The iAgri project, which is funded by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism, is being coordinated by the Andalusian cluster OnTech Innovation.

The agri-food industry is immersed in an unstoppable process of transformation to adapt to the new habits and demands of consumers, who are increasingly looking for healthier and more sustainable products. The implementation of a new model of eco-sustainable agriculture that guarantees the productivity, quality and sustainability of crops is precisely the objective of the ‘iAgri’ project, an industrial research initiative that is designing and developing an intelligent platform for the storage, processing and management of biomarkers and indicators relevant to agri-food production.

This platform – which will collect data in an automated way through a combination of sensor or advanced processing stations, the application of data processing techniques on external sources and the addition of data by the farmer – will reduce production costs, optimise farm management (fertilisers, irrigation, pathogen control, harvest time, physiological adaptation of the crop to climatic conditions) and certify the quality of food and the sustainability of agricultural production.

iAgri’, a project coordinated by OnTech and developed by the biotech company Econatur, the innovative solutions company Solutia Digital Health and the University of Seville, is developing an artificial intelligence algorithm that analyses data from sensors installed on the La Añoreta farm (Cordoba) and emulates the knowledge of experts to inform the farmer of the different situations that are occurring in the plantations. Specifically, data from different types of crops such as wheat, almond trees or tomatoes are processed and magnitudes such as environmental temperature, amount of rainfall, humidity, pressure or salinity are measured.

With these measurements and their subsequent analysis, relationships will be investigated to predict risks such as pests, diseases, water stress, solar radiation stress, salinity stress, poor vegetative development or fruit set failure. The algorithm should alert the farmer of possible risks that may occur in the future, thus anticipating and preventing possible damage to crops.

Another objective of the iAgri project, funded by the Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade through the support programme for Innovative Business Groups, is to determine whether the crop is sustainable or not by analysing sensor measurements. The function of the artificial intelligence system will be to assess the situation and alert the farmer to take the appropriate measures indicated by the experts.

One of the main values of this project is to provide agri-food SMEs with tools that are available to large companies and that would otherwise be difficult to afford. Small agricultural producers will be able to take advantage of all the data collected in the platform’s databases to optimise production and receive assistance in decision-making, boosting the quality and productivity of their crops.

SMEs involved in the distribution and sale of these agri-food products will also clearly benefit. The ‘iAgri’ project will develop an eco-sustainable agriculture certification standard based on data on productivity, nutritional quality and environmental sustainability, which will allow distributors to easily certify suppliers.

Finally, this industrial research initiative will also benefit the end consumer, who will be able to obtain healthier and higher quality products, in nearby distribution channels, at reasonable prices and with the added value of knowing that the purchase of these products has an impact on the sustainability of both the physical and socio-economic environment.

Participating entities

The project ‘Development of a smart platform for the implementation of a new productive model of eco-sustainable agriculture (iAgri)’ is being coordinated by OnTech Innovation, the largest digital economy cluster in Andalusia.

The development of the industrial research initiative is led by the innovation area of Econatur, a biotechnology-based company focused on research and knowledge generation applied to the eco-sustainable agriculture sector; Solutia Digital Health, a technology company focused on software development and systems integration with the most advanced technologies; and the University of Seville.

La entrada New model of eco-sustainable agriculture se publicó primero en Econatur.

The TECNALIA research and technological development centre is collaborating with ECONATUR and other agri-food companies to obtain ingredients with a neuroprotective effect from raw materials from the sector

In a society characterised by a growing ageing population, one of the challenges is to tackle chronic diseases, such as vascular diseases that can cause strokes or neurodegenerative diseases. One of the keys to combating them is proper nutrition, and the TECNALIA research and technological development centre is working along these lines as part of the Food4stroke initiative, together with other research bodies and seven companies from the agri-food sector, including ECONATUR.

The aim of the project is to develop food and food supplements that improve the quality of life and health of consumers through personalised nutrition. The population today is tending towards more responsible food consumption, assuming that a balanced diet is not only for nutrition and sustenance, but that food plays a key role in people’s quality of life.

