Real results from research partnerships and field deployments — demonstrating how ERS delivers on its promise of turning organic waste into valuable, commercially viable resources.
Research validation & GHG measurement in Australia
7,500 t/yr → fertiliser & recycled packaging
21,000 t/yr · 5.35 MWh/day power
Potatoes & rotten produce → organic resources
3,000 t/yr → 400 t fertiliser, safe for land
8 t/day → rich N, P, K fertiliser recovery
Converting Australian agricultural waste into bioproducts using ERS technology, with rigorous scientific GHG measurement.
In 2023, JET Australia entered a four-year research partnership with Deakin University's Recycling and Clean Energy Commercialisation Hub (REACH) — one of Australia's leading applied research centres for sustainable materials and waste processing. The partnership was formed to do something critical: rigorously verify the scientific outcomes of ERS technology on Australian-origin feedstocks.
While ERS has been commercially deployed in Japan and Asia for over a decade, Australian organic waste streams differ in composition, seasonality, and regulatory context. This research program provides the evidence base needed for Australian operators to confidently adopt ERS at scale.
The research is conducted at Deakin's "BioFactory" — a purpose-built facility at the Waurn Ponds campus in Geelong, Victoria. The BioFactory provides the controlled experimental environment needed to test ERS performance across multiple input types and measure outputs with scientific precision.
The initial focus of the project is on converting apple pomace — the skin, pulp, seeds, and stems left over from apple juice and cider production — into a bioproduct for the textile industry. Australia's apple processing industry generates significant quantities of pomace annually, most of which is currently landfilled or composted at low value.
The second major feedstock being investigated is bagasse — the fibrous residue remaining after sugar cane is crushed for juice. Australia produces approximately 10 million tonnes of bagasse per year, making it one of the country's largest agricultural waste streams. Most of it is burned on-site or composted.
JET Australia and Deakin researchers are investigating whether ERS-processed bagasse can be used as a high-value cattle feed supplement. Early modelling suggests commercial yield potential of up to $1,000 per tonne — transforming an almost valueless waste stream into a significant revenue opportunity for sugar mills and feedlots.
ERS confirmed to process Australian apple pomace within the standard 3-hour cycle without modification
GHG measurement methodology established and baseline emissions profiled for comparison feedstocks
Bagasse processing trials initiated — nutritional analysis of ERS output underway
Research findings being prepared for peer-reviewed publication
"JET was confident with its ERS technology, which has been commercialised in Japan, but the project with Deakin was focused on verifying the scientific facts on outputs and greenhouse gas reduction using Australian domestic feedstocks."
— Howard Ju, Managing Director, JET Australia
The following case studies represent actual ERS commercial deployments, demonstrating the technology's versatility across waste types and industries.
Mixed food waste is processed by ERS without pre-sorting and converted directly to fertiliser. The system handles diverse organic inputs in a single 3-hour cycle.
Cattle manure from a dairy farm is processed by ERS to recover biomass fuel. The fuel is mixed with RDF and combusted in a biomass boiler to generate heat and electricity.
End-of-life tofu products with packaging are processed together with tofu production residuals. ERS produces high protein animal feed while separating and recycling the plastic packaging.
Rotten and misshaped potatoes are processed by ERS to recover organic resources for further production — including decomposing bags and starch — rather than going to landfill.
Pig carcasses are processed by ERS to recover fertiliser and separate bone meal. The pasteurisation process (3 hrs at 65°C) ensures all output is pathogen-free and safe for land application.
Biosolids from water treatment plants and digest-ate from anaerobic fermentation are processed by ERS to recover fertiliser with rich nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (N, P, K) value.