Abstract
Within this paper, the authors explain their transdisciplinary vision of nutrient recovery for sustainable urban plant cultivation in Germany from different but complementary perspectives (SUSKULT vision). Nowadays, the demand for fresh, healthy, locally and sustainably produced food in German urban areas is constantly increasing. At the same time, current agricultural systems contribute significantly to exceeding the planetary boundaries. The disruption of the phosphorus and nitrogen cycles in particular stands out from the manifold effects of modern food production on the Earth system. One central issue that will have to be faced in the future is how increased yields in agriculture will be achieved with high-energy requirements in fertilizer production and pollution of water and soil by phosphorus and reactive nitrogen. City region food systems (CRFS) can be a solution to overcome these issues. Nevertheless, to ensure sustainable CRFS, innovative technologies and methods need to be developed, including nutrient and energy recovery and adapted horticultural cultivation methods that fit complex urban dynamics. Such new strategies need to be integrated in long-term social and political transformation processes to enhance acceptance of food produced by recyclates. The joint contribution of experts from the wastewater, horticultural, and political sciences, together with industrial and societal sector actors, is critical to reach these objectives. The overarching goal of SUSKULT’s vision is the establishment of the field of urban circular agricultural production as an innovative sector of the bio-based economy in Germany.
Highlights
Food supply chain resilience is being severely tested in the last years with disruptions caused by the climate effects in Europe as in 2017, the European drought and heat wave in 2018 or the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020
Building plained as part of the three key elements of this novel food system for 2050: (i) recovery on findings from ongoing transdisciplinary research in SUSKULT, the paper shows the of urban resources from wastewater for cultivation, (ii) cultivation techniques and crop resource potential of wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) for urban plant cultivation varieties complying with future needs and (iii) consumer demands and perceptions
Food security of vegetables cultivated in SUSKULT, Nutritional value of vegetables cultivated in SUSKULT, Sustainability of the SUSKULT approach compared to conventional agricultural cultivation systems, Energy consumption and energy costs of the SUSKULT approach, Consumers prices regarding final SUSKULT products, Interaction of the SUSKULT approach with established agricultural production and distribution systems, Impact of the SUSKULT approach on farmers near to SUSKULT cultivation systems
Summary
Food supply chain resilience is being severely tested in the last years with disruptions caused by the climate effects in Europe as in 2017, the European drought and heat wave in 2018 or the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The vision connects the urban wastewater treatment sysThe overarching goal of this paper is to introduce a vision that sees urban agricultural tem and the agricultural production system in densely populated urban areas It projects production as a key component of sustainable, resilient and inclusive CRFS of the future-at the transformation of a conventional waste water treatment plant (WWTP) into a least by 2050—(see Figure 1). The vision connects the urban wastewater treatment system “NEWtrient®-Center”, which draws the essential resources of water, nitrogen, phosphoand the agricultural production system in densely populated urban areas It projects the rus, potassium, CO2 and heat for urban plant cultivation from municipal wastewater.
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