NifERais: the project Nutraceutical Indoor Farming in Emilia Romagna through Artificial Intelligence and Sensoring (2021-2022), funded by POR-FESR Emilia-Romagna Region, aims to identify the best cultivation strategies in the field of controlled-environment agriculture in order to increase the biosynthesis of functional compounds in plant species.
Many plants are an important source, and in some cases the only one, of bioactive compounds (such as anthocyanins, flavonods, alkaloids, tannins, etc..) used in industrial processes for food, medical, nutraceutical and cosmetic purposes. Considering the key role of the environment in the morphological and physiological development of plants, the control of environmental parameters in indoor farming systems represents an opportunity to increase both yield and functional bioactive compounds.
The project nifERais, through careful management of cultivation conditions, has therefore the objective of achieving an increase in yields and a stability in product quality, meeting the needs of the food and drug industry, while preserving the sustainability of the cultivation system.Growing strategy will be studied through the integration of data from sensors, application of Internet of Things and systems capable of autonomous data management. In addition, the integration of AI systems will allow the definition of innovative protocols and technologies to improve the environmental and economic sustainability of these innovative farming systems.
