Ongoing projects
A network of Living Labs across Europe will facilitate the introduction of agroecological practices for soil health, biodiversity and natural pest and disease control.
Chromatography is a chemical process used to separate mixtures of substances into their constituents. Cell walls of algae can fulfill such chromatographic separation purposes.
The aim is to develop a process model (digital twin) and automated process control for the cultivation of G. sulphuraria. The focus is on circular resource flows and scale-up strategies in Vietnamese and German aquacultures.
The main aim of the rye rice project is to create an economically successful value-added network that includes the production of two rye products - risotto rice and long grain rice - as well as a gluten-free alternative, presumably based on oats.
Wine is also grown in Brandenburg. The Vitis BB project aims to establish a climate-tolerant and modern range of grape varieties in Brandenburg.
In this project, the ILU is endeavouring to develop feed supplements based on algae biomass. This can reduce methane emissions, increase feed intake and improve the health of ruminants.
In the AppleCoal project, biochar is to be enriched with compost and incorporated into the soil of orchards. The aim is to improve the soil in terms of water storage capacity, microbial diversity and nutrient availability. A solution for fruit growing in Brandenburg.
The project aims to restart millet cultivation in Brandenburg. The cultivation methods for the drought-tolerant and undemanding millet are to be researched and optimised. Because millet can be an answer to climate change.
The aim of the VitalCoat project is to develop waxes and wax mixtures that are applied to the bark of trees infested with harmful fungi. In particular, they are intended to support healing. In addition, seeds are to be coated with the waxes. The waxes are also obtained from native plants.
Sandy soils dominate in Brandenburg. Added to this are the consequences of climate change. Farmers are adapting to this and are increasingly cultivating crops that can cope with these conditions. So far, buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum) has hardly been cultivated. Researchers at the ILU want to change this. This is because the pseudo-cereal is rich in carbohydrates and proteins as well as minerals and vitamins.
Domestic sheep's wool is difficult to market. One solution: the wool washing project aims to develop a small wool washing plant that will enable small batches to be washed according to type while minimising transport costs.
In the ForestFeed project, the project partners use industrial forest by-products, such as residues from lignin extraction, as nutrients for a fungus. The resulting fungal biomass serves as feedstock for fish food.
In the GranuGruen project, a granulate is being developed for soil improvement. The material is intended to store additional water and thus make the soil more climate-sensitive. The plant granules are to be made from construction materials.
The research project Interimmun-APEC aims to reduce the use of antibiotics in poultry by early detection of pathogens.
Current European agricultural production systems are highly dependent on protein imports. Due to this dependency, European agricultural systems are vulnerable to rapid supply chain disruptions. To address these issues, the EU is looking for sustainable and locally available alternative sources of protein.
Food production generates large quantities of waste. These are only insufficiently utilised. This is why new processes and technologies are needed for the cascading utilisation of raw and residual materials in order to achieve closed cycles as far as possible.
Scientists from various institutes are working together to develop a sensor platform using new photonic measurement technology. Based on the new detection techniques, the Institute for Food and Environmental Research (ILU) e.V. will develop measures that are effective against a variety of microbial contamination.
Only a small proportion of the plants that exist on earth are used by humans as food. For example, only three plants provide 60 per cent of the calories and nutrients: maize, rice and wheat. In addition, these and a few other species take up a large part of agricultural land. As part of Horizon 2020, the EU founded the Radiant project with the aim of using more crop species than before and thus making the food system more robust.
In the ResBerry project, researchers are looking for new ways: the aim is to strengthen above- and below-ground biodiversity in order to increase the resilience of European organic soft fruit cultivation against the most important pests and diseases.