Food4stroke and the food of the future
The Food4stroke initiative will focus on selecting raw materials from the agri-food industry that can be sources of phytochemicals and other compounds with potential neuroprotective activity. In addition, it will optimise sustainable agricultural management techniques so that the composition of phytochemicals with neuroprotective potential in selected raw materials can be naturally increased.

The work of the companies involved in this project will also involve validating the neuroprotective activity of the ingredients developed through clinical trials in patients at high risk of stroke and, in addition, they will develop new foods and food supplements based on the ingredients with a proven neuroprotective effect obtained, whose impact could be relevant for the prevention of diseases with a high incidence in society, such as stroke.

One of the major innovations of Food4stroke is that combinations of extracts from different raw materials selected for their potential (olive, subtropical, aloe vera) and other compounds of interest (prebiotics, probiotics, minerals, fibre, nutrient-rich concentrate) will be explored, looking for synergistic effects on the neuroprotective effect not previously explored.

Foosd4Stroke is a European initiative with the participation of TECNALIA together with other research organisations such as FISEVI-IBIS, IBVF and CSIC. In addition, seven companies from the agri-food sector are involved, as well as one company from the health sector: Indukern, S.A, as project leader, Acer Campestres S.L, Cosmos Aromática Internacional S.A, Dcoop Sociedad Cooperativa Andaluza, Grupo Empresarial La Caña, S.L., Go Fruselva S.L, HT Médica and ECONATUR.

La entrada FOOD4STROKE se publicó primero en Econatur.

• iAgri 4.0 designs a device that combines image analysis and artificial intelligence to measure the activity and health of crops in their early stages

• onTech Innovation coordinates this initiative, funded by the Ministry of Industry, with the participation of Solutia Innovaworld Technologies, Biopharma Research of the Econatur group and the University of Seville

The iAgri 4.0 project has developed a device that facilitates early detection of diseases and pests in crops. The project has counted with the participation of Solutia Innovaworld Technologies, Biopharma Research of the Econatur group and the University of Seville. The onTech Innovation Cluster has been in charge of coordinating this initiative funded by the Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade, within the last call for grants for Innovative Business Groups (AEIs).

With this initiative, onTech Innovation consolidates its capacity to promote innovation in Con Andalucía with the launch of this new iAgri 4.0 project, in addition to two others underway, which together mobilise an investment of almost 1.4 million euros and which are providing technological solutions in the areas of cybersecurity, agriculture and waste treatment.

Crop diseases and pests are some of the most worrying problems for farmers, as a large part of the annual production can be lost due to them. To mitigate their impact, it is necessary to detect them at an early stage. This project aims to detect crop diseases using image analysis techniques and artificial intelligence, which also aims to make an early diagnosis of nutritional deficiencies in plants.

The main objective of the device designed by iAgri 4.0 is to be able to detect the temperature of the leaves in order to monitor both the activity and the health of the plant. To this end, it has been equipped with an infrared detector and a conventional camera. In addition, it has a thermal blanket and thermocouples as elements for calibrating the camera.

One of the methods used to measure the activity and health of crops is based on measuring the temperature of plants, which is related to how they are carrying out stomatal transpiration. Plants open their stomata, exchanging gases between leaves and atmosphere as a cooling mechanism and to control their temperature.

Low-cost, easy-to-use thermal camera

During periods of water stress, such as drought, the plant closes its stomata to reduce transpiration and prevent water loss. This is automatically reflected in an increase in temperature. In order to be able to detect this and similar effects, a low-cost, easy-to-use thermal camera has been developed. The aforementioned thermal blanket of this device provides a known reference temperature, as it is heated by adjustable thermocouples, to calibrate the chamber.

Artificial Intelligence to detect pests and diseases

In addition, an artificial intelligence system has also been developed to detect the presence of pests and diseases in crops from images taken with a mobile phone camera. By training with images of affected crops and healthy crops, the artificial intelligence learns to distinguish one from the other. In addition, the tools used are intended to automate and increase the frequency of analysis, thus increasing the possibility of determining and predicting crop health and potential biotic risks.

An app to evaluate images immediately

For the development of this artificial intelligence system, the project has relied on Econatur’s experimental farm (La Añoreta) equipped with sensors, both atmospheric and edaphic. These sensors allow data to be taken on temperature, humidity, conductivity, and the control of irrigation provided to the crop, among others. This allows control of the inputs and water provided to the crop, controlling the water footprint and avoiding the excess of fertilisers in the soil, allowing sustainable crop management without losing profitability.

