Bio-Economy and Agri-Production: Concepts and Evidence

Bio-Economy and Agri-Production: Concepts and Evidence bridges the knowledge gap between sustainability and bio-economy aspects of agri-production. It complements traditional perspectives of agri-production with advanced engineering, information and communication technologies recently applied in agri-business. Including knowledgebased agriculture and reflecting sustainability and circular economy principles, the book presents a holistic view of sustainable bio-economy, contributing to the development of integrated agricultural systems. As technology advances, agricultural production management practices are now being called upon to address the need for sustainability in the bio-economy. Bio-Economy and Agri-Production: Concepts and Evidence presents information to broaden the awareness and promotion of practices and technology to reduce the use of inputs, protect health and environment and improve resource-use efficiency. Topics that are addressed include circular economy in agri-business, lifecycle thinking, lean management, agri-chains, green production, and waste management. Bio-Economy and Agri-Production: Concepts and Evidence is a valuable reference for professionals, consultants, and policy making stakeholders in biosystems engineering and agricultural industries

• Focuses on responsible management practices to protect the environment while producing needed resources
• Application based for those in agricultural sectors seeking to integrate bioeconomic strategies
• Provides real-world insights into transitioning practices

Dionysis D Bochtis works on the area of Systems Engineering focused on bio-production and related provision systems including, both, conventional systems with enhanced ICT and automation technologies and fully robotized systems, having held various positions ncluding: Professor (Agri-Robotics) at the Lincoln Institute for Agri-Food technologies, University of Lincoln, UK, and Senior Scientist (Operations Management) at the Department of Engineering at Aarhus University, Denmark. Currently, he is the Director of the Institute for Bio-economy and Agri-technology (IBO), Center of Research and Technology – Hellas (CERTH). He is the author of more than 300 articles (90 in peer reviewed journals) and has been invited for more than 30 key-note speeches around the globe.

Prof. Charisios Achillas is Assistant Professor at the International Hellenic University, Department of Supply Chain Management. He graduated from the Department of Engineering (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki) with a degree in Mechanical Engineering and from UMIST (Manchester, UK) with MSc in Engineering Project Management. In 2009, he received his PhD Doctorate in Mechanical Engineering and specifically in the field of reverse logistics. He is a collaborating senior researcher at the Centre for Research & Technology Hellas (CERTH) - Institute for Bio-Economy and Agri-Technology and the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki - Laboratory of Heat Transfer and Environmental Engineering. Dr Achillas is the author of more than 170 scientific publications. His research interests span the fields of environmental management, sustainable development and circular economy with a primary focus on reverse logistics and agri-chains.

Dr. Georgios Banias is an Assistant Researcher in Institute for Bio-economy and Agri-Technology of Centre for Research & Technology - Hellas (iBO/CERTH). He is Visiting Lecturer at School of Economics and Business Administration and Legal Studies, International Hellenic University (Courses: Environmental Impact Assessment, Industrial Ecology and Life Cycle Analysis). He graduated in 2005 from Aristotle University's Mechanical Engineering Department. In 2009, he was granted with a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Aristotle University Thessaloniki in the field of Environmental Informatics. Since 2005, he has been involved in National and European Research Projects and in educational activities of the Aristotle University's Mechanical Engineering Department. He is the author of more than 60 scientific publications. His research interests focus on the areaσ of Sustainable Development, Environmental Impact Assessment, Life Cycle Analysis, Environmental Informatics, Decision Support Systems. He has participated in 15 funded research projects in various National and European research projects.

Maria Lampridi is a Mechanical Engineer, Engineering Faculty of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, and holds a Master's degree in Environmental Management and Sustainability from the International Hellenic University. She is a PhD Candidate of the Faculty of Agriculture, Forestry and National Environment of the AUTH and a Research Associate in the Institute of Bio-economy and Agri-technology (iBO) of the Center for Research and Technology Hellas (CERTH). Her research interests focus on Sustainability of Smart Agriculture, Environmental Assessment, Environmental Impact Assessment, Life Cycle Assessment, as well as on Sustainability Assessment.