Application of industrial symbiosis principles to Sicilian Citrus chain: a technical and economic analysis in a compost plant

The bioeconomy is a new economic strategy that underlines environmental opportunities, through the concepts of the circular economy. Industrial symbiosis, as part of the emerging field of industrial ecology, demands particular attention to the flow of materials and energy through local and regional economies. Industrial symbiosis engages traditionally separate industries in a collective approach to a competitive advantage involving physical exchange of materials, energy, water, and/or by-products. The expression “symbiosis” builds on the notion of biological symbiotic relationships in nature, in where at least two otherwise unrelated entities exchange materials, energy, or information in a mutually beneficial manner-the specific type of symbiosis known as mutualism. The development of the Circular Economy would be a more efficient solution for the improvement productivity of resource if it shifted its focus from recycling waste to adjusting industrial structure, developing new technology, and reforming industrial policy. This paper aims to analyze the reuse of special waste, derived from the Sicilian citrus fruit production, in the zoo-technical sector. The study deals with the mapping of sites that can receive such waste to transform it into animal feed so as to cause less environmental impact, as well as to produce higher quality of products from the livestock industry. The subject of the study is the company Coa s.r.l., whose production process generates special waste. The objective is to evaluate the existence and extent of any mutual benefit between the investigated company and the zoo-technical enterprises that will receive such waste.