The “NA-WIR” project aims to establish new medicinal plants in Saxony-Anhalt and thus to integrate new value chains in the field of primary plant products and bioactive substances.
With the cultivation of rosemary, sage and Chinese bush nettle, drought stress-resistant species are finding their way into the cultivation area.
Specially selected origins are to be tested for suitability and then established in cultivation.
The resulting primary plant products – such as spices, tea or essential oils – are to be introduced to the market.
Diterpenoids play a central role in NA-WIR in order to generate higher added value in the long term.
Ingredients such as carnosic acid and oridonin have a variety of bioactive properties and can be isolated in high concentrations from the selected plant species.
Through biotransformation, the substances obtained are to be converted into higher-value active ingredients and tested for antibacterial and anticarcinogenic properties.
The focus here is on their effectiveness against periodontitis and various cancers.
In addition, the new value chains established in the project will be subjected to a sustainability and market transfer analysis and the socio-economic effects of the developments induced by the project will be determined.
In addition, machine learning methods and practicable spectroscopic analyses will be used to select the best harvest time by modeling the content of relevant ingredients and thus achieve an optimal yield.
Digital data collection and modern FAIR data management will allow project partners and stakeholders to access information on plants and analyze their ingredients.
The approaches developed in NA-WIR can serve as a blueprint for establishing new value chains for newly established specialty crops in Saxony-Anhalt in the future.