WaysTUP! aims to demonstrate the establishment of new value chains for urban biowaste utilisation to produce a range of new biobased products, including food and feed ingredients, through a multi-stakeholder approach in line with circular economy.

The project will showcase a portfolio of new ‘urban biowaste to biobased products‘ processes starting from different feedstocks i.e. fish and meat waste, spent coffee grounds, household source separated biowaste, used cooking oils, cellulosic waste derived from municipal wastewater and waste treatment plants and sewage sludge. Pilot demonstration will take place in several European cities i.e. Valencia (Spain), London (UK), Alicante (Spain), Prague (Czech Republic), Athens (Greece), L’ Alcúdia (Spain), Terni (Italy) and Crete (Greece). The processes will result in the generation of food and feed additives, flavours, insect protein, coffee oil, bioethanol, biosolvents, polyxydroxyalkanoates, ethyl lactate, long chain dicarboxylic acid, bioplastics and biochar. End-product characterisation and safety assessment will be implemented. Life Cycle Assessment of the value chains will be conducted to assess their environmental impact.

WaysTUP! will develop and implement a behavioural change approach with citizens and local communities by improving the current perception of citizens and local communities on urban biowaste as a local resource; enhancing the active participation of citizens in the separate collection of urban biowaste; and improving customer acceptance of urban bio-waste derived products. New profitable business models will be developed preparing market entry of the technology solutions demonstrated as well as of the end-products resulting from them. Finally, the project will provide guidance for city managers on adopting new organizational models supporting the valorisation of urban biowaste, as well as evidence-based EU level policy recommendations for decision makers.

In the framework of the project, DRAXIS has undertaken:

• The identification of good practices and the main barriers related to urban biowaste valorisation
• The pilots’ deployment planning and progress monitoring
• The environmental Life Cycle Assessment of the new value chains from urban biowaste
• The assessment (mapping and analysis) of policy framework
• The economic assessment of the new value chains from urban biowaste based on Life Cycle Costing.