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Growing food during pandemics

How to grow food during times of crisis and quarantines, with a focus on

Henrique Sanchez & Martin Basterrechea March 2020 “A virus is a piece of bad news wrapped up in a .”

PETER BRIAN MEDAWAR cultivation Soilless cultivation (Geoponics) (Hydroponics)

Intensive Organic / Ecological / Hydroponics Biological Agriculture

Active Passive

Aquaponics Bioponics Anthroponics (Human urine)

Coupled Decoupled Coupled Decoupled Intensive Agriculture

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/The_combine_Claas_Lexion_584_in_the_wheat_harvest.jpg Light

Water Soil Intensive Agriculture Food

Nutrients Haber-Bosch available for Process absorption

High energy Industrial and/or mineral extraction Organic / Ecological / Biological Agriculture / Permaculture Light

Biological / Ecological / Soil Organic Agriculture / Food Permaculture

Nutrients available for Leftovers absorption

Organic Micro Biological waste organisms Processes Mineral Hydroponics Light

Nutrient Water Mineral Hydroponics Food

Nutrients available for absorption

High energy and mineral Mineral salts extraction Light

Nutrient feed Water Aquaponics Food solution

Nutrients Fish available for absorption

Micro Biological Fish waste Energy organisms Processes Bioponics Light

Nutrient Water Bioponics Food solution

Nutrients available for Leftovers absorption

Organic Micro Biological Energy Waste organisms Processes Bioponics

Food waste* Food waste*

Vermicomposting Vermicomposting

Collect leachate Separate vermicompost from worms

Filter leachate solids Heat to 105ºC and blend to dust

Add leachate to bioponics Add dust to bioponics system system and fix pH

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/333058682_Cultivat ing_Ocimum_basilicum_in_a_hydroponics_deep-water_cultu re_DWC_system_using_dried_vermicompost_powder_as_th e_nutrient_source Anthroponics

Anthroponics is a very new field and with an associated risk, the knowledge I created has not yet been peer-reviewed in an academic context. Proceed at your own risk! Light

Nutrient Water Anthroponics Food solution

Nutrients available for absorption

Processed Micro Biological Energy human urine organisms Processes Anthroponics

Human urine*

Storage of volatilized/processed urine (Minimum 5 weeks)*

Add volatilized urine to nitrification component

Transport nitrified urine to the component Anthroponics First system https://www.researchgate.net/publication/273062397_Aquaponics_and_its_potential_aquaculture_wastewater_treatment_and_human_urin e_treatment

Lettuce: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281446675_Lactuca_Sativa_production_in_an_Anthroponics_system

Cucumber (different concentrations): https://www.researchgate.net/publication/282150743_Cucumis_sativus_in_an_Anthroponics_system_under_different_urine_do sages

Faster processed urine (crushed & dehusked watermelon seeds): https://www.researchgate.net/publication/291165299_Citrullus_lanatus_seeds_as_a_urine_catalyst_for_anthroponics_use

Wood ash as suplement (): https://www.researchgate.net/publication/303100936_Wood_ash_as_a_nutrient_supplement_for_Cucumis_Sativus_in_an_anth roponics_system

Decoupled anthroponics: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/312083724_Ocimum_basilicum_and_Coriandrum_sativum_cultivation_in_a_decoupled_anthropo nics_system Phases of a pandemic

Beginning of a pandemic ● Constant energy and resources / Intermittent energy and constant resources (rural areas). Few information about the virus, first travel restriction measures.

Peak of a pandemic ● Constant energy and intermittent resources. General quarantines and high movement restriction (only for essential services). Occasional supermarket shortages for some products.

● Intermittent energy and no resources. Heavily affected supply chains. Shortage of some basic food in supermarkets.

End of a pandemic ● No resources and no energy. Very high number of infected people, lack of workers even for essential services like agriculture, health, and energy. However, there is a light in the end of the tunnel. The recovery begins. Priority of cultivation methods during a pandemic If there are constant resources and energy: Beginning of pandemic ● Aquaponics/ active Mineral Hydroponics / Bioponics / Anthroponics

If there is intermittent energy and constant resources:

● passive Mineral Hydroponics

If there is only constant energy and intermittent resources: Peak of pandemic ● Bioponics / Anthroponics

If there is only intermittent energy:

● decoupled Anthroponics / passive Bioponics/ Organic Agriculture (etc)

