Interview with Luis Javier Fernández Villalobos, Sole Director of Agrofervi: CDTI Innovación and Fondos FEDER Have Enabled Us to Develop APINUT, Seeking Sustainable Uses for Walnut Husks
Making better use of available resources and reducing the environmental impact of agricultural activity are two of the sector’s major challenges. In this context, Agrofervi Explotaciones Agrícolas is developing the APINUT project, an initiative that explores new applications for walnut husks within the farm itself. The proposal is supported by CDTI Innovación and co-financed by the European FEDER funds.
In the agri-food sector, innovation does not always originate in laboratories far removed from the field. It often emerges directly on the farm, when everyday experience is combined with technical insight and a willingness to improve production processes. This is the case of Agrofervi Explotaciones Agrícolas, a company based in Extremadura that has launched the APINUT project with a clear objective: to transform walnut husks—traditionally considered waste—into a resource with agricultural and environmental value.
Luis Javier Fernández Villalobos, the company’s Sole Director, explains that the initiative responds to a key principle in modern agriculture: maximizing the use of available resources while reducing the environmental impact of production. “We try to generate productivity from a waste material that is not used for anything,” he notes. This approach has led to an R&D project aimed at the comprehensive use of walnut by-products, opening new pathways for circular economy practices within the farm.
A Family Business with an Innovative Spirit
Agrofervi’s roots are deeply linked to family farming tradition. It was founded in 1991 as an Agricultural Transformation Company (SAT) by Cristóbal Fernández Franganillo and Manuel Miguel Villalobos Amador, two farmers committed to improving their operations and adapting to sector changes. In 2007, the organization became a limited company to take on new challenges and expand its scope.
Today, the company is managed by brothers Jesús María Fernández Villalobos, an agricultural engineer, and Luis Javier Fernández Villalobos, a technical agricultural engineer. With a team of 14 employees, the company operates across various crops: processing tomatoes—in collaboration with the Conesa group—olive groves for oil production, cereals, and nuts such as walnuts, almonds, and pistachios, which are also processed in their own facilities.
Although it does not have a formal R&D department, innovation is embedded in its daily operations. “We are constantly doing R&D,” explains Fernández Villalobos, who oversees innovation projects with the technical support of his brother. Approximately 6% of annual turnover is allocated to research and development. This investment has enabled advances such as rice production using drip irrigation and plug transplanting to reduce water consumption, the development of a fungicide from dairy waste, and the adaptation of olive varieties to their production environment.
From Waste to Resource
The APINUT project emerged directly from the company’s production practice. During walnut processing, a significant amount of plant material—the husk—is generated, traditionally without any practical use. For Agrofervi, this waste posed a dual question: how to manage it and whether it could be transformed into a useful resource.
The company analyzed its composition and identified its potential. “We carried out a preliminary analysis to determine its composition, and that was when we realized we could give it another use,” explains Fernández Villalobos.
As with many applied innovation projects in agriculture, the initiative arose from a specific production need. “When we face a problem such as waste from walnut hulling, we try to find a solution,” he says. In this process, financial support from CDTI Innovación and the European FEDER funds has been decisive, providing “the necessary liquidity to develop the project” and helping to cover research-related costs.
The project is being carried out in collaboration with the Centro Tecnológico Agroalimentario de Extremadura (CTAEX), whose participation has been key. According to Agrofervi’s director, the center provides “experience and agility in agricultural research and development,” as well as a highly qualified technical team recognized at national level.
Agricultural Applications and Biological Control
One of the main research areas of the project is the use of walnut husks as a bionematicide. Nematodes (microscopic worms) pose a significant threat to many horticultural crops, and their control has become more complex due to the gradual withdrawal of synthetic chemical products from the market.
In this context, the development of natural solutions is particularly relevant. “The main advantage as a bionematicide is that most synthetic chemical products for agricultural use are being removed from the market,” explains Fernández Villalobos. Its application could be especially useful in organic farming, which has fewer tools available to combat such pests: “It is important for organic agriculture, which has no effective way to combat nematodes in horticultural crops.”
This approach aligns with a broader trend in modern farm management: “In agriculture, every by-product is given added value or environmentally productive management whenever possible.”
Circular Economy Within the Farm
The project also explores the use of dehydrated walnut husks as a substrate for horticultural seedlings and as an adsorbent material for treating wash water—two lines of research aimed at closing the production cycle and reducing reliance on external inputs.
Currently, plug seedling production uses materials such as coconut fiber, peat, or vermiculite, which must be purchased on the market. Replacing part of these components with treated husks would mean cost savings and improved sustainability. “If we can save part of the product by using dehydrated husks, we are saving money, and if it also has a nematicidal effect, that would be a major advance.”
Reusing treated water would also improve resource efficiency. “By reusing it for irrigation on the farm, we are saving natural resources as important as water.”
If proven viable, the environmental impact would be significant. “If the use of husks proves viable, we will achieve a very important impact in terms of waste reduction,” he states.
Challenges and Continuous Learning
As with any applied innovation project, technical development presents challenges. The main one relates to drying the husks, a necessary process for storage and later use.
Currently, the material is spread out on open surfaces to facilitate natural dehydration, although weather conditions can complicate the process. “The biggest challenge is managing the husks to dry them,” explains Fernández Villalobos. Some material is also stored in pallet boxes inside refrigerated chambers, while the company is studying the possibility of building a dedicated drying facility to improve management in the future.
Innovation, Competitiveness and Growth
The project not only addresses a specific technical challenge but also strengthens the company’s strategy toward more efficient and sustainable production models. Institutional support linked to the project has had effects beyond the purely financial.
“It has had a significant impact on project financing, helping us cover research and development costs,” explains Fernández Villalobos. He also highlights its reputational value: “The backing of CDTI Innovación is very important when it comes to selling our products. It makes people value the company differently.”
From his perspective, this type of funding drives modernization within the productive sector. “If a company does not innovate in its production process, it tends to become obsolete.” Innovation leads to internal improvements that translate into economic growth, stability, and local development. “Any change within a company also benefits its employees.”
Beyond Walnuts
The scope of the project could extend to other agricultural by-products. Agrofervi is already considering applying the knowledge gained to the use of pistachio skins, which may have similar properties.
“We believe pistachio skins could have a similar use, and if the project results meet expectations, we will continue with pistachio skins—that is our next challenge,” Fernández Villalobos reveals.
The company’s experience shows how innovation can emerge directly from agricultural practice when the observation of a problem is combined with technical knowledge, scientific collaboration, and research support.
The APINUT project not only seeks to transform waste into a resource but also to move toward a more efficient, sustainable, and circular production model, demonstrating that the countryside remains a privileged space for generating solutions with economic, environmental, and social impact
CDTI Innovación
The Centre for the Development of Technology and Innovation (CDTI E.P.E.) is the innovation agency of Spain’s Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities. Its objective is to promote technological innovation in the business sector. CDTI’s mission is to ensure that Spanish companies generate and transform scientific and technical knowledge into globally competitive, sustainable, and inclusive growth. In 2024, within the framework of a new strategic plan, CDTI provided more than €2.3 billion in support to Spanish companies and startups.
Web: www.cdti.es
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Image: Storage of waste from walnut processing
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