Project
FOOD INNOVATION RI*
Research Infrastructure for Developing Food Bioprocesses and Exploiting Innovations
FOOD INNOVATION RI was a project undertaken by 13 research teams from 7 Greek universities, coordinated by the University of Patras, with the goal of establishing a unique national research infrastructure in Greece. This infrastructure focuses on improving or developing bioprocesses for applications in the agri-food sector and harnessing relevant technologies. FOOD INNOVATION RI aims to create and develop a national network that acts as a hub for the agri-food sector, offering top-quality services, user training and education, and enhanced innovation. To achieve this, FOOD INNOVATION RI seeks to develop business models that facilitate user engagement, deliver new knowledge and technologies for Greece’s traditional food industry, provide specialized services related to Greek traditional foods (increasing innovation and competitiveness of the Greek industry), and act as the national liaison with the international ecosystem for innovation, research, and education in agri-food.
During its preparatory phase, FOOD INNOVATION RI followed a three-year action plan aimed at conducting high-level research, developing new technologies, creating mechanisms and processes for their dissemination to relevant stakeholders, upgrading the equipment of partner institutions, developing and institutionalizing services, raising visibility, and expanding the infrastructure’s international network. It collaborated with the private sector and worked on organizing, operating, and ensuring accessibility to the infrastructure, essentially preparing it to function as a unified entity.
The infrastructure’s research focused on developing innovative technologies on a global scale in products such as wine, beer, distillates, alcoholic beverages, starter cultures in cheesemaking, milk and whey, bakery and cereal products, and meat products. Moreover, it contributed to the development of new industrial goods and functional foods, as well as harnessing and exploiting byproduct streams from the food industry. FOOD INNOVATION RI strives to introduce advanced, globally novel (breakthrough) technologies in foods with interdisciplinary collaboration.
The next milestone for FOOD INNOVATION RI is securing funding for the Maturation / Consolidation Phase and then for the Operational Phase. The primary timeframe for the Research Infrastructure’s sustainability study was the two-year Maturation Phase plus the first three years of the Operational Phase. As part of the study, the macro and micro environments of the infrastructure were analyzed. A SWOT analysis was then used to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats—spotting emerging possibilities and formulating the infrastructure’s objectives and strategy for sustainably entering the market. All necessary resources for both the Maturation Phase and the Operational Phase were identified. Additionally, a cost-benefit analysis was carried out over a five-year forecast, examining three scenarios (optimistic, realistic, pessimistic). Finally, key indicators—Net Present Value, Return on Investment, and Payback Time—were calculated to assess the infrastructure’s success potential and viability.
FOOD INNOVATION RI*
Research Infrastructure for Developing Food Bioprocesses and Exploiting Innovations
FOOD INNOVATION RI was a project undertaken by 13 research teams from 7 Greek universities, coordinated by the University of Patras, with the goal of establishing a unique national research infrastructure in Greece. This infrastructure focuses on improving or developing bioprocesses for applications in the agri-food sector and harnessing relevant technologies. FOOD INNOVATION RI aims to create and develop a national network that acts as a hub for the agri-food sector, offering top-quality services, user training and education, and enhanced innovation. To achieve this, FOOD INNOVATION RI seeks to develop business models that facilitate user engagement, deliver new knowledge and technologies for Greece’s traditional food industry, provide specialized services related to Greek traditional foods (increasing innovation and competitiveness of the Greek industry), and act as the national liaison with the international ecosystem for innovation, research, and education in agri-food.
During its preparatory phase, FOOD INNOVATION RI followed a three-year action plan aimed at conducting high-level research, developing new technologies, creating mechanisms and processes for their dissemination to relevant stakeholders, upgrading the equipment of partner institutions, developing and institutionalizing services, raising visibility, and expanding the infrastructure’s international network. It collaborated with the private sector and worked on organizing, operating, and ensuring accessibility to the infrastructure, essentially preparing it to function as a unified entity.
The infrastructure’s research focused on developing innovative technologies on a global scale in products such as wine, beer, distillates, alcoholic beverages, starter cultures in cheesemaking, milk and whey, bakery and cereal products, and meat products. Moreover, it contributed to the development of new industrial goods and functional foods, as well as harnessing and exploiting byproduct streams from the food industry. FOOD INNOVATION RI strives to introduce advanced, globally novel (breakthrough) technologies in foods with interdisciplinary collaboration.
The next milestone for FOOD INNOVATION RI is securing funding for the Maturation / Consolidation Phase and then for the Operational Phase. The primary timeframe for the Research Infrastructure’s sustainability study was the two-year Maturation Phase plus the first three years of the Operational Phase. As part of the study, the macro and micro environments of the infrastructure were analyzed. A SWOT analysis was then used to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats—spotting emerging possibilities and formulating the infrastructure’s objectives and strategy for sustainably entering the market. All necessary resources for both the Maturation Phase and the Operational Phase were identified. Additionally, a cost-benefit analysis was carried out over a five-year forecast, examining three scenarios (optimistic, realistic, pessimistic). Finally, key indicators—Net Present Value, Return on Investment, and Payback Time—were calculated to assess the infrastructure’s success potential and viability.