News

For the first time, a large-scale event was held in Bishkek, bringing together all Central Asian countries including Mongolia for advocating the systematic promotion of organic and regenerative agriculture, the preservation of biocultural diversity of mountain regions and the sustainable development of the agricultural sector of Central Asian countries.

To develop mechanisms for systematic practical interaction between expert communities, control bodies, standardisation, certification, etc. related to organic farming in Central Asian countries, the Forum participants decided to create a Regional Alliance (Regional Council) in the spirit of cooperation and equality – an important and timely action by experts from independent organic organizations. The Regional Alliance is created as an international organization to promote peace, good neighbourly relations, organic farming (its standards and certification), consistent harmonization and synchronization of national legislation related to organic farming of all Central Asian countries and Mongolia.

SUFACHAIN Work Package 4 that focuses on organic supply chain integrity and the support of small farmer organizations’ Internal Control Systems (ICS) through software solutions ‘Check Organic’ and ‘Group Integrity’ was represented by two presentations held by Mr. Almanbet Nurlan uulu about ‘export market development’ and Mr. Gerald A. Herrmann about ‘How digitalisation supports control, certification and integrity of organics’. At the high-level opening session featuring a video address of the President of Kyrgyzstan, representatives of ministries and agencies as well as of international organisations such as OSCE, FAO, Aga Khan Foundation, GIZ, Mr. Herrmann delivered a welcome address as past president of IFOAM – Organics International.

In the year 2025, the event will take place in Kazakhstan to rotate in the following years across the other Central Asian countries and Mongolia.

News

Photo1: Workshop participants and trainers at Osh Technological University (© Jamila Smanalieva)

On 5^th and 6^th June research partners of the SUFACHAIN project from the Technical University Dresden and the Kyrgyz State Technical University (KSTU), in collaboration with local colleagues from Osh Technological University have conducted a training for farmers and fruit and nut processors in Osh, Kyrgyzstan.

The two-day workshop aimed at training nut and fruit value chain actors from southwestern Kyrgyzstan on processing and drying technologies, quality control measures, control of infections pests of dried fruits and berries, and processing of food waste.

A total of 22 participants from Osh, Batken and Jalalabad regions participated actively in the training. During the training participants had access to the laboratory facilities of the department “Technology of Processing of Agricultural Products” of Osh Technological University meeting European standards for food and processing.

The training was part of the research and innovation project ‘Promoting sustainable land management through product, process and SME development in agroforestry value chains of Central Asia (SUFACHAIN)’. As part of the project, products and technologies are developed that aim to contribute to the sustainable use of resources and enhance the quality of dried fruits in particular for creating local value.

Photo 2: SUFACHAIN researcher Dr. Jamila Smanalieva from TU Dresden (Germany) explains how to safely process raw fruits to fruit juices (© Meerim Tynarbekova)

Photo 3: Workshop participants are actively engaging in the discussions (©Meerim Tynarbekova)

Photo 4: The training also included laboratory practices on food safety (© Jamila Smanalieva)

Photo 5: The team of trainers is discussing the material (© Jamila Smanalieva)

Photo 6: The training manual that was handed out to all participants (© Jamila Smanalieva)

News

Photo: Nele Vahrenhorst, Jannike van Bruggen, Florian Wichern, Binal Dobariya, Emil Begimkulov at the Tropentag 2024

A group of researchers of the SUFACHAIN project have participated in this year’s Tropentag 2024 – ‘Exploring opportunities… for managing natural resources and a better life for all’.

Emil Begimkulov (PhD candidate under work package 5 – monetization of ecosystem services) contributed to a poster session presenting his work on Consumer preferences and willingness to pay for certified dried fruits and nuts in Central Asia.

Binal Dobariya (work package 3 – use of waste streams), PhD candidate at the Rhine-Waal University, presented her findings in an oral presentation on Utilisation of nut and fruit processing byproducts for sustainable cosmetic formulations: A pathway to microplastic-free beauty products.

