Traditional agricultural practices in the Mediterranean often generate significant waste and suffer from inefficient resource management, leading to environmental pollution and lost economic value. Addressing
Findings from the FrontAg Nexus project’s systematic literature review and value chain analyses underscore the critical importance of implementing socially responsible practices, ensuring fair labour conditions, promoting gender equality, and actively engaging local communities in the development and deployment of frontier agriculture systems. This integrated approach fosters a just transition that benefits all stakeholders.
The FrontAg Nexus project’s experience at ElBosten Phytagri highlights complexities in manual cross-pollination for self-incompatible pitaya (‘White from Mexico’) using a self-fertile variety (‘White from Vietnam’). Initial trials, while challenging, underscored the critical need for a deeper understanding of varietal compatibility, climatic impacts, and greenhouse environmental effects on pollen viability.
The FrontAg Nexus project showcases ElBosten Phytagri’s adapted pitaya cultivation under greenhouse cover, highlighting customized, low-input irrigation and fertilization practices. This approach optimizes water and nutrient delivery, efficiently utilizing the plant’s shallow root system for quality production.
The Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystem (WEFE) Nexus has evolved from a resource efficiency paradigm within water, energy, and food (WEF) systems toward a broader governance framework that recognizes ecosystems as essential to resource security and sustainability.