NEW TECHNOLOGIES FOR PROTECTED CULTIVATIONS TO FACE ENVIRONMENTAL CONSTRAINTS AND TO MEET CONSUMER'S REQUIREMENTS

The production activities, whatever the specific field, are going to face quite urgent problems that will soon become downright constraints. These problems mainly arise from different causes: 1) the heightened social sensitivity for the environmental aspects (i.e., the greenhouse unfitness to the landscape, the output of chemicals and other waste materials coming from the production processes); 2) the fall of political and physical barriers (improved communications, transportations and shipping facilities) that have originated a global producer-consumer network; 3) the shortage of some resources (fossil fuel and irrigation water), the increasing labour and other costs; 4) consumers are becoming more and more discriminating buyers with highest expectations for quality. Protected cultivations too cannot escape these problems, so the growers have to re-examine their production strategies and technologies to fit this new situation.

From now on, the growers have to adopt a new password that is "sustainability" instead of the traditional and absolute one "yield". In other words, the production strategies, in addition to technological and economical efficiency, have to be environmental friendly. This last objective may be reached minimizing the use of unrenewable resources and any output of chemicals and waste materials.

Actual processes and outcoming products have to be carefully evaluated from many points of view. Once singled out the weak points of the whole system, any phase and any device has to be evaluated for its usefulness to remove the system weaknesses and change it to a strong point. By now these evaluations have to be referred to a global horizon, without looking at one's niche, or considering the nursery as a kitchen garden.