By Andrea Begnini
Two Italian startups, LangaPonica and Aqua Farm, are demonstrating that a new agricultural model is not only possible, but already in place. With above-ground plants , advanced technologies and a strongly sustainability-oriented vision, these realities are defining new models of farming. At the heart of it all is aquaponics, a virtuous system that combines fish and plants in a closed cycle, reduces waste, lowers resource use and promotes positive-impact agriculture.
Aquaponics: a circular ecosystem that rethinks agriculture
At a time when climate crisis, biodiversity loss, land consumption and food insecurity are enhancing their cross effects, aquaponics stands out as one of the smartest and most systemic responses. Derived from the fusion of hydroponics (growing above ground) and aquaculture (fish farming), aquaponics creates a symbiotic cycle in which fish produce nutrients for plants and plants purify water for fish. No chemical fertilizers, no pesticides, water consumption reduced by up to 95 percent compared to traditional methods, and the possibility of cultivation even in extreme, urban or degraded environments.
This agricultural model not only meets the goals of the 2030 Agenda, but represents a new narrative for agribusiness: resilient, adaptive, efficient. It is an agriculture that does not impoverish, but regenerates. It does not consume, but gives back. And above all, it integrates-with intelligence-the organic, technological and social components of doing business. Two Italian startups have chosen to make this vision a reality, bringing it to the fields (or rather, greenhouses) of our country.
LangaPonica: from the Langhe, a plant that cultivates water, air and the future
LangaPonica was born among the hills of Langhe and Roero, but it looks far beyond the landscape. Its plant, located in Bra, is the first vertical aquaponic in Piedmont and one of the most advanced in Italy: a 75,000-liter tank of water, 500 vertical hydroponic towers, 10,000 growing pockets and a hundred Japanese koi carp that provide the natural fertilizer for vegetables, microgreens (vegetables that are no more than two to three weeks old and are consumed entirely) and edible flowers. All in a closed cycle in which every waste becomes a resource.
Founded by Antonio Mucci, Emanuele Negro and Pietro Ramunno, LangaPonica is the fruit of an intuition born in a winery during the lockdown and turned into reality thanks to passion, know-how and access to PSR 2021-2027 funds. The plant is designed to be replicable everywhere: in urban deserts, in polluted territories, where water is scarce or the soil is gone.
The startup now works with starred restaurants, taverns, and sustainability-conscious chefs, offering the freshest produce, grown without pesticides and delivered within 36 hours of harvest. While the products cannot be certified organic due to regulatory limits, they meet superior quality standards. And the company is already working with the University of Turin to obtain voluntary certification based on traceability and quality.
But the real ambition is higher: to show that circular, replicable, high-yield agriculture is possible today, in Italy, with affordable technologies, in a clean way, and without consuming the future. For LangaPonica, growing above ground means growing for the Earth.
Aqua Farm: innovation and technology for a productive and sustainable food system
Further south, but with the same systemic vision, Aqua Farm is a benefit company created to bring aquaponics to the center of a radical transformation of the agribusiness sector. The startup, is an entrepreneurial yet ethical project that aims to generate environmental, social and economic value in an integrated way.
Aqua Farm starts from a dramatic awareness: the collapse of nutrient values in agricultural products, soil depletion, depletion of fish resources, and the climate crisis. And it proposes a concrete response: mixed production systems, capable of producing healthy food, closed supply chain, with zero waste and zero chemicals. In this virtuous cycle, fish feed plants and plants keep the aquatic environment healthy. Not only that, aquaponics makes it possible to produce two distinct food commodities with one system, generating efficiency and profitability.
The Aqua Farm system uses about 97% less water for vegetable production (liters of water per kg of lettuce), while plant growth time is reduced by 30-50%, operating costs are much lower, no farm machinery is used, and no CO2 is emitted . Not to mention that production is seasonally adjusted and lasts 12 months, while the products are healthy and controlled at every stage.
Cover image from Wikimedia Commons
