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Eco-Friendly Smart Farms Based On Nutrient Solution Recirculation
UV sterilization and microbial stability analysis used to recycle nutrient solution; proposed method minimizes the use of fertilizers and water by hydroponic farms
15-JUN-2021
UV sterilization and microbial stability analysis used to recycle nutrient solution; proposed method minimizes the use of fertilizers and water by hydroponic farms
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
The development of new urban agriculture technologies, such as vertical and smart farms, has accelerated rapidly in recent years. These technologies are based on hydroponic cultivation in which plants are grown using nutrient-rich solutions rather than soil. Approximately 20-30% of the nutrient solutions used during hydroponic cultivation are discharged without being absorbed by the crops, and because most farmers in South Korea do not treat the discharged solutions, hydroponic farms contribute significantly to environmental pollution.
This problem can be reduced if hydroponic farms use a recirculating hydroponic cultivation method that reuses the nutrient solutions after sterilizing them with ultraviolet (UV) light, instead of discharging them. However, two main issues complicate the implantation of such recirculation systems. First, the potential for diseases and nutrient imbalances to develop owing to microbial growth in the recycled nutrient solutions must be eliminated. Second, the initial investment required to set up a recirculating hydroponic cultivation system is often prohibitive, costing hundreds of millions of Korean won per hectare.
However, a new study conducted by researchers at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) proposes a method that can stably manage the microbial population in recirculating hydroponic cultivation systems. The research team, led by Drs. Ju Young Lee and Tae In Ahn of the Smart Farm Research Center, KIST Gangneung Institute of Natural Products, conducted an integrated analysis of the microbial growth characteristics by constructing a model that simulates the flow of water and nutrients, and the inflow, growth, and discharge of microorganisms in recirculating and non-circulating hydroponic cultivation systems. Their simulations revealed that the microbial population in recirculating hydroponic cultivation systems can be controlled by adjusting the UV output and the water supply. On the contrary, in non-circulating hydroponic cultivation, the microbial population fluctuates considerably depending on the amount of water used, increasing sharply if there is too little water.
KIST researchers are experimenting with a circulating hydroponic cultivation system. Credit: Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST)
High cost has restricted the use of UV sterilization systems in hydroponic farming in Korea And prompted the research team to develop their own UV sterilization system, with further studies underway to commercialize this system as an economical alternative to imported systems.
The results of the study have already received strong interest: the rights to the operation and management software technology for recirculating hydroponic cultivation has been acquired by Dooinbiotech Co., Ltd. for an advance fee of 80 million won (8.5% of the operating revenue), while an agreement is in place with Shinhan A-Tec Co., Ltd. for the advanced recirculating hydroponic cultivation technology for an advance fee of 200 million won (1.5% of the operating revenue). Commercializing the recirculating hydroponic cultivation system is expected to reduce fertilizer costs by approximately 30~40%, which equates to 30 million won per year based on a 1-hectare farm.
Commenting on the envisaged impacts of the study, Dr. Ju Young Lee said, "The developed system makes the transition to eco-friendly recirculating hydroponic cultivation systems an affordable option for many more farmers." Dr. Tae In Ahn added, "We are also developing software and operation manuals to guide farmers in managing the nutrient balance in the solutions to increase the number of farms using the recirculating hydroponic cultivation system."
Lead photo: THE INTEGRATED MODEL DESCRIPTION. view more
CREDIT: KOREA INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY(KIST)
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The study was supported by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs (Institute of Planning and Evaluation for Technology in Food, Agriculture, and Forestry) and the Innovative Smart Farm Technology Development Program of Multi-agency Package. The research results are published in the latest issue of the Journal of Cleaner Production (IF: 7.24, ranked in the top 6.9% by JCR), a highly respected international journal in the field of environmental science.
Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.
Flushing Hydroponic Systems: Nutrient Imbalance, Waste, And An Alternative Solution
We recommend that hydroponic growers flush their systems every month to every few months, depending on the type of system they’re running. But why? We’re also fans of the recirculating system because it conserves water and nutrients
We recommend that hydroponic growers flush their systems every month to every few months, depending on the type of system they’re running. But why? We’re also fans of the recirculating system because it conserves water and nutrients.
Article from | ZipGrow
04/06/21
Is flushing hydroponic systems wasteful?
We recommend that hydroponic growers flush their systems every month to every few months, depending on the type of system they’re running. But why? We’re also fans of recirculating system because it conserves water and nutrients, so it seems counterintuitive to dump gallons of nutrient solution every few months.