If there are no resources or energy: End of pandemic

● Permaculture / Organic/Biological/Ecological Agriculture Beginning of pandemic 1. Buy/gather materials to be able to grow using any technique (or the preferred ones): ○ Plastic containers for growing or biological processes (buckets, boxes, etc), containers to store other necessary liquids ○ Rubber or plastic pipes and connections ○ Air and water pumps, and air stones ○ Mineral salts, mineral ○ Appropriate plant grow lights ○ Fish fry and fish feed ○ High surface area material ○ Seeds ○ Waste processing organisms (red worms, black soldier fly larvae, bokashi microorganisms, etc) ○ Chemical products to change water pH (lime, phosphoric acid) ○ Soil ○ String, rope, nets, and other useful construction material, or to aid during cultivation ○ If you have the extra budget: pH and meters, chemical products for pest control compatible with organic growing, and/or predator insects Beginning of pandemic Beginning of pandemic 2. Kickstart the

○ Build or find the containers for the biological processes ○ Start the biological processes like composting, vermicomposting, nitrification (in parallel with other processes or not) ■ Tip Nitrification: get water from an already cycled aquarium or aquaponics system ○ Prepare the soil and seed ■ Adequate spacing and number of seeds per hole ○ Build or find the cultivation systems

3. Transport seedlings to cultivation systems Peak of pandemic

1. Priority for the cultivation techniques with the scarcest nutrient sources

○ Aquaponics (Fish feed) and Mineral Hydroponics (mineral salts)

2. Keep converting organic waste in nutrients while there is energy available

a. Food leftovers in leachates and vermicompost (dried and crushed) b. Human urine in processed and nitrified urine

3. Start seeding in /vermicompost/bokashi compost/purchased soil

4. Final consumption of the animal protein (fish) End of pandemic 1. Priority for the cultivation techniques with the scarcest nutrient sources

○ Vermicompost leachates, vermicompost dust, bokashi compost leachates, processed and nitrified urine

2. Maximum cultivation in soil

● Maximum attention to insects or fungus ● Try and re-use water from previous cultivations to water the soil Useful skills ● How to preserve harvests long-term ○ Dry ○ Freeze ○ Ferment ○ Pickle https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/ ○ Preserve in vinegar Pickled_cucumber_2.jpg ● Identify alternative and safe sources of nutrients ○ ○ Black soldier fly larvae as fish feed/animal feed ○ Duckweed as fish feed/animal feed ○ Azolla as fish feed/animal feed ● Identify / alternative organisms for human consumption ○ Duckweed ○ Azolla

○ Crayfish and freshwater shrimp (aquaponics) ○ , wild celery, and Indian lotus (aquatic plants) How to grow indoors (method priority) 1. Grow vertically near windows or with natural light 2. Grow vertically in a place with a concentration of adequate artificial light 3. Grow horizontally near windows or with natural light 4. Grow horizontally in a place with a concentration of adequate artificial light 5. Use any container, bucket, or bottle that can retain water What to grow and when?

Beginning of pandemic = More perishable (shorter lasting) Herbs/salads/vegetables

● ● Chard ● Arugula ● Basil ● Mint ● Parsley ● Coriander ● Chives ● Pak Choi ● Cress ● ● Beans ● Etc… What to grow and when?

Beginning - Peak of pandemic = Less perishable fresh vegetables (last a bit longer, slightly more nutrients)

● ● Cabbage ● Eggplant ● Beat ● Cucumber ● Taro ● Zucchini ● ● ● Carrot ● Bell Pepper ● Radish ● Kale ● Etc… ● Cauliflower ● Broccoli What to grow and when?

End of pandemic = Tubers (last longer, more calories)

● ● Sweet potato ● Beet ● Cassava ● Parsnip ● ● Turnip ● Celery ● Ginger

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/Ipomoea_batatas_-_Tubers.jpg How much to grow? In one sentence: As much as possible, using all containers, bottles, buckets, and available vases. But it will not be enough…

Potato example (the food with the best calorie / cultivation space required):

Each human needs a minimum of 1600 kcal to survive per day.

Each potato has 77 kcal for every 100 grams. Each potato usually weights between 140-340 grams (let’s assume 240g on average).

Each individual potato then has 184 kcal. In other words, each person would need to eat 8 potatoes per day (almost 2 kg of potatoes).

If each potato plant yields 1.4kg of potato, during a 6 month period you would need 270 potato plants to eat the production of 1.5 plants per day during 6 months.

Conclusion: You should get supermarket reserves as long as possible (, grain, fruit, supplements, normal food), and grow to complement your daily food, unless you have a lot of space/soil to replace almost all your meals. Free instructions

● Aquaponics: http://oikosol.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Media-Bed-Aquaponics-v.1.0.pdf

● Passive Mineral Hydroponics: http://oikosol.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Passive-Hydroponics-v.1.0.pdf

● Vermicomposting: http://oikosol.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Vermicomposterb1.0.pdf Have a good harvest!