Model farm structures for agriculture 4.0 – challenge of sustainable food supply – short transport distances, directly on site with urban farming concepts
Jörg Trübl explains during a lecture and presentation that the concept of MABEWO AG is focused on local supply concepts leaning on peasant structures. „Like the „Farm to Fork“ strategy of the European Union, and the technological ideas of other market players, we are researching the concept of producing and using and marketing food, feed and pharmaceutical products locally. The advantage of our solar dome is that it is modular and can therefore be set up and dismantled anywhere in the world. Our circular economy systems use the energy where it is generated and produce food, medicinal plants as well as microgreens directly in our production modules on site via the generated electricity. This eliminates costly transportation and storage of energy. Land consumption is much lower than with conventional agriculture. Chemical pesticides are hardly or not at all needed. The same applies to waste generation, water supply and wastewater disposal,“ says Jörg Trübl.
Alternative agriculture under glass: effective, efficient and sustainable
Indoor farming, the new technical term for „alternative agriculture under glass,“ is the strategy for effective farming, reducing costs and answering the questions of the day. Productivity increases sometimes ten to a hundred times in relation to the results obtained in conventional agriculture, which has already been able to massively improve productivity in the course of a hundred years. LED technology as a light source is revolutionizing the landscape, and the wealth of experience gained from the traditional cultivation of food under glass can be integrated into the new process. In line with its partners and suppliers, the Swiss company MABEWO AG will apply this technology. Also the current impact of the pandemic expects a rethinking!
In another working discussion, Jörg Trübl tries to develop a future scenario as follows: „Our technology makes it possible to produce food where it is needed. The basic supply of food is far from being a matter of course for everyone. Climate change, drought or flooding lead to local harvest losses. Above all, lack of water and suitable arable land are limiting factors for an adequate basic supply.“ With its investment in the Swiss company MSP Construction AG, the MABEWO Group of Companies is working on the development of innovative indoor farming solutions. Highly qualified hardware and software engineers are working together with crop farmers, mechatronic engineers and design engineers to develop novel indoor farming systems. Automation, process control and the interface of technology and plant are the focus of the work.
The safety arguments and the problem of the continued use of soil and the associated species extinction and harmful climate impacts in other countries knows no bounds. Current concepts only work in part, which is why the European Union is funding projects such as those of MABEWO AG. The idea is to create a sustainable food and feed supply that is oriented towards the circular economy of the earth and has a much smaller impact on the environment than conventional agriculture. A revolution is on the horizon.
In the further course of the working discussion, Jörg Trübl was able to highlight a special feature: „Just like the invention of glass for the production of sensitive plants that would otherwise not grow in northern and central Europe, indoor farming using LED technology and modern networked systems is a paradigm shift. Less space, more efficiency, better economic and environmental results.“
The use of solar energy – thinking outside the box
An example from the world of industry illustrates what development aid can look like. In South Africa, Volkswagen AG is focusing on strategies to use solar energy to end rural depopulation and environmental degradation. The global corporation has had systems created to harness solar energy that look like native palm trees, A truly good idea that will be used to power e-tractors with networked technology in agriculture. Scientific studies show that agriculture today uses more than 90 percent of the water consumed by humanity and produces a quarter of the world’s greenhouse gases in parallel.
This technology gives us another perspective on working, tilling and harvesting in a networked and intelligent way within our indoor farming facilities. The irrigation of the plants takes place in the solar dome production facilities with pinpoint accuracy, and the plant gets exactly the light it needs in the specific growth phase.
A perpetual optimization and a lifelong learning and optimization pays off
In the ductus of the international division of labor, it is also vital for the MABEWO Group to ally itself with strong partners. The MABEWO Group includes Food & Energy Campus, MSP Construction AG, MSW Mechatronik & Schweisswerkstatt, MABEWO BLUE PLANET AG and MABEWO PHYTOPHARM, which complement the required components and thus the production phases are coordinated. The company will control and handle projects worldwide with renowned groups, and the goal for the MABEWO Group is to describe a gold standard, for example, in the production of medicinal plants. „In particular, the GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) Guide; Annex 15: „Qualification and Validation“ has established guidelines for quality assurance. In addition, the „Guidance for Industry“ published by the FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) places great demands on the production of food and medical products,“ says a senior employee from MABEWO PHYTOPHARM AG.
MABEWO AG will meet these clear requirements. The innovative solution for digital qualification and validation is offered complementarily by the joint partners of the MABEWO Group. „Based on sensor technology and the support of artificial intelligence, all relevant data in the system can be checked, approved and interconnected directly with the respective plant equipment. Indoor farming needs complex control to ensure quality management, optimize communication, enable machine learning,“ is how Jörg Trübl of the MABEWO Group from Switzerland sees it.
As a result, the MABEWO Group’s value chain is to be optimized efficiently and using real-time data. The standardized production plants are innovatively controlled, fully automated, modular and thus flexible. Inside, plants grow in optimal arrangements in reproducible MABEWO quality and this independent of location and climate, in this sense the respected partners of the MABEWO Group from Switzerland are at hand.
V.i.S.d.P.:
Catrin Soldo
Press speaker
MABEWO AG
Contact:
MABEWO AG
Chli Ebnet 3
CH-6403 Küssnacht/Rigi
Switzerland
T +41 41 817 72 00
info@mabewo.com
Represented by Mr. Jörg Trübl
MABEWO AG stands for sustainability. „Make a better world“ invests in the future and creates livelihoods where basic needs are met: MABEWO uses photovoltaic systems for water and electricity production. MABEWO is a reliable local service provider that improves people’s lives and creates jobs. Mr. Jörg Trübl is a trained environmental engineer and has 20 years of practical economic experience in business management as a consultant, coach and CEO of SMEs in Europe. Further information under: https://www.mabewo.com/
Press contact:
MABEWO AG
Catrin Soldo
Chli Ebnet 3
CH-6403 Küssnacht/Rigi
Switzerland
T +41 41 817 72 00
c.soldo@mabewo.com