Article - 21/03/2019

Education as the key to a successful transition into a bioeconomy

National and international policy papers emphasize the role of the education sector in the transition into a bioeconomy. On the practical level, various actors are working on programmes to prepare professionals for future challenges. The University of Hohenheim, for example, offers a bioeconomy master's programme and is one of the universities that have laid the cornerstone for the “European Bioeconomy University” consortium.

The European Union is largely dependent on imports of white phosphorus (P4), a strategic raw material for the food and pharmaceutical industries. To tackle this challenge, the newly started four-year EU-funded project FlashPhos – led by the University of Stuttgart – will recover at a large scale high-quality white phosphorus and other raw materials using sewage sludge as input material.

Basic chemicals, which are needed as raw materials for a wide range of products such as medicines and detergents, can currently only be produced with an enormously high input of energy and raw materials. In many cases, fossil fuels and raw materials are still used. The extraction of chemical substances alone requires high temperatures, expensive catalysts made of precious metals and, in some cases, environmentally harmful starting materials.

Researchers at the University of Freiburg have examined how mulching at different times affects insect flower-visitors and larvae.

As a rapidly growing renewable raw material, bamboo is an ideal substitute for wood. However, bamboo’s susceptibility to mold in damp conditions poses a problem. Researchers at Fraunhofer have now analyzed bamboo’s response to moisture under specific climatic conditions. By using simulation software, building owners can plan and implement measures to prevent the growth of mold.

Around 7 million euros to promote more sustainable use of the world's limited phosphate supply: The German-Chinese Research Training Group AMAIZE-P can continue its research on phosphorus as one of the most important nutrient elements for plants. The German Research Foundation (DFG) has approved a second funding period of another 4.5 years.

AI & robotics from the University of Hohenheim advance environmental protection & sustainability in agriculture / German Chancellor Scholz impressed by potential of Swabian multi-talent robot

Alpha-Protein GmbH - 27/07/2021

Insect farming for sustainability

Mealworms instead of fish meal and soybean meal - this is what the sustainable future of feed production looks like as Alpha-Protein GmbH see it. The company has built a highly efficient automated production plant in which residual materials from local food production are used to breed mealworms.

The "livMatS Pavilion" in the Botanical Garden of the University of Freiburg is a model for a bioinspired sustainable construction. In a joint project, researchers from the Universities of Freiburg and Stuttgart together with master’s students from the University of Stuttgart have designed a lightweight pavilion.

The Cluster of Excellence IntCDC of the University of Stuttgart presents the "Maison Fibre" at the International Architecture Exhibition Venice. The full-scale inhabitable installation is made from robotically produced, fibrous building elements.

ROKO Farming - 03/08/2021

Thinking upwards: vertical farming to be further developed into continuous production

ROKO Farming’s novel technology is designed to produce fruit and vegetables worldwide all year round, while also freeing up areas for rewilding. This semi-automatic production method created by the Ulm-based business has huge future potential, as their success in innovation competitions demonstrates.