to fertiliser products and other technical aspects of UK FPR.
For more information on the Consultation see here.
EBNet input to selected questions of the Defra Consultation was kindly prepared by our former Network co-manager Dr Angela Bywater in conjunction with AF WG co-Lead Dr Yue Zhang, and was submitted via REA: the text of our input is available HERE.
