In spring 2020, field trials were set up in the city of Yantai following joint planning by SF-Soepenberg GmbH and the Chinese project partners. The suitability of struvite for vegetable and maize production, will be investigated in a large test field.

For the field trial, 52 plots have been set up in which green peppers, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, and corn are grown. The use of struvite for vegetable cultivation is of particular interest as the transport distances between wastewater treatment plants – where the struvite is to be extracted –and vegetable fields are usually relatively short, since both are located in urban peripheries.

Partners of the field trial are Prof. Dong Renjie and Assoc. Prof. Jianbin Guo from the National Center for International Research Center of BioEnergy Science and Technology (iBEST) and the College of Engineering of China Agricultural University.