Research and innovation: EIT calls for stronger future proofing of the agri-food sector

19 Jun 2018 --- The research and development agency of the European Union, the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) is calling for stronger action toward research and innovation in the agri-food sector in a bid to future-proof food. EIT Food’s CEO Filip Fontaine also draws attention to the importance of consumer empowerment and urges European countries to face the challenges of the food sector.

He made the comments recently at the Bulgarian EU Presidency’s conference “Research & Innovation for Food and Nutrition Security: Transforming our Food Systems.”

The event was part of “Food 2030,” an EU initiative aiming at identifying research and innovation priorities to help the EU food sector face future challenges such as resource scarcity, environmental degradation and climate change, and meet international commitments such as the UN SDGs and the Paris Climate Agreement.

Fontaine wants to see stronger commitment to research and innovation in the next EU long-term budget, covering the 2021-2027 period and calls for a need to promote a “deep transformation” of how food is produced and consumer but also how stakeholders like farmers, industries and consumers interact to shape new ideas and innovations. 

“The complexity and magnitude of the challenges we face are such that only a community of trusted partners who can work together will be able to develop and adopt impactful and disruptive solutions. Building this community and ecosystem is EIT Food’s mission,” he says.

“To do so, we need to place consumers at the center of the transformation process and empower them to contribute to it. This is not a small task, and the challenges we face are not small either.”

“To address all challenges, the EU and its Member States need to show strong support to research and innovation in the agri-food sector, also by identifying some bold missions that will help catalyze this transformation. The time for action is now,” he concludes.

Horizon Europe
Earlier this month, the European Commission proposed its new long-term research and innovation funding program, Horizon Europe, which put future-proofing the agri-food systems among its top priorities, earmarking €10bn in funding. 

Filip Fontaine was recently appointed as the head of EIT Food, a consortium of leading international universities, research bodies and industries, created in 2016 under the umbrella of the EIT, with the goal to transform food production and consumption in Europe and globally.