Kontext

SPIN-FERT ambition is to tackle  the bottlenecks that are preventing the adoption of peat-free substrates and implementation of soil health-improving management practices, which have been identified from other projects. These include: i) the reduced efficacy of biostimulants because of formulation issues, which limit farmers trust in them ; ii) the standardization (technological normalization) of peat-free substrates because of technological and regulatory issues, which limit manufacturers capacity; iii) the correct implementation of integrated soil management practices by farmers due to limited knowledge ; and iv) the overarching policy framework that shall support the whole value chain, which is sometimes perceived as not efficient by the operators. SPIN-FERT will demonstrate and provide innovations with a high TRL (e.g. novel fertilising products, integrated soil management, tools for farmers and advisors) that shall allow overcoming these bottlencks. A strong collaboration between research and industrial partners is foreseen in all stages of the project, as underlined by the consortium composition. SPIN-FERT implements a participatory multi-actor approach including all actors along the value chain, ensuring all relevant knowledge and experience is taken into account to provide the best outcomes and achieve the most valuable impacts. 

Objectives

The main objective of SPIN-FERT is to provide a validated and optimized integrated approach of soil management for horticultural crops and to provide feasible and sustainable alternatives to peat in growth substrates. This objective will be achieved exploiting the data/knowledge and outcomes generated already in other projects participated by several partners present in SPIN-FERT consortium. SPIN-FERT adopts a circular economy approach, by transforming agro-food by-products into resources that can (i) be reutilized in primary agricultural production (e.g. fertilising products) and (ii) become sustainable alternatives to peat in substrates. The innovated products of SPIN-FERT will be integrated with agronomic practices delivering an integrated soil management strategy suitable for diverse horticultural cropping systems. This way, SPIN-FERT will deliver results and technologies available for exploitation, also commercially, in the short term for farmers, agricultural advisors, manufacturers, researchers and policy makers.

Activities

SPIN-FERT is based on a system approach that will integrate optimised and validated innovations with agricultural practices targeting soil fertility and health in horticultural crops. The multi-actor approach will be at the core of SPIN-FERT’s methodology. Co-decision and participatory approach will contribute to assure that the project outputs will achieve a significant impact. This is particularly important when adoption of novel products or soil management practices is concerned due to the common conservative attitude of farmers. For these reasons, and to underline the importance given by SPIN-FERT to the dialogue with stakeholders, a specific work package (WP1) is dedicated to communication, dissemination and training, expecting to valorise the informal knowledge of professionals related to agronomic feasibility of practices, input production standards, market opportunities and policies. Being aware of the critical impact of communication and dissemination methods on the efficacy of knowledge transfer to the various stakeholders, the approach chosen by SPIN-FERT in this regard will emphasise practical materials and activities fully exploiting the power of image-based technologies. Training materials will be designed for an interactive and visual transfer of knowledge. SPIN-FERT innovation spirit is also expressed by the collaboration of artists and scientists and delivery of art-science events and materials, conceived to increase curiosity in the audience, functioning as a resonance chamber to attract attention of conventional media.

Another WP is dedicated to the optimization of processes and products that will improve i) the efficacy of biostimulants, ii) the characteristics of organic amendments and iii) will allow to substitute peat in growing substrates. The methodological approach focuses on reuse (reconditioning spent coir) or recycling (production of different kinds of fertilising products – e.g. fertilisers, amendments, biostimulants) and valorisation of by-products from primary production and food processing streams.

The agronomic performance of the developed products is assessed on a variety of horticultural crops (fruits, vegetables and ornamentals) and different cropping systems (nursery, field and protected conditions). The co-design process will allow to effectively integrate them into soil management practices that promote biodiversity in the cropping systems (e.g., cover crops, living mulches, minimum tillage) and that can synergistically interact with the applied products.

Development or optimisation of an array of tools is supporting overall uptake of soil-friendly practices: a portable device for species-specific monitoring of microbial biostimulants in soil (to better define doses and application methods), an automated robot for the standardized image analysis of soil biodiversity (microflora and microfauna), a portable e-nose system for recognition of patterns associated to soil microbial activity, and a multifactorial soil quality index (Soil Holistic Quality Index) including physical-chemical and biological parameters of soil fertility. 

Policies can be a strong driver to support the farmers’ shift toward soil-friendly practices. However, they need to be substantiated or supported by scientific or socio-economic evidence. Therefore, two WPs are covering these aspects, aiming at delivering knowledge and data to better understand the contribution of soil functions on ecosystem services and determining their economic value. These assessments are paralleled by surveying drivers and barriers affecting the adoption of soil-friendly practices by farmers and non-professionals, and the development of a production standard for peat-free substrates. The results from these activities will be propaedeutic to the design of a policy framework accompanying and fostering the transition toward a soil-friendly and low impact horticulture.