Periodic Reporting for period 1 - EASYTRAIN (Eco-Innovative Aquaculture System Training for European Industrial Doctorates)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2021-03-01 al 2023-02-28
EASYTRAIN tackles with a great challenge that faces the humankind: the increasing need to produce healthy food in a sustainable way for a ever growing population. Aquaponics provides such a resource-efficient, energy/cost solution that combines the production of fish and plants in a recycling system, so that the nutrient-rich water from fish fertilises plants, which in turn clean the recycling water. The objective of EASYTRAIN is to create a multidisciplinary network, combining the research expertise of two academic institutions and four industrial partners (aquaponic farm, fish feed producer, micro algae biotechnology and aquaculture engineering companies), in order to train six PhD students to achieve and industrial doctorate on aquaponics.
So far EASYTRAIN has recruited six ESRs, following an open call and selection process, which are enrolled in two doctorate programmes and are currying out their research training at both academia and industry. Besides, they have been provided with two training modules on “basic & industrial aquaponics” and “fish nutrition and diet design”. The first research results are being produced and presented in scientific conferences such as Aquaculture Europe (which awarded one the ESR with the EAS Student Spotlight Award).
A long-term socio-economic impact of EASYTRAIN is expected as the new findings produced by the ESRs will provide a comprehensive way of improving aquaponic systems using newly develop organic diets, solid waste biotransformation, optimisation of micro algae production through environmental biotechnology and the timely harmonisation of fish and plant production. In short, EASYTRAIN will establish the foundations of a smart aquaponic systems that ensures sustainability and responsible food production.