Agriculture sciences

Seeds and animal feed can be attacked by pathogens just as plants can, thus reducing yields for plant breeders and farmers. One effective method of killing viruses, fungi or bacteria is electron beam treatment. The process was developed in the 1980s by physicist Manfred von Ardenne. At the Dresden Fraunhofer Institute for Organic Electronics, Electron Beam and Plasma Technology FEP, a team led by Andrè Weidauer has developed this proven method into a mobile seed treatment unit in recent years.

They already exist in selected supermarkets and restaurants: multi-story glass greenhouses in which herbs and lettuce grow in a nutrient solution. This means they can be offered fresh every day without the need for costly transportation. Following Edeka's lead, Rewe now also wants to test resource-saving food production as part of a pilot project in Wiesbaden.

Eliminating competing wild plants while minimizing the impact on the ecosystem: that is the promise of a newly developed sensor for use in crop protection. Arable plants are always in competition with wild plants for sunlight, water and nutrients. To maximize yields, farmers therefore control wild plants, mostly with herbicides. But pesticides impair soil fertility, accumulate in bodies of water and contribute to species extinction.

Smart farming solutions from a single source - that's what Bosch and BASF want to offer in the future with their joint venture Bosch BASF Smart Farming GmbH (BBSF), in which they have equal shares. The antitrust authorities worldwide have now given their approval for this. The company is headquartered in Cologne. The first markets for the Smart Spraying will be North America, South America and Europe, as the partners announced at the end of June 2021.

When a crop shows symptoms of pest infestation or nutrient deficiencies, it is often too late to prevent yield losses. However, the earlier a problem is detected, the more effectively farmers can intervene. Digital sensors can be an important tool for this. The "FarmerSpace" research project is investigating which methods are suitable, what they can do, and also how they can interact. The German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) is funding the project from February 2020 to February 2023.

Hemp is one of the oldest crops in the world. Various parts and species of the plant are used to produce textile fibers, building materials, medicinal products, but also foodstuffs. The food industry relies primarily on the healthy ingredients of the hemp plant, which are rich in proteins, carbohydrates and fats, but also vitamins and minerals. Industrial hemp, on the other hand, is cultivated specifically for industrial use.

With a yield of 100 million tons per year the sweet potato has become the seventh most important crop in the world, and even continues to gain popularity worldwide and in Germany. Thus, researchers are also focussing more and more on this extraordinary plant.