Photo: Binal Dobariya presenting at the Tropentag 2024 (©Nele Vahrenhorst)

Jannike van Bruggen (SUFACHAIN project coordinator at Rhine-Waal University) presented preliminary findings on the adaptive capacity of apricot farming communities in Kyrgyzstan to climate change and resulting water variability.

Photo: Jannike van Bruggen presenting at the Tropentag 2024 (©Binal Dobariya)

The conference took place from September 11-13 at the BOKU in Vienna with scientists from all over the world. Abstracts and presentations can be found here.

News

On 28^th June, doctoral student Philip Schierning presented his research at the IUFRO World Congress in Stockholm. His talk discussed agroforestry systems as a resilient land use strategy for Central Asia on the example of apricot orchards in Southwestern Kyrgyzstan. Despite the conference size with more than 4000 participants, other presentations on the Central Asian context were scarce highlighting the importance of SUFACHAIN’s work in the region! The presentation can be found in our public library.

TU Osh, Kyrgyzstan

5th to 6th June 2024

On 5^th and 6^th June partners of the SUFACHAIN consortium will give a two-day training on fruits and nuts processing technologies to be held at Osh Technological University, Kyrgyzstan.

The training will provide training and information on

• Processing and drying technologies,
• Quality control measures,
• Control of infections pests of dried fruits and berries,
• Processing of food waste.

The training is part of the research and innovation project ‘Promoting sustainable land management through product, process and SME development in agroforestry value chains of Central Asia (SUFACHAIN)’. As part of the project, products and technologies are developed that aim to contribute to the sustainable use of resources and enhance the quality of dried fruits in particular for creating local value.

During the training we will have access to the laboratory facilities of the department “Technology of Processing of Agricultural Products” of Osh Technological University meeting European standards for food and processing. Costs for transport, accommodation and food will be covered by project.

The training will be conducted by Associate Prof. Dr. Smanalieva J.N., Associate Prof., k.t.s. J.K. Irmatova, Ph.D., and k b.s. Israilova G. C. Costs for transport, accommodation and food will be covered by the project.

Citizens of Kyrgyzstan with orchards or processing plants are invited to participate. Please let us know about participation by filling out this form https://forms.gle/Uq8PcpFVGqf4KoJ89 

by 05/20/2024. The training will be held in Kyrgyz language.

Tashkent, Uzbekistan, April 25-26^th April 2024

On 25th and 26th April, 16 scientists, five entrepreneurs and representatives from four civil society organizations from Germany and Central Asia participated at the Tashkent Institute of Irrigation and Agricultural Mechanization Engineers Institute (TIIAME), National Research University, Uzbekistan, for the workshop of the SUFACHAIN project.

The SUFACHAIN project is a collaborative effort between universities, research institutions, NGOs, and agribusiness SMEs in Germany, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, sponsored by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. The project intends to promote sustainable land management and agroforestry value chains in Central Asia by developing knowledge and technologies aimed at increasing the profitability, resource efficiency, and product quality in the cultivation, processing and marketing for a variety of fruits and nuts.

The workshop was opened with welcome addresses presented by Otabek Mahkamov, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Innovations of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Prof. Dr. Bakhadir Mirzaev, Rector of TIIAME, Prof. Dr. Dilfuza Egamberdieva of TIIAME, Zokir Rakhimov of the Ministry of Ecology, Environmental Protection & Climate Change of Uzbekistan, Prof. Dr. Dietrich Darr of Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences (HSRW), Germany. During the event, participants engaged in structured discussions reviewing the overall research agenda and progress and existing constraints. Additionally, respective working groups comprising of scientific experts (including HSRW, TU Dresden, I. Razzakov Kyrgyz State Technical University, Kyrgyz-Turkish Manas University, Uzbek National University, industry partners (Organic Services GmbH, KAFLU, DANECO, Altyn Bak LLC, Global Agro Trade and Logistics Centre LLC) and international organizations (Aga Khan Foundation, GIZ, UNDP, KIVA / KRASS and World Agroforestry Center) discussed opportunities for mutual contribution to collectively achieve sustainable development in Central Asia through the adoption of innovative agroforestry systems. Further project funding opportunities were highlighted by Dr. Peter Liebelt from CASIB.

