Glastonbury Festival Attendees Are Helping Out With Their Pee This Year

Glastonbury, the renowned UK festival that has been held almost every year since 1970, has partnered with a start-up that has discovered a unique purpose for gallons of urine collected at the event.

NPK Recovery is utilizing its technology to convert festivalgoer urine into eco-friendly fertilizer. This process involves a collaboration with Peequal, the female toilet provider at Glastonbury. Once all waste has been collected after the festival, NPK’s laboratories will begin the processing phase.

In 2019, at the festival, urine was once again utilized in a similar manner. The large number of attendees allowed for the screens on the Pyramid Stage to be powered by a unique urinal system. Additionally, our previous report included the use of recycled astronaut urine for producing drinking water by NASA.

NPK Recovery discussed with The Times the £72,000 ($91,027.44) grant that Peequal received, enabling the project to move forward.

Despite appearing clean and hygienic, Glastonbury is still a festival in the United Kingdom, meaning there is no telling what substances are being consumed and expelled from the body.

According to a 2021 BBC report referenced by The Register, the water near the festival was reportedly contaminated with MDMA. The BBC report states that a week after the festival, a test on the river found four times the amount of MDMA.

Recognizing the challenge ahead, Hannah Van Den Bergh, the founder of NPK, described this as a near “worst-case scenario”for the undertaking.

“We’re essentially using Glastonbury as a benchmark for the worst possible urine scenario. If we are able to successfully purify it, then we can confidently handle any other type of waste in our system.”

NPK acknowledges that the sale of urine fertilizer continues to face tough competition from less expensive alternatives. Nevertheless, the company remains optimistic that this will contribute to the growth of the urine-to-farm fertilizer industry.

Despite Newsweek reporting that there will be no US broadcasts, Glastonbury is still scheduled to take place this weekend, drawing in thousands of attendees. However, for those in the US, there is still a way to watch the festival by accessing it through BBC iPlayer with a few extra steps.