Young Maltese Farmer wins EPP Young Farmers Award in Brussels

Ryan Portelli was nominated for the award by MEP Peter Agius

Ryan Portelli, 22, has snatched the top prize in the digital category at the EPP’s 11th European Congress of Young Farmers.

Portelli, who hails from Rabat, was nominated for the prize by MEP Peter Agius for his participation in the pilot project Syneco, coordinated by Chris Ciantar, which is proposing innovative ways of how to turn pig and cow waste into energy and fertiliser to promote environmental synergies and a circular economy.

It was the first time that a Maltese was nominated for such an award. MEP Agius said he took the initiative to nominate Portelli for the prestigious award because it was important to acknowledge the significant role of farmers in advancing environmental goals while improving food security in Malta.

The congress, at the European Parliament in Brussels, was opened on Wednesday with an address by EP President Roberta Metsola, who underlined the need for Europe to encourage young farmers to take up farming by listening to their needs and address them when drawing up policy and through funding.

Reacting to Portelli’s win, MEP Agius said: ‘This success today underlines the fact that farmers are a key part of the solution to protect the environment. The Syneco project by the Farmers Cooperative and which Ryan is part of is transforming a problem in Malta  into an opportunity through the use of technology. The project encourages cooperation between farmers, technology providers and researchers. We must promote such projects and at the same time help formulate policy that supports the farming community better.’

Portelli has grown up in farming, the main activity of his family for three consecutive generations. The family forms part of the Farmers Central Cooperative Society, the largest farmers cooperative in Malta.

Accepting the award, Portelli described his win as a victory for the whole Maltese farming community: ‘It is a great honour for me to receive this award which I accept on behalf of all the Maltese farming community. We are determined to see agriculture grow sustainably in Malta. We must make sure that projects like this, which start from the farms and can then develop as national solutions, are supported. We must also make sure that farmers are given enough time to adapt to new realities’.

What is the Syneco project?

Animal waste generated in Malta is currently disposed of through the municipal waste treatment infrastructure, leading to continuing breaches of the Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive. But this has significant potential for processing and use as a resource.

To collect and recover bio-resources from this indigenous resource, a holistic circular solution was required. Co-funded by the European Union, Syneco, through its facilities in Qormi, is now providing farmers like Ryan with a living laboratory to interact and witness the benefits of treating pig and cow waste, also consolidating cooperation among farmers and with the relevant stake holders.

Agricultural holdings in Malta are small and cannot support dedicated treatment processes without support. Syneco promotes a regional setup so as not to load one locality with all manure coming from different farms. Farmers participating in Syneco are offered soil and water analyses for their land. Through the use of a purposely developed app, the farmers are assisted to generate fertiliser and plan its use.

Through the project, farmers also recover ammonium sulphate solution (ASS) from the waste. ASS as a crop fertiliser has substantially positive impacts on crop productivity as well as on soil health and groundwater quality.