This analytical development is supported by two technological enablers: an autonomous ground vehicle and the functionalities integrated in iAgri’s web platform and mobile app (image management and inspection route configuration). The vehicle, in addition to having an IMU to allow fully autonomous navigation, has two mobile supports where the visual camera and the thermal camera are anchored.

Through the inspection route configuration section, the user can define the topography and configuration of the farm to be inspected, including options for spot or periodic inspection. The app will be used both to download the route to the vehicle and to receive the collected samples. This data will be available on the web platform so that the developed algorithms can detect and notify the user in an automated way when and in which sectors of the farm any incidence related to pests or water stress situations was detected. Alternatively, the user can directly take images from his smartphone and evaluate them in situ via the app.

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE IAGRI 4.0 PROJECT

Title: Agronomic analysis based on machine vision and thermal distribution techniques to determine and predict crop quality and the possible occurrence of biotic risks

Summary: Development of a system based on artificial intelligence for the diagnosis of nutritional deficiencies, pests and diseases; enabling decision making and sustainable crop management

Reference: AEI-010500-2021-13

Project start date: 08/04/2021 Project end date: 31/03/2022

Financing: 317,823 €

La entrada IAGRI 4.0 se publicó primero en Econatur.

The development of a Circular Economy System in the agri-food sector from an integral approach based on “obtaining functional protein meals and eco-sustainable fertilisers/fertilisers from insects grown on different fruit and vegetable by-products, characterising the new products for their application as feed/food ingredients or in organic farming, and optimising the processes with the help of ICTs to obtain products with the desired characteristics, reduce the environmental impact and improve productivity and efficiency in the use of natural and energy resources in the agri-food industry”

Start of project: 2022 End of project: 2024

La entrada GOECOINSECT se publicó primero en Econatur.

HERBICOL is a BIOPHARMA RESEARCH SA project for the development of new natural herbicides based on active ingredients isolated from olive groves.

Investment in R&D&I is boosting the natural herbicide sector with innovations such as the synthesis of a biodegradable compound with herbicidal capacity. A natural herbicide is developed with active ingredients that come from nature, present in different species of plants and fruits. Thus, they become true natural herbicides that help us to control weeds in localised areas, and allow us to reduce the use of total herbicides or glyphosate for those occasions when it is really necessary to use such a strong and abrasive product. That is why BIOPHARMA RESEARCH SA with the collaboration of the Instituto de la Grasa / CSIC, through CDTI funding thanks to the Ministry of Science and Innovation of the Government of Spain. A new herbicide is being developed capable of controlling unwanted weeds in crops, based on plant extracts from olive groves, with simultaneous bioactivating effects on the growth of crops such as cereals and fruit and vegetables, which can be used in both conventional and organic crops.

This project has been co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) with the aim of promoting technological development, innovation and quality research.

Start of project: 01/01/2020 End of project: 31/12/2023

La entrada HERBICOL se publicó primero en Econatur.

España es el segundo país de la Unión Europea en términos de superficie agrícola, con el 13% de la Superficie Agraria Útil (SAU) de la UE. Asimismo, también ocupa el cuarto puesto en términos de producción agraria, con 52.300 millones de euros, que supone también el 12.6% de la producción europea. Estos datos corroboran la gran producción agrícola en España y la correlación con los subproductos agrícolas que se generan, principalmente en la producción vegetal, es por ello que en ECONATUR con la colaboración del Instituto de Bioquímica Vegetal y Fotosíntesis, gracias a la ayuda financiada por el Gobierno de España, se lleva a cabo la determinación de la base fisiológica de los efectos positivos de la materia activa del bioestimulante sobre la planta y la determinación de los fitoquímicos responsables que afrontan un desarrollo tecnológico industrial. Siendo así que, a partir de los resultados, mediante estudios de fraccionamiento del extracto, se desarrollará un nuevo producto con mayor capacidad bioestimulante sobre los cultivos.

Inicio del proyecto: 01/01/2020 Fin del proyecto: 02/01/2023

La entrada BIOSTIM se publicó primero en Econatur.