Under the theme ‘Water. Harvests. Our Future,’ solutions for global food security, water resilience and the sustainable use of natural resources were discussed.

The agricultural systems of the future were also represented at the GFFA by the consortia food4future, CUBES Circle and SUSKULT, which demonstrated at their stand how interdisciplinary research, immersive technologies and alternative organisms are opening up new perspectives on the food of the future. 

At the stand, visitors gained vivid insights into current research approaches to the agricultural systems of the future. food4future brought key research topics to life with the help of augmented and virtual reality applications, translating scientific content into immersive, spatial experiences. In the VR experience ‘Future Food’, visitors were able to glide through underwater and future worlds and playfully explore how alternative organisms such as macroalgae, jellyfish or insects could be part of future sustainable food systems. This was complemented by an algae tank containing the macroalgae Ulva compressa (sea lettuce) and Palmaria palmata (lapwingweed), which illustrated how water-based forms of production are being researched and further developed in the context of food4future.

SUSKULT presented a hydroponic indoor facility with duckweed that demonstrated precisely controlled, resource-efficient plant production. The system uses water, nutrients, CO₂ and heat from a sewage treatment plant and demonstrates how circular, local food production can contribute to water resilience, resource conservation and bio-based change.

In the expert panel ‘The Blue-Green Nexus: Innovations from Farm to Sea’, food4future researcher Dr Lara Stuthmann spoke about the potential of low trophic species such as macroalgae for sustainable food systems. It became clear that the transformation of agricultural and food systems requires systemic thinking, new sustainability indicators and cooperation along the entire value chain.