Providing equitable food security for a growing population while minimizing environmental impacts and enhancing resilience to climate shocks is an ongoing challenge. Here, we quantify the resource intensity, environmental impacts and nutritional output of a small (0.075 ha) low-input subsistence Mediterranean agroecological farm in a developed nation that is based on intercropping and annual crop rotation. The farm provides one individual, the proprietor, with nutritional self-sufficiency (adequate intake of an array of macro- and micro-nutrients) with limited labor, no synthetic fertilizers or herbicides, and zero waste, effectively closing a full farm-table-farm cycle. We find that the agroecological farm outperforms conventional farming as practiced in the same country in terms of both lower environmental burdens, across all examined environmental metrics (63% lower on average) per kg produce, and higher nutritional score (66% higher on average). Per equal farmland, the environmental lopsidedness was even higher (79% lower than conventional farming on average), with nearly the same nutritional score (3% lower on average). Moreover, when considering total land area, which includes farmland and supporting non-agricultural lands, as well as postgate impacts and food losses, the advantage of the agroecological system over conventional farming is even more pronounced. Situated within a Mediterranean region that is undergoing rapid climate change, this food system is a unique case study of nutrition- and environment-oriented food production system. While its deployment potential is limited by lack of supportive policies, it nonetheless represents one of the most starkly bold alternatives to current food systems.
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The dairy sector in the Netherlands aims for a 30% increase in efficiency and 30% carbon dioxide emission reduction compared to the reference year of 1990, and a 20% share of renewable energy, all by the year 2020. Anaerobic Digestion (AD) can play a substantial role in achieving these aims. However, results from this study indicate that the AD system is not fully optimized in combination with farming practices regarding sustainability. Therefore, the Industrial Symbiosis concept, combined with energy and environmental system analysis, Life Cycle Analysis and modeling is used to optimize a farm-scale AD system on four indicators of sustainability (i.e., energy efficiency, carbon footprint, environmental impacts and costs). Implemented in a theoretical case, where a cooperation of farms share biomass feedstocks, a symbiotic AD system can significantly lower external energy consumption by 72 to 92%, carbon footprint by 71 to 91%, environmental impacts by 68 to 89%, and yearly expenditures by 56 to 66% compared to a reference cooperation. The largest reductions and economic gains can be achieved when a surplus of manure is available for upgrading into organic fertilizer to replace fossil fertilizers. Applying the aforementioned symbiotic concept to the Dutch farming sector can help to achieve the stated goals indicated by the Dutch agricultural sector for the year 2020.
An important contribution to the environmental impact of agro-food supply chains is related to the agricultural technology and practices used in the fields during raw material production. This problem can be framed from the point of view of the Focal Company (FC) as a raw material Green Supplier Selection Problem (GSSP). This paper describes an extension of the GSSP methodology that integrates life cycle assessment, environmental collaborations, and contract farming in order to gain social and environmental benefits. In this approach, risk and gains are shared by both parties, as well as information related to agricultural practices through which the FC can optimize global performance by deciding which suppliers to contract, capacity and which practices to use at each supplying field in order to optimize economic performance and environmental impact. The FC provides the knowledge and technology needed by the supplier to reach these objectives via a contract farming scheme. A case study is developed in order to illustrate and a step-by-step methodology is described. A multi-objective optimization strategy based on Genetic Algorithms linked to a MCDM approach to the solution selection step is proposed. Scenarios of optimization of the selection process are studied to demonstrate the potential improvement gains in performance.
