Traditionally, the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) organises the World Food Conference in Berlin at the start of the Green Week to kick off the year. This year, around 2,000 representatives from politics, business, science and civil society will once again discuss global agricultural and food policy issues in the CityCube from 15 to 18 January. The 17th edition of the Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA) will focus on the topic of ‘Shaping a sustainable bioeconomy’.

Fish is one of the most popular foods in Germany. In order to meet the high demand and avoid overfishing, fish such as salmon and trout are often bred in aquacultures. However, enormous quantities of wild stocks are processed into fishmeal and fish oil and added to the feed. In this way, the farmed fish are supplied with vital and polyunsaturated omega-3 fatty acids such as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which are essential for a healthy diet.

Wood is a versatile and sought-after raw material in Germany and has to be imported in large quantities due to the high demand. An alternative to wood could be plants from paludiculture, as peatland plants also contain important wood components such as cellulose and lignin. Reeds and peat mosses are already being used for building materials, animal feed and food. Now the paper industry could also benefit from peatland plants as a wood substitute. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV have now provided proof of this.

How can nutrients such as phosphorus and nitrogen, which are removed from the environment through the cultivation and consumption of food, be returned? This question was the focus of the ‘zirkulierBAR’ project, which was supported by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) from 2021 to 2024 as part of the REGION.innovativ funding programme. Following the completion of the three-year project, which was coordinated by the Leibniz Institute of Vegetable and Ornamental Crops (IGZ), the consortium has now summarised its results and findings in a handbook.

Humus is known to be good for the soil. The complex mixture of organic matter, such as dead animal and plant remains, serves as a food source for plants and soil microbes alike and is therefore a driving force for plant growth and soil health. It is primarily the humic substances contained in humus that ensure that moisture and nutrients are bound in the soil, convert microbial biomass into nutrient-rich biostimulants and make these available to plants. In practice, however, things often look different.

Potting soils usually contain peat, which is formed from dead plant remains in bogs. However, peat extraction destroys the habitats of many plants and animals as well as a valuable carbon store. There are now alternative plant substrates such as coconut pulp and fibres. However, the raw materials have to be imported from India or Sri Lanka. In the TOPKO project, researchers at Oldenburg University of Applied Sciences and industrial partners now want to prove that regional raw materials are also suitable as a peat substitute for plant substrates.

For many people, sweets such as chocolate, biscuits and meringue are part of the Christmas season. But the trend is also moving towards vegan treats that are healthy and sustainable. However, when it comes to baked goods in particular, it can be difficult to completely avoid animal products such as eggs. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV in Freising want to change that. In the ‘LeguFoam’ project, a team led by Maike Föste has developed a plant-based alternative to traditional egg whites from hens' eggs.

Microorganisms play a key role in the bioeconomy – from sustainable energy production to the development of new materials. It is therefore essential to understand and further optimise their metabolism. Researchers at Friedrich Schiller University and the Leibniz Institutes in Jena have discovered the extent to which the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii can adapt its metabolism – simply through new cultivation conditions, without the need to intervene in the genetic material.