Rittmo

I. Details & definitions :

Developping new products

Use new raw material

Using new raw materials can impact on :
 biological transformations occurring during production process
 quality and properties of final product

You can use our services to design and drive trials in order to predict such impacts and check the interest you may have using new raw materials.

Develop new processes

Identification of new properties

Fertilisers and groaing media have known traditional properties for :
 plants nutrition (fertilisers for nutrients supply),
 conservation or improvement of soil properties (soil improvers, liming materials),
 support roots implantation and development (growing media).

Today, new types of efficiency are claimed like plants stimulation, stimulation of plants development or stimulation of plants resistance to stresses, either biotic (fungi, bacteria, other pests) or abiotic (dryness, hydromorphy…).

Furthermore, new interests emerge from increasing knowledge on biological soil functioning, impact of traditional product on microbial populations involved in plants nutrition. You can use our services to perform trials and identify specific new characteristics of your products.

Marketing

Marketing fertilisers of growing media is covered by strict regulations to warrant efficiency under normal conditions of use, and management of the impacts on the Environment or the Human Food Chain.

RITTMO agroenvironnement knows these regulations at both national and European level.

RITTMO’s researchers take part to many working groups of AFNOR (French National Agency for Standardisation), of the French ministries (especially the one in charge of agriculture), of CEN (European Comitty of Standardisation), etc. As such the take part to redaction of texts impacting on regulation.

These information are available to members via the dissemination of the newsletter « Mot de RITTMO » or via the technical hotline.

Furthermore, to better follow regulatory guidelines, you can pay RITTMO’s services to :
 optimise you quality self-contrôle, for products already registered or corresponding to a denomination of a standard or of the RCE 2003/2003,
 check the agreement of official labelling of a product to corresponding regulation,
 gather, synthesise and argue information to support the registration of a new product.

II. SPECIFIC EQUIPEMENTS :

In the framework of national or European research projects, RITTMO agroenvironnement contributed to develop tools for the characterisation of agronomical efficiency of fertilisers and growing media, their innocuousness, the level of maturity, etc.

For an overview of characterisation tools presently available on the market, order the guide for bio-assays.

You can pay RITTMO’s services to characterise your products.

III. PRESENTATION OF COMPETENCES

 Characterisation of efficiency and innocuousness of fertilisers and growing media
 Phytotoxicity, Genotoxicity
 Bioavailability of nutrients
 Suppressivness of soil-born phytopathogenic fungi
 Stimulation of plants secundary metabolism
 Weeds in composts
 water retention

IV. SPECIFIC EQUIPEMENTS

Processes

Study processes of organic wastes transformation into fertilisers uses specific pilot materials at different scales (100mL, 10L, 50L).

Products characterisation

Products characterisation uses laboratories of microbiology, moleculare biology and bio-assays, as well as equipments-rittmo.php#phytotronic-chambers, the experimental greenhouses, and lysimeters for outdoor studies.

VI. Examples OF STUDIES :

Studies financialy founded by public money :

BIOWASTE : this research project was founded by the 5th Framework Research Program of the European Union. It was realised in collaboration with the Danish Technical University (DTU), the University of Patras (Greece), the Randa Group (Spain) and INRA (French National Institute of Agronomic Research located in Narbonne and Versailles). The objective was to study the impact of composting and / or anaerobic digestion of sewage sludge on agronomical properties of treated sludge.

SUPPRESSIVENESS OF SOIL BORN PHYTOPATHOGENIC FUNGI : this research project was founded by ADEME (French agency fo environment protection and energy). It was realised i collaboration with FIBL (Swizerland). The objective of the study was to develop a laboratory bio-assay to measure the capacity of composts to suppress soil-born phytopathogenic fungi.

POTENTIAL GENOMIC TOXICITY OF FERTILISERS : this research project was founded by THE French Ministry in charge of agriculture. The objective of this bibliographic study was to identify a methodology adapted to fertilisers for measuring the risk for genomic toxicity of fertilisers.

Studies conducted for private customers :

To respect the confidentiality due to our customer, their names cannot be given.
 Gather, synthesise and argue information to support the registration of a new products containing organic wastes. So far, (dossier) fully prepared with RITTMO have not been rejected.
 Essay to study stimulation of plant development by new products.
 Essay to study stimulation of plant resistance to abiotic stresses (drought, cold, etc.).
 Study appropriate ratio for mixing different raw material to produce compost having specific efficiencies.
 Determination of potential biogaz production from various raw materials.

VII. Contacts :

Questions dealing with microbial activities : Dr Najat NASSR

Questions dealing with transformation processes : Ing Nicolas THEVENIN ou Dr Mohammed BENBRAHIM