H2020 LIFE Project: Innovation with added value in food chains
- Type Project
- Status Filled
- Execution 2018 -2021
- Assigned Budget 4.988.766,25 €
- Scope Europeo
- Main source of financing H2020
- Project website Proyecto VIDA
VIDA has had a significant impact in facilitating technologies that have proven to improve the agri-food sector. This means that this project has had a positive impact on the food value chain, where some of the technologies and innovations supported by VIDA have created new processes and systems that have led to more energy- and water-efficient ways of producing food. Some of these processes have already reached the stage of selling their products to customers in various countries, even outside of Europe.
In other cases, SMEs have improved their innovations, but the impacts have not yet been fully demonstrated to advance to the market phase. Based on the questionnaires collected from VIDA beneficiaries, most SMEs are very satisfied with the support provided by VIDA, as it enabled them to pursue innovation projects that might not have been pursued, scale their technology to a higher TRL, and allow them to sell their technology. Furthermore, eight patent applications have been filed during the implementation of the projects. According to the results of the beneficiary survey, the impact on new jobs has been good to moderate, but the impact on job retention is positive. Still, beneficiaries mention in their comments that they view the job creation forecasts for the next 1-2 years as very promising. VIDA has actively promoted, communicated, and disseminated the project through its website (16,068 unique visitors since its launch), six press releases, and six newsletters (456 subscribers).
Since the launch of the website and social media accounts, a total audience of 670 followers from various stakeholder categories has been reached. VIDA beneficiaries confirmed the benefits of cross-sector and cross-border/regional collaboration, especially in cases where the potential end-user was actively involved in the validation and demonstration processes. All beneficiary SMEs have worked to develop and implement communication and dissemination activities that have helped them expand their stakeholder reach. Some beneficiaries have noted that widespread dissemination helped them reach different audiences, which was also reflected in the development of new business areas. In this context, the VIDA Alumni, a club of former beneficiaries, SMEs, and VIDA partners, will help establish lasting business ties that can have clear financial benefits. After 3.5 years of fruitful collaboration, the VIDA consortium has built a strong network that will be maintained through the VIDA alumni network.
The VIDA project funded a total of 62 projects involving 106 SMEs across Europe, with a total budget of €3.26 million paid in the form of vouchers. Overall, over 87% of the total VIDA grant was dedicated to supporting SMEs, far exceeding the minimum EISMEA requirement. Some of the project's results and those of its funded beneficiaries are visible in the following video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKfkYFnX7oA&ab_channel=WaterAllianceNL. Ten food-related innovation challenges were developed for SMEs to address their proposals. Three types of vouchers were conceived and implemented in the VIDA project:
- Support for Innovation and Booster Voucher for Supporting Innovation (maximum coupon €5,000).
- Validation bonds (maximum coupon €25,000).
- Demonstration vouchers (maximum project €250,000) 19 ISVs and 9 ISV Boosters, 15 VVs and 19 DVs (total 62) have been funded, while 106 SMEs participated in the funded proposals.
We received a total of 227 proposals (DV, VV, ISV) with the participation of 422 SMEs. The cross-sector approach is one of the key elements of the demonstration voucher concept. All demonstration voucher proposals met this requirement by involving partners from all relevant sectors (water, energy, KET, food).
From the reports provided by the Demonstration Bond recipients, it can be seen that:
- 14 projects were interregional.
- 10 technologies have significantly increased their TRL, above level 8.
- Three technologies have already been purchased by customers, and those that haven't are expected to begin selling in 2022.
This would lead not only to an increase in new jobs in Europe, but also to significant environmental improvements in the food value chain. With VIDA funding, many SMEs in the food sector had the opportunity to improve their technologies and boost their businesses, becoming more competitive and visible in the food market. This means that improvements in resource-efficient food production and processing have been achieved. Therefore, all projects have a positive influence and environmental impact.
The explosive growth of the global population in the coming decades, exacerbated by the effects of climate change, is placing impossible pressures on the food industry and placing enormous demands on resources such as raw materials, energy, and water. While the efficiency of food production has improved exponentially over the last century, it is still not sufficient to sustain the projected global population by 2050. A new mindset must be developed in which more food is produced using less water and energy, and with a smaller environmental footprint. This seemingly impossible challenge is one that must be met to ensure the sustainability of the planet, and VIDA is directly contributing to this.
Global organizations have taken up this challenge. The UN has developed a set of 17 SDGs to focus attention on implementing measures for change. VIDA is relevant to the SDGs related to water, food, and energy (e.g., 2, 3, 6, and 12), which promote the use of key enabling technologies defined by the EU in agri-food value chains. The VIDA (Value added Innovation in food chains) project was designed to create a food, energy, and water nexus in which these three sectors benefit from links with the EFT.
The VIDA consortium identified ten challenges or project themes. Direct funding was provided to SMEs through three types of vouchers (innovation support, validation, and demonstration), and applicant SMEs could access funding through an agreed-upon process. This voucher scheme was designed to identify and accelerate the implementation of new and innovative ideas and solutions in the food sector, directly contributing to the 10 challenges described above, while leading to water and energy savings, thereby supporting circular economy goals. Over €3.26 million was used to fund innovative SMEs in the food sector across Europe through INNOSUP Grant 777795.
VIDA achieved the following objectives:
- Define and map innovation capacity and needs among end-users, SMEs, innovation stakeholders, and food value chain experts, with respect to energy, water, and KETs.
- Adapt and maintain virtual and physical open innovation spaces for end users, SMEs, innovation stakeholders, and experts.
- Improve the innovation potential, coordination, and cooperation of SMEs, and establish lifelong learning opportunities.
- Promote the development of Demonstration Bonds through large-scale collaborative innovation and commercialization projects.
- Evaluate and validate the new industrial value chains created within the LIFE Nexus.
- To communicate the project's activities and results to European stakeholders and define a long-term, sustainable strategy for the continuation of the consortium's activities after the project ends.
Value-added Innovation in Food Chains (VIDA) will foster and harness the growth and innovation potential of SMEs operating in European food chains, bringing together four complementary and mutually dependent sectors: food, energy, water, and key enabling technologies (KET). VIDA will strengthen current cross-sectoral industrial value chains and develop new ones within the food production and processing industries through a combination of direct and indirect innovation actions, as well as capacity-building and support measures. These will include open innovation and virtual collaboration tools, mentoring and knowledge-sharing activities, and a "dual-track" innovation voucher system that will support the delivery of large-scale, high-TRL demonstration and commercialization projects across Europe. We will implement exchanges among more than 6,200 organizations, primarily SMEs.
VIDA combines the expertise of four complementary European Strategic Cluster Partnerships (ESCPs): FoodPackLab, EU4Food, Energy in Water, and AdPack, with a direct reach of over 700 SMEs in the partner clusters (and 2,100 SMEs in the collaborating ESCPs). The collaborating partners have been carefully selected to ensure a complementary balance of geographies, expertise, experience, and knowledge within VIDA's four sectors, and to maximize the potential for cross-sectoral and interdisciplinary exchanges to create new industrial value chains. VIDA will operate for 3.5 years with a total budget of €5,031,141.25. VIDA will allocate over 81% of the total project budget to SME innovation. €3,355,000 of the budget will be used to provide specialized innovation vouchers and catalyze large-scale demonstrations with commercialization innovation projects, involving more than 100 beneficiaries.
- STICHTING CENTRE OF EXPERTISE WATERTECHNOLOGIE (Centre of Expertise Water Technology)
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