Let’s talk about why this is necessary and how you can practice conservation.
The problem: nutrient imbalance
The main reason for flushing a hydroponic system is a nutrient imbalance. Hydroponic fertilizers are specifically formulated for specific crops (you can buy nutrients for a type of crop, like greens or flowers), but each farmer grows a different combination of crops in different conditions, and the ratios in which plants take up nutrients is usually just a little bit off.
This nutrient imbalance is also affected by metal components if the system has any. Zinc and aluminum ions can cause toxicities if they accumulate over time. While it’s easy to just use plastic tanks and fittings or to coat the metal components in your system with epoxy to reduce leaching, sometimes the presence of metal is unavoidable.
Another reason that growers flush their system is a hygiene practice. Algae and many plant pathogens can survive in the water, and regular cleaning with a mild bleach or peroxide solution or another oxidizing agent is a preventative measure.
Two solutions: flushing and mass balancing
Most hydroponic growers take care of this nutrient balance problem by flushing the system and starting from scratch with nutrients. This is certainly the easiest method. Be sure to check with your local town or municipality to follow the correct disposal procedure.
This practice can have a downside, however, because often the solution dumped from a system when it is being flushed isn’t used elsewhere. This can be wasteful.
The alternative to flushing a hydroponic system is to learn to mass balance. To do this, growers would get their water tested for individual nutrient levels. This usually has to be done through a lab.
Then the grower would adjust each individual nutrient to its proper level.
The reason that many growers choose to flush over mass balancing is that lab tests can be pricey (you’ll probably have to pay at least $50, and sometimes up to $500). Still, this option can be cost-effective, depending on the size of the system and access to lab testing.
Ultimately, how you choose to deal with a nutrient balance is up to you.
The content & opinions in this article are the author’s and do not necessarily represent the views of AgriTechTomorrow
Indoor & Vertical Farming, Monitoring & Growing Fertilizer, Hydroponics
VIDEO: What Makes Organic Food "Organic"?
Organic food is no longer a niche market. Sales of organic food products in the European Union have more than doubled over the last decade - from €16.3 billion in 2008 to €37.4 billion in 2018 - and demand continues to grow
The EU is the second-largest consumer of organic food in the world. - Copyright nsplaUsh
Organic food is no longer a niche market.
Sales of organic food products in the European Union have more than doubled over the last decade - from €16.3 billion in 2008 to €37.4 billion in 2018 - and demand continues to grow.
However, many Europeans are still unsure of what "organic" really means. Is it natural? Free of pesticides? Locally grown?
Well not exactly. Here are some of the conditions food products must meet in order to be considered organic in the EU:
No synthetic fertilizers
Natural fertilizers, such as compost and seaweed derivatives, are essential to maintaining fertile and healthy soil. So organic food must be grown with these products, rather than synthetic fertilizers that are used in conventional farming, and which tend to be made of harsher chemical ingredients including nitrogen compounds, phosphorus, and potassium.
"Organic farming improves soil structures and quality and enhances biodiversity. Studies have shown that organic farming present 30% more of biodiversity in the fields", explains Elena Panichi, Head of Unit at DG Agriculture and Rural Development (DG AGRI).
No synthetic pesticides
Farmers need to fight weeds and pests. Organic farmers are only allowed to use naturally-derived pesticides, made from plants, animals, microorganisms, or minerals.
"These chemicals are of a natural origin. For instance, essential oils, plant extracts, that are listed in the relevant regulation, and are authorized, following a process that implies a scientific committee to assess the effect on the environment", says Panichi.
Organic farms also have techniques such as crop rotation or planting different crops on the same plot of land, to help to prevent soil-borne diseases.
Natural predators, such as ladybugs, can also be an effective method of pest control.
However, it is important to remember that just because something is “natural”, it doesn’t automatically make it harmless to either people or the environment.
No GMOs
To be certified as “organic”, food cannot contain products made from genetically modified crops.
This rule is the same for organic meat and other livestock products. Besides, the animals are to be raised on 100% organic feed.
Antibiotics as a last resort
The animals we eat, or whose products we consume, need to be kept disease-free. Many conventional farmers routinely use antibiotics for disease prevention. These can end up making their way into the food chain.
Excessive antibiotics are not good for people or animals because they can help create superbugs. Antimicrobial resistance is a global concern. Every year, around 33, 000 people die in the EU, due to infections from antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
On organic farms, the use of antibiotics is severely restricted. Farmers control disease by limiting the number of animals they raise and using methods such as a healthy diet for their livestock. They are only allowed to use antibiotics when absolutely necessary for an animal's health, in order to avoid suffering, and when natural remedies such as phytotherapeutic and homeopathic medicines are not effective.
