Eat – Play - Transform: Circular food waste management at Johan Cruijff ArenA stadium (The biodigester in Amsterdam South East).

The primary challenge addressed by the project is the inefficient and environmentally harmful management of food waste in urban areas. In Amsterdam Southeast, large quantities of food waste (swill) are generated by businesses, markets, and institutions, which are typically transported long distances for processing, resulting in significant CO2 emissions and loss of valuable nutrients. In total, it was calculated that before the project was initiated the average garbage bag in the area travelled more than 290km – with all of the concomitant CO2 emissions and costs – before the value in the garbage bag was extracted elsewhere. The strategy behind this project is triggered by Amsterdam's commitment to the Donut Economy model, which aims to create a circular economy by 2050, reducing the use of new resources by half by 2030.

The aims were reached by the placement of a Waste Transformer biodigester directly next to the Johan Cruijff ArenA, to valorize the food waste into biogas, electricity and fertilizer, creating local jobs in a green economy and provide tangible proof of a sustainable local solution to food waste.

The project members worked on the technical realization of placing the Waste Transformer biodigester at the stadium. But the technology was just a bridge to realise a number of other objectives. One of these was to create social system innovation that included local collection and processing, creating jobs for people with a distance to the labour market. In addition, with ongoing research the digestate was tested and investigated to replace chemical fertilizers growing professional sport fields. As part of the project, the model is further developed to enable replication of similar projects in urban environments.

The initiative addresses multiple urban problems. It creates lasting environmental impact, by reducing the CO2 emissions from long-distance transportation of food waste, and create local clean energy. Local valorisation of food waste also has a positive (expected) side effect that the converted food waste streams are cleaner compared to a centralized (out of sight) processing of food waste. In this way, a fertilizer is produced without the contaminations found in fertilizer from centralized large scale biodigesters. The biodigester is fed by people, through Pantar, with a distance to the labour market. Additionally tours are organized for students, B2B clients and international visitors, offering a tangible, replicable example of sustainable innovation for urban areas. In 2023, the famous band Coldplay, wanted to have the most CO2 neutral tour possible. The Johan Cruijff ArenA was chosen as a venue, thanks to the presence of the biodigester. Coldplay made a short film that included the biodigester and sent this via social media to their 28.000.000 followers.

A Waste Transformer biodigester offers a scalable solution for urban food waste management.

The project has and is still generating substantial media attention: the project has been featured in, such as the Coldplay collaboration where Coldplay produced a video about the Waste Transformer at the stadium where they gave concerts, sharing the positive impact of on-site food waste valorisation and providing clean energy for their concert to their 28 million IG followers. The UEFA partnership with The Waste Transformers allows to further promote greener practices in football and urban area

During the course of the project a number of lessons were learned:

1. Technical challenges and adaptations:
A key learning point was the lengthy and complex permitting procedures. The environmental service took a long time to issue the necessary permits, which led to delays. This underlines the importance of a thorough preparation phase and close cooperation with permit authorities. Moreover, the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine caused disruptions to supply chains, leading to delays in the delivery of components. This underlines the need for flexibility and crisis management in project planning.

2. System change and social impact:
The project has demonstrated that it is possible to successfully integrate people with a distance to the labour market into circular economic activities and create an inclusive labour market. Pantar has gained valuable experience in training waste coaches and logistics employees, which provides a blueprint for future initiatives. In addition, the collaboration with educational institutions -- ROC and HvA -- was crucial for the development of training modules. Although these modules have not yet been fully implemented, the project has laid a solid foundation for future training and progression opportunities.

3. Communication and Awareness:
The Waste Transformer acted as an important 'eyecatcher' during tours and business events, which contributed to public involvement, increasing awareness of the circular economy and sustainability among a broad audience. The use of social media, including a post by Coldplay, has given the project considerable exposure. Moreover, the development of educational modules for primary schools and higher education has the potential to have a long-term impact on the awareness of sustainability among young people. With thousands of visitors per year, The Waste Transformer is a key player in the stadiums Innovation Tours.

4. Technical realization and environmental impact:
Research into the use of digestate has shown that it is very suitable as a fertilizer for grass fields, which is an important step towards a circular application of food waste. The practical application on the JCA pitches and potentially more broadly in Europe offers promising prospects. A key insight is that small-scale Waste Transformers are more practical and effective than one large central digester. This offers opportunities for further scaling up and replication of the model in other regions.

5. Doughnut Economy and policy impact:
Although the full development of a doughnut economy model was not completed within the project period, the project contributed to the validation of a procurement tool for Doughnut projects of the municipality of Amsterdam. This helped to improve policy instruments for circular economy. Furthermore, International collaboration with the participation in international projects and recognition by UEFA has increased the potential of the project and offers opportunities for further expansion and application of the Waste Transformer model on a larger scale.

To conclude, the “Biodigester in Amsterdam Southeast” project has provided valuable insights and lessons learned in the areas of technical challenges, social impact, communication, environmental impact and policy development. Despite some delays and challenges, the project has shown that small-scale, local bio-digestion is an effective way to convert food waste into valuable energy and fertilizers, with broad application possibilities and positive impact on the labour market and sustainability awareness.

https://thewastetransformers.com/success-stories/the-iconic-stadium-johan-cruijff-arena-amsterdam/