In the project, the company’s used water is purified on site with natural filters. The purified water is then reused for cultivation or production. Sensors are used to check whether the water quality remains good.
Test
The project is already being tested at a chicory company in Poperinge. The system ensures that the company needs less fresh water and it also discharges less waste water. According to the researchers, the project can be applied in numerous companies, on different scales and is also affordable. Agro&Blauw wants to use the results as a blueprint for broader water management within the sector.
Subsidies
The technique is also successfully used by fruit grower Wolfcarius in Wakken and potato grower Vandehaegen in Horebeke. The price fluctuates between 50,000 and 400,000 euros, depending on the size of the company and the cultivation. Farmers can count on subsidies from the Flemish Agricultural Investment Fund.
Agro&Blauw is a collaboration between VLAIO, Ghent University, VEG-i-TEC, Flanders’ FOOD and the company HelloWater.