After completion of the workshop, with support of local partners, the research group from Germany and Central Asia visited several agroforestry sites and corresponding value chains in the Fergana Valley region of Uzbekistan. Participants gained firsthand insight into the operations and processes of fruit and nut production, including apples, apricots, peach, and grapes. Lastly, an organic farming facility was visited as an example for contemporary agroforestry practice in the Fergana Valley region for papaya, kiwi, olives, lavender and the production of medicinal plants. The excursion allowed the group to identify experimental sites for further research to foster sustainable land management within the scope of agroforestry practices in Central Asia.

22 January 2024

On 12 December 2023 we organised a webinar on carbon certification for agroforestry systems in Central Asia, which was attended by around 40 people from across Central Asia. The webinar was conducted with the support of colleagues from Sustainable AG, Dr. Rainer Nerger and Clara Larissa Wriesnegger, who provided an introduction into agroforestry systems and carbon sequestration in Central Asia and gave an overview of commonly used carbon calculation methods and carbon standard certifications. An excel tool was presented that can help decision makers to select adequate carbon calculation methods for their own work.

Recordings of the webinar can be found here (introduction in Russian, presentations in English). Presentations of the webinar can be accessed here.

12 December 2023

Microplastics have been banned in cosmetics and detergents since October 2023. But what alternatives are there? Researchers at Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences want to find out together with the family-run company bb med. product GmbH from Lower Rhine area. The idea: walnut shells and apricot kernels could be the solution and thus protect the environment. And farmers in Kyrgyzstan could also benefit from utilising this original waste. A win-win-win solution!

Read the full article here.

12 December 2023

• What is carbon sequestration in the context of Central Asian agroforestry systems?
• Which calculation measures for carbon sequestration exist?
• What are the current certification standards for carbon and ecosystem services?

On Tuesday, 12^th December 2023 at 10 am (Berlin time)/ 3 pm (Bishkek time) our partner Sustainable AG will give an online workshop to discuss these questions as part of the research project SUFACHAIN.

The workshop will be held in English, simultaneous translation into Russian will be provided.

Please send an E-Mail to sufachain@hochschule-rhein-waal.de for the registration steps.

21 November 2023

On 21^st November, Philip Schierning, Prof. Bockmühl (Rhine-Waal University) and Robert Beinio and Marian Rademacher (bbmed. product GmbH) presented the SUFACHAIN project to the general public at Campus Kleve.

The Rhine-Waal University (HSRW) regularly invites the general public to the so called Studium Generale – a lecture series on publicly relevant topics and related to the research of the HSRW. This semester the overarching topic of the lecture series is ‘Sustainability in the Region’.

The SUFACHAIN colleagues presented their work under the SUFACHAIN project and how the walnut forests in Kyrgyzstan link to the cosmetic industry in the Lower Rhine region.

The walnut forests in Kyrgyzstan provide an important livelihood for the local population, while the overexploitation of the world’s largest natural walnut forests is increasingly threatening their populations. The creation of sustainable agroforestry systems with walnuts is intended to reduce the pressure on these forests. In addition, the raw material efficiency in walnut processing has so far been low and walnut shells are often an unused waste product. In order to increase the local added value of these systems, improve raw material efficiency and reduce the pressure on natural forests, researchers of HSRW and their partners from bbmed from Kalkar in the Lower Rhine are looking at ways of using these supposed waste products in the international cosmetics industry, for example to replace microplastics in skin cosmetics such as scrubs.

Prior to the event, a related article based on an interview with Prof. Bockmühl and his work on microplastic substitutes has been published in the German newspaper NRZ and is worth a read: https://sufachain.org/sufachain-related-research-in-the-local-news-cosmetics-without-microplastic-are-walnut-shells-the-solutionvbjd1