BeBlue - Beyond Bluegrass aims at capitalizing the achievements of the BLUEGRASS project, which successfully introduced in the programme area aquaponics, a sustainable and innovative food production technology based on circular economy principles.

Digitalization of Aquaponic Systems

Adapting to climate change requires particular attention to the use of water resources, which are expected to become increasingly scarce even in areas traditionally rich in water, such as the Italy–Slovenia cooperation programme area. In this context, soilless cultivation is becoming an increasingly important alternative to traditional farming methods. Hydroponic production systems allow for significant water savings compared to conventional cultivation. At the same time, water scarcity is becoming a growing challenge for freshwater aquaculture, particularly for trout farming.

Within this framework, the BeBlue project tested two innovative integrated production systems:

1. Marine aquaponics: production of sea bream, halophytic plants (especially Salicornia), and macroalgae.

2. Aquaponic trout farming: production of rainbow trout, lettuce, and microgreens.

The first innovation was tested at the pilot facility managed by Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, while the second was implemented at the facility managed by the University of Ljubljana. Both systems were originally established within the Bluegrass project and were further digitalized by equipping them with automatic sensors to monitor key water quality parameters.

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Prototype of a Digital Twin for an Aquaponic System

Aquaponic systems are more complex than both recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS – Recirculating Aquaculture Systems) and hydroponic soilless cultivation systems. Their management must ensure optimal conditions for the welfare and growth of both fish and plants, while also maintaining water temperatures within ranges that allow the bacterial community to efficiently convert ammoniacal nitrogen into nitrate. This requires expertise in both agronomy and aquaculture. Such knowledge becomes even more critical as the production scale increases, and consequently the risk of product loss due to inappropriate or delayed management actions grows. During the design phase, it is also important to properly size the system components, particularly the fish biomass and stocking density in relation to the surface area allocated for plant cultivation. Currently, there are no freely accessible tools that facilitate the design and management of aquaponic systems while taking into account the temporal development of the biomasses intended to be co-produced. For this reason, one of the main activities of the BeBlue project is the development and application of a Digital Twin (DT) of an aquaponic system. A Digital Twin can be defined as a digital representation of a system that provides insights into the evolution of its state over time.

More details are available in the documents below.

The DiGiPonic Interface

DiGiPonic is a free web-based platform with a simple and intuitive interface designed to support the design and management of aquaponic systems. The interface provides two main functions:

• Design:
  It helps users properly size the system (fish farming and hydroponic greenhouse) based on a few inputs provided by the user, such as the species to be farmed, the desired annual production, and climatic conditions.

• Management:
  It facilitates the operation of the system by providing guidance on fish feeding, monitoring pH and dissolved oxygen levels, and offering short- and medium-term forecasts of fish and plant growth.

Results are mainly presented through clear graphs and can also be downloaded in numerical format (.csv) for further analysis.

Technological Guidelines for Production

Within the framework of the BeBlue project, two key technical guidelines have been developed to support the dissemination of aquaponics as an innovative and sustainable production system. These documents provide practical, methodological, and scientific guidance for researchers, operators, and potential investors interested in establishing or optimizing aquaponic systems. The guidelines reflect the experience gained from pilot systems implemented in Italy and Slovenia and form an integral part of the project outputs aimed at knowledge transfer and the broader adoption of the good practices developed.

The two detailed documents are available below:

• Technological guidelines for production in marine aquaponics, including fish, macroalgae, and salt-tolerant plants (e.g. Salicornia).

• Guidelines for the testing and adoption of new varieties and technologies in freshwater aquaponic systems, with a focus on microgreens and nanotechnologies.

Environmental and Economic Sustainability of Aquaponics

The environmental sustainability of food products is a highly relevant issue, both for the health of our planet and for their commercial value. Indeed, the percentage of consumers who demand high-quality and environmentally sustainable products is increasing. Environmental sustainability, however, must coexist with economic sustainability. Producing in a sustainable way generally involves higher costs and therefore poses a risk for companies in terms of losing competitiveness. For this reason, within the BeBlue project, a set of activities was carried out to assess the environmental and economic sustainability of the products tested during the project.

Willingness to Purchase Aquaponic Products

During the project, a market analysis was conducted to evaluate consumers’ willingness to purchase aquaponic products within the programme area and to examine purchasing patterns.

Web-based Calculator for Assessing Environmental and Economic Sustainability

BeBlue has developed an innovative online calculator that enables sector operators, investors, and potential entrepreneurs to evaluate the environmental and economic sustainability of aquaponic systems and products. The intuitive and accessible web application integrates key indicators such as carbon footprint, water footprint, Product Environmental Footprint (PEF), and economic parameters related to costs, revenues, and profitability.

The tool is designed to support informed decision-making during the design, investment, or management phases of aquaponic systems, both for professional production and for self-consumption. It was developed through collaboration between academic and sector partners and represents one of the project’s strategic outputs to facilitate the replicability and scalability of aquaponics in the cross-border area.

The tool is freely available upon registration.

Involvement of Operators, Researchers, and Consumers

Aquaponics in recirculating systems is a relatively new production method, still little known not only to consumers but also to potential operators and investors. Moreover, although the number of studies and projects is increasing, the design and management of production-scale systems is not yet standardized. These factors have so far limited the creation of companies capable of ensuring significant production volumes within the programme area and across the entire Italian and Slovenian territory. A further obstacle to investment is the current low recognition of aquaponic products, which makes it more difficult to highlight their quality and justify a higher price compared to similar products produced using traditional methods. The development of aquaponics, in addition to technological progress, therefore also requires raising awareness among the different actors of the production chain. In both the Bluegrass and BeBlue projects, this issue was addressed by complementing traditional communication and dissemination activities with a set of actions aimed at connecting these actors within a network that enables the exchange of opinions and information and promotes initiatives of common interest. This approach is known as active participation and is essential for the effective and transparent implementation of a project, as well as for the impact it generates by demonstrating the ability to share good practices and technical knowledge. The ability to organize and conduct participatory events allows stakeholders from different backgrounds to engage in topics of common interest, facilitating dialogue and fostering synergies and collaborations.The numerous networking activities made it possible to define a “road map” for the development of aquaponics, outlining the path for the advancement of this agri-food production sector.

Main networking and participatory events:

• Plenary on the level of knowledge about aquaponics & World Café on parameters and digitalization for monitoring – 1 February 2024

• Networking Public Event Aquafarm

• Networking Public Event Novelfarm

• World Café on fish and plant species

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The Vision of an “Agro-Urban” Smart City

Urban areas are becoming increasingly empty and fragmented, partly due to the radical changes in the logistics of commercial supply chains, which now favour shopping centres located on the outskirts of cities and online distribution. Is it possible to use these vacant spaces to produce food locally, at zero kilometres?

The outcomes of the project activities confirm that this possibility is realistic, by combining soilless cultivation systems, such as aquaponics and hydroponics, with urban gardens.

 

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Read the vision of the ‘agro-urban’ smart city

Webinar and Training Module on Sustainable Aquaponics

To promote the dissemination of the knowledge and tools developed within the BeBlue project, an informational webinar and an online training module dedicated to the environmental and economic sustainability of aquaponics were developed. In the webinar, experts and project partners present the main results achieved, with a focus on the use of the web-based calculator for evaluating aquaponic systems and products. The training module, designed as a practical tutorial, provides a guided demonstration of the online application, illustrating with concrete examples how to calculate environmental and economic indicators and how to interpret the results. Both resources are intended for sector operators, technicians, public authorities, and potential investors interested in understanding how to practically apply the project results.

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Watch the webinar