"If in conventional [farming], sometimes antibiotics are given as preventive tools, inorganics, antibiotics can be given as a last resort if there are no other methods to intervene. Normally, the higher animal welfare standards applied in organics already keep animals in a healthier status that prevent the use of antibiotics", explains Panichi.
However, studies have shown that antibiotic use on farms is on the decline. Sales of animal antibiotics in the EU have fallen by more than 34% between 2011 and 2018.
Better animal welfare
Organic farmers must provide the environmental conditions necessary for animals to express their natural behavior, such as adequate outdoor space. This is not compulsory in conventional farming.
There are additional rules such as the prohibition on caging or mutilation unless absolutely necessary for health reasons.
What "organic" doesn't mean
Locally grown
Europeans are the second largest consumers of organic in the world. Local supply can’t meet demand yet, so a large number of organic products are imported.
China, Ukraine, Dominican Republic and Ecuador are the main EU trade partners for organic food imports.
"Green" packaging
Words like “natural”, “green” or “eco” on labels and packaging do not necessarily mean a product is organic.
Healthy
There's a wide range of organic product on supermarket shelves, from burgers to pizzas, from cheese to wine. The health implications of consuming excess fats, salt, or sugar don't disappear just because a food product is organic. Too much fat, salt, and sugar are still bad for you, whether it is organic or not.
How can you be sure that the “organic” food you’re buying is actually organic?
EU organic logo European Commission
The most reliable way to know if a product is organic is if it has this official EU logo.
The white leaf on a green background means that EU rules on production, processing, handling, and distribution, have been followed and that the product contains at least 95% organic ingredients. This logo can only be used on products that have been certified by an authorized control agency or body.
Some countries have also created their own organic logos. They are optional and complementary to the EU's leaf. This is the French one, for instance.
French organic logo Agence Bio
New rules coming in 2022
EU rules on organic production will change soon. In 2022, Europe will have legislation with stricter controls.
Panichi believes it will bring a "substantial improvement" to the organic sector.
"We have to bear in mind that the new organic legislation is not a revolution, but it's an evolution of the organic legislation that started in the past years and has been kept evolving together with the sector".
The new legislation will harmonize rules for non-EU and EU producers. It will also simplify procedures for small farms in order to attract new producers, thanks to a new system of group validation.
The list of organic foods is expected to grow, with the addition of products such as salt and cork. The possibility of certifying insects as organic is also expected in the rules.
What is the future of organics?
"Surfaces in Europe are increasing or as well as all over the world, and they are increasing at a fast pace," says Panichi.
As part of its Farm To Fork strategy, the EU has committed to increasing organic production, with the goal of 25% of all agricultural land being used for organic farming by 2030. In 2019, it was only around 8%.
By 2030, Europe also aims to reduce the use of harmful chemicals and hazardous pesticides by 50%.
Buying organic food is still too expensive for many. One of Farm To Fork's main goals is to make healthy, sustainable food more accessible and affordable to all Europeans. A French family 2019 shows that a basket of eight organic fruits and eight organic vegetables is, on average, twice as expensive as a basket of non-organic products.
Note: The requirements listed in this article are just some of the conditions necessary for a product to be considered organic. If you want to know more about what is needed to obtain the green logo, please check the EU regulation.
Lead photo: EU organic logo European Commission
Lettuce In A Hydroponic System: 100% Organic Nutrients
The hydroponic section in the company's innovation center has recently been redesigned and all ponds now receive a 100% organic nutrient solution
Van der Knaap is known for its substrate knowledge, but did you know they also developed a sustainable cultivation system? The liquid nutrient solution rich in organic NO3 that is produced with this system is also extremely suitable for other cultivation systems, such as growing lettuce in a hydroponic system.
The hydroponic section in the company's innovation center has recently been redesigned and all ponds now receive a 100% organic nutrient solution. The earlier phase of their research has already proven that the organic fertilizer holds its own compared to mineral fertilizer. On a number of points it even surpasses the traditional method, they report.
The follow-up research now focuses on influencing the cultivation by means of different pH values. In addition, the young lettuce plants get a good start on Obturo plugs or conventional pressed pots.
For more information:
Van der Knaap
www.vanderknaap.info
Publication date: Thu 8 Oct 2020
Indoor Farming: How Can You Ensure Success?
