With the agricultural sector pledging to improve its sustainability, there is an urgent need to move away from linear food production models which rely on significant raw material inputs and generate large amounts of residual waste.Developing circular agricultural production systems reviews the emergence of circular agriculture as an approach to improving the sustainability of the agricultural sector. The book addresses recent advances in understanding and...

This open access book, written by world experts in aquaponics and related technologies, provides the authoritative and comprehensive overview of the key aquaculture and hydroponic and other integrated systems, socio-economic and environmental aspects. Aquaponic systems, which combine aquaculture and vegetable food production offer alternative technology solutions for a world that is increasingly under stress through population growth, urbanisation, water shortages, land and soil degradatio...

The continuously increasing human population, has resulted in a huge demand for processed and packaged foods. As a result of this demand, large amounts of water, air, electricity and fuel are consumed on a daily basis for food processing, transportation and preservation purposes. Although not one of the most heavily polluting, the food industry does contribute to the increase in volume of waste produced as well as to the energy expended to do so. For the first time, nine separate food indu...

This book provides a comprehensive overview of and state-of-art information on the production and application of second- and third-generation bioplastics, such as polylactic acid (PLA) and polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs). The uses of alternative raw materials are presented, and innovations applied in bioplastics production processes to reduce costs and decrease environmental impacts in a circular bioeconomy are discussed.

Environmental Impact of Agro-Food Industry and Food Consumption covers trends associated with the impact of food production on the environment using lifecycle analysis and the standard methods used to estimate the food industry's environmental impact. The book discusses city-scale actions to estimate the environmental impact of food systems, including the meat chain, feeding crops to farmed fish, the confectionary industry, agriculture, tea processing, cheese production, the dairy industry...

Recycling and Deinking of Recovered Paper, Second Edition covers recent advances in recycling technologies. This second edition examines this new process, which is more eco-friendly than the virgin-papermaking process, and which uses less energy and natural resources, produces less solid waste and fewer atmospheric emissions, and helps to preserve natural resources and landfill space. In addition, the most recent information about the recycling of fibers into various grades of paper and bo...

Biomethane through resource circularity: Research, Technology and Practices is an invaluable resource for researchers, policy makers, implementers and PhD and Marsters level students in universities analyzing the present status, waste biomass including agro wastes, success in experimentation & commercial production, future needs and other relevant areas. While huge biomass is wasted by open burning, there is potential of energy generation that can be extracted from the biomass preventing G...

Sustainable Development and Pathways for Food Ecosystems: Integration and Synergies is a science-based reference which explores the roles played by agri-food ecosystems, their functions and needs, and the importance of the interdependencies among them. This book explores the relationships between food ecosystems, highlighting each entity's role in transforming, preserving, and conserving the others. It is a vital resource of information on the ecosystems that surround the food supply chain...

This book provides an overview of challenges and opportunities for algal management to mitigate climate change. This book offers new perspectives on how to control water pollution due to algae, while converting it to biosorbent and biodiesel that could be sold in market. The work also explores how to improve the performance of algae for such purposes. By identifying existing knowledge gap, this work uncovers new research directions for further development of algal management to address glo...

Organic Farming: Global Perspectives and Methods, Second Edition provides the core definition and concepts of organic farming, also addressing current challenges and goals. The book provides a comprehensive resource, from sustainability to influences on the ecosystem, including the significance of seed, soil, water and weed management, and other important aspects. In addition, it presents advancements in the field and insights on the future. This fully revised and updated edition expands c...

This book features four peer-reviewed reviews on organic soil amendments.The first chapter examines the role of biofertilisers and consortia of microorganisms in improving the effectiveness of organic fertilisation, before moving on to consider the use of animal excrement, including manures, slurry and guano. The chapter also considers the use of products or by-products of both animal and plant origin as fertilisers.The second chapter provides a critical evaluation of the p...

Food packaging performs an essential function, but packaging materials can have a negative impact on the environment. This collection reviews bio-based, biodegradable and recycled materials and their current and potential applications for food protection and preservation.The first part of the book looks at the latest advances in bio-based food packaging materials. Part two discusses the factors involved in choosing alternative packaging materials such as consumer preference, measuring the ...