{"id":3708,"date":"2020-02-20T14:11:55","date_gmt":"2020-02-20T14:11:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/?p=3708"},"modified":"2024-01-10T14:29:41","modified_gmt":"2024-01-10T14:29:41","slug":"rethinking-the-european-food-system-of-the-next-decade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/rethinking-the-european-food-system-of-the-next-decade\/3708\/","title":{"rendered":"Rethinking the European food system of the next decade"},"content":{"rendered":"

Modern aquaponics systems<\/a> allow for a very high level and control of food safety, optimal resource rationalisation and maintenance of desirable levels of environmental sustainability.<\/h2>\n

The world’s population is growing, and as a result the need for food and other resources<\/a> is increasing. Although population growth in Europe is expected to be relatively stable over the next couple of decades, it is vital that the European regions evolve from its current dependence on imported food supplies to a situation of self-sufficiency in food production. It should be noted that in non-EU exporting nations that are traditional suppliers to Europe, it is inevitable that the predicted growth in population will result in the depletion of surplus productive capacities, with local consumers consuming the bulk of locally produced food resources.<\/p>\n

Currently, there is a reasonable equilibrium in the European Union\u2019s balance of trade for all agricultural products.1 However in regards to vegetables, there has been a progressive deterioration of the EU balance of trade, with values of exports stabilising and those of imports tending to grow.2 As regards to seafood, the EU balance of trade is heavily in deficit. The EU exports of seafood account for less than 25% of value of imports.<\/p>\n

The EU is the world’s leading importer of seafood with over two thirds of the volume of fish consumed internally originating from outside the bloc.3 Without a radical internal shift in production capacity, future years will dictate a profound internal shortage of these food products. The availability of supply will be determined by the ability to keep up with rampant price growth as non-EU foreign suppliers will have less product available for export (a result of their internal markets consuming more). Consequently, increasing the productive capacities of agriculture and fisheries are fundamental and are urgent strategies for European economic and social development. Conversely, it has also been established that the global food production system is responsible for 21 to 37% of global greenhouse gases.4 This includes food production activities, handling and transport. Production and exploitation of food resources also contributes substantially to deforestation, biodiversity loss, declining water and ecosystem quality. Thus, it is crucial to take all these factors into account when developing growth strategies within EU fisheries, CAP and blue economy policies.<\/p>\n

The current production environment<\/h3>\n

In recent decades, technological developments<\/a> have significantly increased the efficiency of agricultural techniques. However, agriculture has predominantly maintained a linear format – i.e. the use of environmentally unfriendly practices giving rise to negative effects on ecosystems (such as excessive waste of water, resource contamination, pesticide use, over-dependency on monoculture, habitat loss and fragmentation). Soil depletion and loss of biodiversity, as well as long-distance food transport which results in greater conservation requirements and loss of freshness, are also a result of this current production environment.<\/p>\n

This linear trajectory has also been prominent in fisheries with over-exploitation of fishery stocks and resources giving rise to an increasing threat of extinction of the whole of a species in coming decades. Aquaculture is still excessively dependent on fishmeal which puts even more strain on wild marine resources. Conventional aquaculture has an enormous impact on aquatic ecosystems, leading to a profound degradation of water resource quality through either a greater increase of nitrogen and phosphate compounds in water, or by the intensive use of chemicals and antibiotics which can have an extremely harmful impact on the environment. As a result, it is imperative to place technology, not only at the service of increasing intensive food production (given the move towards policies ensuring total national food security) but also to align it with the principles of the circular economy.<\/p>\n

Aquaponics: a highly sustainable way of producing food<\/h3>\n

Aquaponics is a food production technique<\/a> that combines recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) with hydroponics within the same closed water circuit. Fish produce nitrogen compounds that are converted by microorganisms into natural fertiliser. Nutrient-rich water from the fish tanks is then biologically filtered, cleaned through filtration systems and then piped into and through the grow beds, fertilising the crops, and therefore eliminating the need for synthetic fertilisers. The water then returns to the fish tanks. This natural biological process reuses all resources, making wastewater virtually non-existent.<\/p>\n

There are numerous reasons why aquaponic farming is gaining in popularity, particularly in cities and regions hard hit by climate change. Benefits include:<\/p>\n