Any business can fail for any number of reasons, but indoor farming is an incredibly delicate organism that depends on many disparate factors being perfectly aligned and in balance
Any business can fail for any number of reasons, but indoor farming is an incredibly delicate organism that depends on many disparate factors being perfectly aligned and in balance. This increases the risk of failure for those unaware of the number of plates that need to be kept spinning in perfect time. This list is not definitive but gives you a good idea of the most common mistakes to avoid.
1. Avoid a Trial and Error Approach to Design
There are multitudes of factors that are naturally managed and balanced with indoor farming. The sun cannot be changed, irrigation to every plant is different as weather patterns can change from moment to moment and even the nutrition in the soil can vary across the area of the field. Planning your farm therefore gives you the ultimate control but also dramatically increases the variables that you can and must consider.
These variables start with the facility’s very layout, such as the size of growing space, plant distribution, airflow and more. Additionally, without having the right models in place to determine the exact light recipe and combination of CO₂, nutrients and water required to grow a successful crop, growers can find themselves wasting time and money on testing phases to try to maximize yield and revenue. Once you have developed a model for your vertical farm, you should then put it through a testing phase on a smaller scale to ensure it is viable.
2. Pick the Right Crop
It’s far easier to develop a profitable and scalable facility if you know the needs of your crop inside and out. That ideally means specializing in one type of crop that you can design your facility around, electing the right growth spectrum and studying that particular plant’s biology to better understand how to optimize irrigation, nutrition, air flow, CO₂ concentration and propagation in order to maximize elements such as taste, nutritional content, visual appeal, potency or shelf life.
Too many growers have tried to hedge against perceived risk by trying to grow multiple crops. By default, it is extremely difficult to have one installation that is optimized for a wide variety of plants, and therefore the returns from each crop are lower than they could have been. The facility then may have to suffer through downtime as the technology is tweaked and optimized for the next crop — eating into profitability and adding unnecessary costs.
3. Location, Location, Location
The old adage that location is half the battle has never been more relevant than in vertical farming today. Vertical farms have a key advantage in their ability to be located close to their customer, whether they are selling to food processors, supermarkets or local shops. Removing the vast transport logistics associated with today’s food supply chain slashes costs and helps appeal to an increasingly conscientious customer. The lack of transport costs also helps counter the higher production costs resulting from higher energy and labor inputs.
At city planning level, there are also many advantages of co-locating a vertical farm with other facilities such as office buildings, shops or residences — which could draw the vertical farm’s excess heat to reduce demands on other sources of energy.
4. Simplify Your Business Model
Proximity to customers and the ability to produce crops year-round at a sustainable rate is a strong advantage in the market, whether you’re growing for the food or pharmaceutical sectors. Therefore, consider the opportunities available through establishing exclusive contracts with customers at a fixed rate that will offer more financial security as you build your business.
5. Be Realistic About Operational Cost
Setup and fit-out costs represent a high initial outlay for any indoor farming entrepreneur, but the ongoing operational costs (energy, labor, inputs, maintenance, etc.) are also significant. Businesses not only need to find creative ways to mitigate these risks (e.g. growing through the night when energy tariffs are lower and the outdoor climate is cooler to assist HVAC systems’ efficiency), but also consider the cost-benefits of different configurations and process flow.
6. Set Prices Based on What Consumers Will Pay
At the 2017 inaugural AgLanta Conference11, PodPonics’ CEO admitted that the company missed out on higher potential margins as it priced its crops to compete with conventional growers, ignoring the price premium that food traceability, pesticide-free growing and local production can increasingly attract from consumers in some markets.
7. The Skills Gap
In many cases, those who have embraced the promise of indoor farming have not been traditional growers but rather tech entrepreneurs, engineers or hobbyists. Vertical farming requires a unique mix of skills to be successful: big data scientists, systems integrators, project managers, engineers, growers and plant scientists all have a role to play in addition to the core functions that any business needs to be successful (financial strategists, marketing and business development, etc.). From the leadership perspective, experience at replicating and scaling a business is critical. Ignoring any one of these functions leaves a serious gap in business capability that could undermine the overall success of the operation.
8. Remember What You’re Selling
In a bid to capitalize on the new technology and growth models offered by vertical farming, some growers have forgotten that their primary focus should be on growing and selling the highest quality food. Instead, they have tried to recoup their investment by trying to commercialize their vertical farm’s technology, process and methodology. Unfortunately, as we have seen, every vertical farm is different with potentially very different needs. The trick is to not to try and do many different things at once, but instead keep a clear focus on doing one thing as well as possible.
Source: www.currentbyge.com/ideas