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Delivering nutrients to crops when they are most needed
CategoriesSustainable News

Delivering nutrients to crops when they are most needed

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Soil is a living ecosystem and soil health is vital for clean air and water, healthy crops and forests, productive grazing lands, diverse wildlife, and beautiful landscapes. However, the overuse of artificial fertilisers and pesticides can damage soil health and pollute waterways and land.

Lucent BioSciences has developed a fertiliser, called Soileos, that improves microbial biomass in the soil and enhances organic carbon levels. Soileos is made from cellulose left over from crop processing, such as pea and lentil hulls and rice husks. The startup’s scientists have developed technology to bind micronutrients to the cellulose. Natural biological activity in the soil then triggers the release of these micronutrients when they are most needed by the crop. This stands in contrast to other fertilisers which release micronutrients all in one go.

The company claims that the fertiliser is not only carbon-neutral, but climate-positive. Its manufacture uses less water and has a lower carbon footprint than conventional fertilisers. In addition, it improves microbial biomass in the soil and enhances carbon levels in the ground. This results in higher crop yields and improved soil nutrient density.

The company is currently working with food processing companies to upcycle their low-value cellulose fibres and is collaborating with several large fertiliser companies to develop custom fertiliser solutions. And, just a few days ago, Lucent Bio announced that its technology had received patent approval, a “milestone in the progression of commercializing Soileos”.

Soil health is vital for improving crop yields in a sustainable way. This knowledge has led to increased interest in financial support for regenerative agriculture and innovations in the Springwise archive such as pre and probiotics for improving soil health.

Written By: Lisa Magloff

Reference

Growing crops in saltwater – Springwise
CategoriesSustainable News

Growing crops in saltwater – Springwise

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Climate change is leading to the increased scarcity of fresh water – just as food production needs to increase. According to one study by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, increases in the global population will require raising overall food production by some 70 per cent between 2005 and 2050. Production in developing countries would need to almost double.

Scottish company Seawater Solutions has developed a novel approach to growing more food with less water, specialising in using seawater to grow salt-tolerant crops. Seawater Solutions takes flood-affected or degraded farmland and turns it into an artificial saltmarsh ecosystem by pumping seawater over the area or flooding it.

Farmers use the flooded land to grow crops, called halophytes, that thrive in waters with a high percentage of salt. Examples of halophyte crops include samphire, mangrove, and Salicornia. Some of these crops are in demand as food specialities, and others can be used to produce oil for cosmetics, as biofuels, or for fodder.

Halophyte crops also provide protection against erosion and carbon sequestration – the plants absorb 30 times more carbon than rainforests do. Seawater Solutions estimates that farmers who adopt their artificial ecosystems could sell €2,600 worth of carbon credits per year for each hectare farmed. On top of this, Seawater’s artificial salt marshes are powered entirely by renewable energy systems.

Climate change has given a new urgency to finding solutions. Recent ideas spotted by Springwise include a greenhouse designed to grow crops in hot, dry climates and using extremophile bacteria to improve crop yields.

Written By: Lisa Magloff

Reference

Assessing the risk of frost for high-value crops
CategoriesSustainable News

Assessing the risk of frost for high-value crops

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Research has shown that frost is a “significant weather event” that has a direct impact on crop growth, which, in turn, has a substantial impact on yield and profits. However, it can be more difficult to predict frost than some other weather phenomenon, such as rain, due to the effects of microclimates and local terrain. Uruguayan company The Climate Box has developed a product that assesses the risk of frost for orchards and vineyards and can tailor passive and active frost protection measures for individual microclimates.

The system uses temperature data loggers placed at strategic locations around a farm. Following a calibration period, Climate Box utilises algorithms that take local topography into account to develop a model of the frost risk for each microclimate.

Using the numerical modelling of cold air flows, the company then offers actionable products for agriculturalists, such as microclimatic maps and frost risk assessments. The data is also used to generate recommendations for siting new farms, and potential frost control measures. Founded in 2019, the company has already analysed more than 60,000 hectares of land across Europe, the US, Mexico, Australia, and Uruguay.

The Climate Box recently closed an investment round led by The Yield Lab Latam, with the participation of the Spanish agribusiness investment group Label Investments and another angel investor.

Managing food production in the face of growing climate uncertainty and changing weather patterns is vital – and getting harder. This is why Springwise has spotted a growing number of solutions. Recent innovations in this sector range from the use of vertical farming to produce more crops, to boosting yields through the use of plant hormones that reduce stress.

Written By: Lisa Magloff

Reference