ZELDA

Zero-waste Lignocellulose-Derived biorefinery products for smArt plant protection

The widespread use of chemical pesticides to protect crops has created significant risks to human health, animal welfare and the environment. Climate change has exacerbated this issue by altering crop-pest dynamics, affecting plant defences, and shifting pest populations. As a result, there is an urgent need for safer, more effective and sustainable pest management alternatives.

ZELDA tackles these challenges by developing a new generation of fully bio-based crop protection alternatives to chemical pesticides sourced from cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin.

The project aims to provide safe and cost-effective bio-based alternatives to chemical pesticides, addressing the need to increase food production by 50% for a growing population, and to cut crop losses from plant diseases, which account for 40% of global food production.

ZELDA aims to validate a zero-waste biorefinery approach at TRL5 for developing a portfolio of broad-spectrum immune elicitors derived from lignocellulosic biomasses. Such products combining for the first time cello-oligos, hemi-oligos and lignin-based products will reverse the pesticide paradigm, supporting plants in raising their own defences against a wide range of pathogens while supporting plant growth and flowering.
Lignin nanoparticles will also bring a microbicides effect for curative use, further enhancing product efficacy.
By combining principles of Safe and Sustainable by Design that will establish a feedback loop for product implementation, the project will ensure that products are not only more effective, but also safer and more sustainable. Economic viability will be ensured by minimising the amount of product to be used: ZELDA’ success will rely on the use of AI-based smart delivery systems targeting specific areas of the crop that require to be treated.

The products developed will be tested on key crops central to the EU diet (cereals, tomatoes and grapes) in different EU geographical and pedo-climatic areas, developing tailored crop protection strategies for improving food security and contributing to preserving biodiversity and the ecosystem. 

ACTIVITIES of the Bio Base Europe Pilot Plant

The developed enzymes will be scaled-up by BBEPP to TRL 5.

PARTNERS

• ULB – Université Libre de Bruxelles, BE (Coordinator)
• UNIMORE – Universita degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, IT
• Bio Base Europe Pilot Plant, BE
• Eurofins Agroscience Services Regulatory, DE
• Graz University, AT
• CICYTEX, ES
• Italbiotec, IT
• Aermatica3D, IT
• FVA SAS di Louis Ferrini & Co, IT
• TIMAC AGRO, AT
• CIEMAT, ES
• KINETON, IT
• University of Aveiro, PT

SUPPORTED by

The project is supported by the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking and its members under the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101214981. The JU receives support from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme and the Bio-based Industries Consortium. 

Disclaimer Art 17.3. Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or CBE JU. Neither the European Union, nor CBE JU can be held responsible for them.