Chemicals—from antibiotics used to keep livestock healthy to pesticides that shield crops from insects and other pests—play an important role in modern agriculture. "Our work spotlights the potential of anaerobic digestion as one solution." Previous research has primarily focused on the impact of veterinary antibiotics on microorganisms involved in anaerobic digestion. Prasse's team had a different aim: determining whether anaerobic digestion could be used to remove these chemicals as well as potentially produce biogas. Furthermore, instead of focusing solely on whether anaerobic digestion removed the chemicals, the researchers investigated the substances created during the anaerobic removal process.
