Resource Preservation by Application of BIOefFECTORs in European Crop Production (BIOFECTOR)

Collaborative Project

Project code: 312117
Contract period: 01.09.2012 - 31.08.2017
Budget: 6000000 Euro
Coordinating institution: Subinstitution Nutritional Crop Physiology (340h)

Meeting the increasing food demand of a growing world population in face of limited available area of productive agricultural land is one of the big challenges during the next decades. Resource-saving strategies and land use intensification require the development of more viable plant nutrition strategies in crop production as alternatives to the prevailing use of mineral fertilisers, mainly produced by exploitation of non-renewable natural resources. BIOFECTOR is an integrated project with the aim to develop novel approaches for the use of so-called bio-effectors based on living microorganisms and active natural compounds. The final goal is the development of bio-effector products with capability to increase the productivity of organic and low-input farming systems and boosting the efficiency of recycling fertilisers and of nutrient placement strategies close to the roots of crop plants. The strategic combination of the various alternative fertilisation approaches with specifically adapted bio-effector products under diverse European geo-climatic conditions provides a promising tool to overcome limitations in nutrient availability. In this context, the project will contribute to a more sustainable and environmentally friendly agricultural production in Europe with reduced input of agrochemicals. Microbial bio-effectors addressed by the project comprise various fungal and bacterial isolates with well-characterized root growth-promoting and nutrient-solubilising potential. Natural extraction products of seaweed, compost and plant extracts, as well as their purified active compounds, are also tested in various combinations and formulations. The products are developed for major crops, such as maize, wheat and tomato. After the assessment on laboratory scale, a 'European Field Testing Network' assures product evaluation under representative European geo-climatic conditions over a total testing period of five years.

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Collaborative Projects