In onze visie voeren robots autonoom taken uit op de akker. Ze kunnen zaaien, oogsten, onkruid verwijderen, gewassen monitoren en verzorgen. Hierdoor zijn agrariërs minder kostbare tijd kwijt aan basistaken. Ook zijn er met dit soort robots geen (of veel minder) bestrijdingsmiddelen nodig en rijden er geen zware machines meer op het land. Dit leidt tot minder bodemverdichting en daardoor hoeft het land niet (of minder diep) te worden omgeploegd. Naast een enorme besparing op brandstof leidt dit ook tot een betere bodemkwaliteit en worden nieuwe teelten mogelijk. Agrarische robots zijn volop in ontwikkeling. Er zijn echter nog een aantal uitdagingen die opgelost moeten worden. Eén van die uitdagingen is volledig autonome, robuuste en veilige navigatie. De robot moet kunnen rijden zonder een bestuurder. Het AgriNav project: Agricultural Navigation In dit project werkt Saxion samen met drie pioniers op het gebied van agrarische robots in Nederland. Het doel is om een gedegen beeld van oplossingen voor het navigatieprobleem te ontwikkelen. We brengen daarvoor in kaart welke producten en frameworks er zijn en in hoeverre deze direct te gebruiken zijn. Op basis van de bevindingen maken we een afweging of de navigatie oplossing wordt ingekocht of dat deze zelf wordt ontwikkeld, bijvoorbeeld op basis van bestaande open source projecten. Onderdeel van dit KIEM project is het starten van vervolgtrajecten, zoals RAAK-mkb of RAAK-PRO. Impact Het project “AgriNav” geeft de inzet van kleine autonome zelfrijdende robots in de agrarische sector een boost, waardoor er nieuwe en duurzamere landbouw kan ontstaan. Dit past bij de ambitie van Nederland om voorop te lopen op het gebied van technologie voor voedselproductie. Door het project wordt de kennispositie van het consortium versterkt in zowel de topsector HTSM als AgriFood en de NWA routes “Duurzame productie van gezond en veilig voedsel” en “smart industrie”.
Micro and macro algae are a rich source of lipids, proteins and carbohydrates, but also of secondary metabolites like phytosterols. Phytosterols have important health effects such as prevention of cardiovascular diseases. Global phytosterol market size was estimated at USD 709.7 million in 2019 and is expected to grow with a CAGR of 8.7% until 2027. Growing adoption of healthy lifestyle has bolstered demand for nutraceutical products. This is expected to be a major factor driving demand for phytosterols. Residues from algae are found in algae farming and processing, are found as beachings and are pruning residues from underwater Giant Kelp forests. Large amounts of brown seaweed beaches in the province of Zeeland and are discarded as waste. Pruning residues from Giant Kelp Forests harvests for the Namibian coast provide large amounts of biomass. ALGOL project considers all these biomass residues as raw material for added value creation. The ALGOL feasibility project will develop and evaluate green technologies for phytosterol extraction from algae biomass in a biocascading approach. Fucosterol is chosen because of its high added value, whereas lipids, protein and carbohydrates are lower in value and will hence be evaluated in follow-up projects. ALGOL will develop subcritical water, supercritical CO2 with modifiers and ethanol extraction technologies and compare these with conventional petroleum-based extractions and asses its technical, economic and environmental feasibility. Prototype nutraceutical/cosmeceutical products will be developed to demonstrate possible applications with fucosterol. A network of Dutch and African partners will supply micro and macro algae biomass, evaluate developed technologies and will prototype products with it, which are relevant to their own business interests. ALGOL project will create added value by taking a biocascading approach where first high-interest components are processed into high added value products as nutraceutical or cosmeceutical.
Micro and macro algae are a rich source of lipids, proteins and carbohydrates, but also of secondary metabolites like phytosterols. Phytosterols have important health effects such as prevention of cardiovascular diseases. Global phytosterol market size was estimated at USD 709.7 million in 2019 and is expected to grow with a CAGR of 8.7% until 2027. Growing adoption of healthy lifestyle has bolstered demand for nutraceutical products. This is expected to be a major factor driving demand for phytosterols.Residues from algae are found in algae farming and processing, are found as beachings and are pruning residues from underwater Giant Kelp forests. Large amounts of brown seaweed beaches in the province of Zeeland and are discarded as waste. Pruning residues from Giant Kelp Forests harvests for the Namibian coast provide large amounts of biomass. ALGOL project considers all these biomass residues as raw material for added value creation.The ALGOL feasibility project will develop and evaluate green technologies for phytosterol extraction from algae biomass in a biocascading approach. Fucosterol is chosen because of its high added value, whereas lipids, protein and carbohydrates are lower in value and will hence be evaluated in follow-up projects. ALGOL will develop subcritical water, supercritical CO2 with modifiers and ethanol extraction technologies and compare these with conventional petroleum-based extractions and asses its technical, economic and environmental feasibility. Prototype nutraceutical/cosmeceutical products will be developed to demonstrate possible applications with fucosterol.A network of Dutch and African partners will supply micro and macro algae biomass, evaluate developed technologies and will prototype products with it, which are relevant to their own business interests. ALGOL project will create added value by taking a biocascading approach where first high-interest components are processed into high added value products as nutraceutical or cosmeceutical.
