EcoIntAgro

#AgriThon #AGRI_CAMP #ICARE #StartUP

Project Name: EcoIntAgro

Team Members: Vardan Qaryan (team leader), Lilit Arshakyan, Davit Arshakyan, Rafael Kostanyan, Aram Tonoyan

Tsaghkashat village, Alaverdi community, Lori marz

EcoIntAgro

Recently, the EcoIntAgro team became one of the 15 winners of the first round of the AgriThon *. “Thanks to AgriThon, our startup idea was refined into a business project,” team leader Vardan Qaryan said. Below are the details presented by Vardan Qaryan about the project.

EcoIntAgro project first of all popularizes agro-ecological approaches, introduces modern solutions in agro-ecological agriculture.
Agro-ecological agriculture can be especially beneficial for small farms, which are the main part of Armenia’s agriculture. In addition, agro-ecological agriculture can have a major impact on addressing both food security and global climate change.
EcoIntAgro project is a self-sufficient agricultural complex with agro-ecological solutions, which is controlled and managed by the latest integrated technological solutions and digital technologies. This system provides the most favorable environmental conditions for animals and plants and these conditions are monitored by special sensors. The sensors send environmental information signals to a computer program, which provides the necessary conditions with a pre-designed program by turning on or off the irrigation and ventilation systems.
According to agro-ecological approaches, all components of the system are interconnected and complete the food chain. A special form of barn / nest is offered, which will provide more natural ventilation.
– The aquaponic system will be one of the components of the system, which will serve as a water storage and at the same time will perform the function of fodder production.
Plants of the aquaponic system will grow in dome-shaped greenhouses. Dome-shaped greenhouses provide more efficient use of solar energy and better ventilation.
Cover crop co-cultivation technique will be used for open field crops.
– Irrigation will be carried out by drip and spray techniques.

According to the team leader, one of the components of the system will be the mushroom factory, where the necessary environmental conditions will be provided through technological solutions and a computer program. “Great attention will be paid to the composting of manure and plant residues. The whole system will function as a whole due to the synergies created between the components and the technical-technological management system”, – the team leader added.

The team also plans to create a mobile application that will allow to remotely control and manage the entire system. Solar and geothermal energy will be used for the operation of the system. “The whole system is self-sufficient, the amount of imported nutrients is minimized, and the cost of the product is sufficient to cover internal costs,” Vardan Qaryan said and continued. – “The EcoIntAgro project should serve as a reference system and should have more of an educational / cognitive function. The aim of the project is to present the solutions used in the complex to the farms and to build farms for customers using similar technologies and solutions. ”

The team members believe that with funding, it is possible to build and operate the entire complex in one year.

The food produced by the EcoIntAgro system will be ecologically clean, high quality and “probably more affordable”.

“I consider the experience and professional skills of the team members to be our strong point. Technically, we have a good idea of what we want to get as a result and how we will do it,” – the team leader said.

AgriThon* is a competition/platform for startup ideas with innovative solutions in the field of agriculture, implemented by the ICARE-Armenia Foundation within the framework of the USAID-funded AGRI CAMP program.