SpaceBakery
Closed ecological plant cultivation system and bakery for extended stay on Mars, and applications on our own planet
Spacebakery was a cooperative business project (type ICON) in which several businesses from the various sectors collaborate with research institutes to create a ‘Space Bakery’.
The 'Space Bakery' is a closed ecosystem for plant cultivation and a bakery. Research is carried out for long-term stays on the planet Mars and potential applications on Earth.
It is a closed and self-sustaining modular system that is independent of agricultural soil and climate and that makes optimum use of raw materials.
1. Hardware – closed production system
2. Efficient crop production
3. Use and recycling of raw materials
4. Monitoring the microbial climate
5. Healthy and nutritious basic food
Preparing for the next phase:
6. Pollination within a closed system
These are the compartments in the containers:
- Researchers enter the closed environment via the clean room.
- They put on laboratory clothing.
- Wheat is made into flour in the Mars bakery room. The sourdough is created through natural fermentation and the bread is prepared and evaluated.
- In the vertical farm room, the crops grow on racks.
- The sanitary room includes a toilet, wash basin and shower.
- The storage room contains all the materials the researchers will need (tools, etc.)
Results
Curious about the results of disruptive research of 2 years? Read the SpaceBakery story in our RADAR Story newsletter: Zuurdesembrood bakken op Mars, hoe begin je eraan? - Flanders' FOOD (flandersfood.com)
Partners
Flanders’ FOOD managed and coordinated the project.
The following companies and research groups were responsible for the execution:
- Puratos
- Urban Crop Solutions
- Magics Instruments
- Ghent University: Laboratory for Plant Ecology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering.
- SCK CEN: Expert group for interdisciplinary biosciences
- Hasselt University: Centre for Environmental Sciences
SpaceBakery started January 1st, 2020 and ended September 30th, 2022.
