Pressmud: a sustainable source of value-added products

The pressmud, a valuable by-product in sugarcane processing, is disposed of either by incineration or by dumping in landfills. However, the pressmud being rich in nutrients and organic matter can be used for several purposes. The current review’s objectives are to explore the agricultural and industrial uses of pressmud, the role of microorganisms to improve its properties, and technological challenges & barriers in pressmud value addition. Two online databases, PubMed and Scopus, were used to search the relevant information using keywords ‘Pressmud’ and/or ‘Press mud’ and 457 results were obtained. After following exclusion criteria and removal of duplicate entries, out of the remaining 169 records, only 36 records were selected for final analysis based on title, abstract, and other relevant parameters. Furthermore, 62 records were included based on cross-referencing from selected literature. The evidence from different studies showed that pressmud is a rich source of nutrients, for example, calcium (Ca), silicon (Si), zinc (Zn), iron (Fe), copper (Cu), and manganese (Mn). The efficacy of pressmud compost could be improved using microorganisms, for example, Pseudomonas, Bacillus, Aspergillus, Trichoderma and Streptomyces. The pressmud has the potential to be used as a biofuel, microbial carrier, soil conditioner, bioremediation of heavy metals, animal feed, wax production, and concrete formation. However, the pressmud composition is affected by sugarcane varieties, soil type, and other environmental factors. Technological barriers are also a big challenge for researchers to exploit the potential use of pressmud in different industries. Therefore, extensive research on pressmud use in the agriculture sector is warranted. © 2022 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.