Research project Marketing and product quality as keys to success of calendula cultivation

General introduction

Calendula cultivation, a relatively new venture, still had some remaining bottlenecks that were addressed in GOGO2.0. The goal was to increase profitability, product quality, and marketing of the flowers and of the seeds are seen as key to successful, local calendula cultivation. New and improved techniques were being worked on. This project is an extension of the earlier research project GOGO, which succeeded in developing calendula cultivation in Flanders as a dual-purpose crop, with harvest of seeds (for oil) and flowers. In GOGO, machine flower harvesting was also realized.

Research approach

The focus was on improving the viability of calendula cultivation: Specifically, for example, the added value of calendula cultivation was investigated as a method for controlling harmful nematodes in the soil. The researchers also optimized mechanical weed control and improved harvesting and post-harvest techniques. Another work package focused on market organization. Calendula cultivation is a niche crop that finds its market in various bioeconomy sectors, ranging from food, cosmetics, and textiles to pharmaceuticals (for the flowers) and applications in the green economy (for the seeds). All aspects investigated have an impact on the final profitability, either directly or indirectly through improved product quality.

Relevance/Valorization

Calendula is a niche crop that finds its outlet in various bio-economy sectors, ranging from food, cosmetics and textiles to pharmaceuticals (for the flowers) and applications in the green economy (for the seeds). By focusing on new cultivation systems (nematode control, mixed cultivation, mechanical weed control) we want to bring innovation to Flemish agriculture. Nematode control was proven, as well as the combination of mechanical and chemical weed control. New valorization routes were explored and are continuted in the GOGO4IT project.

Financing

VLAIO