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Food-scalEUp presents key insights at Synergy Days 2024

Food-scalEUp presents key insights at Synergy Days 2024

Barcelona, Spain – The Food-scalEUp project made a significant impact at this year’s Synergy Days, hosted by SmartAgriHubs on 14-15 October. This event brought together innovators and stakeholders in Europe’s agri-food sector, providing a platform for Food-scalEUp to share key insights, methodologies, and the outcomes of collaborative pilot programs focused on advancing business acceleration services for SMEs and startups in the industry.

Strengthening Agri-Food Innovation in Europe’s Emerging Regions

With a focus on both established and emerging innovation regions, Food-scalEUp aims to strengthen ecosystem resilience by fostering collaboration and sharing best practices in digital acceleration for the food sector. The project’s five pilot regions—Galicia, Navarra, Normandie, Pays de la Loire, and Central Transdanubia—served as testing grounds for new acceleration methodologies, co-created with local partners to meet specific regional challenges. The exciting outcomes of these pilots were presented during a dynamic panel session at Synergy Days, moderated by Norbert Reichl from Food Processing Initiative (Germany). Representatives from each pilot region shared unique insights, challenges, and successes, highlighting best practices for supporting startups and scaling services to meet both local and European needs.

Linking startups with medium-sized companies and corporates for powerful impact

One key insight was the powerful impact of linking startups with medium-sized companies and corporates—a mutually beneficial approach. Startups gain visibility and access to funding, while larger companies gain insights and potential investment opportunities.

Strengthening Regional Networks through Ambassador Roles

CTRIA (Central Transdanubia) discussed their new role as ecosystem “ambassadors” to connect public and private sectors, helping to build common interests and ensuring that participants understand how to effectively navigate their own ecosystems. This approach is setting a standard for other regions to adopt similar ambassador models that foster local and international collaboration.

Building a Connected Hub for Global Competitiveness

The panel discussion also set forth a compelling vision for how Food-scalEUp’s achievements can be sustained and expanded after the project’s conclusion. One of the key ideas for future exploitation is the establishment of a “connected hub” to support European startups in accessing international markets—an essential but often difficult step for emerging regions. This concept represents a significant opportunity to leverage Food-scalEUp’s network and insights, creating an enduring ecosystem of support across borders.

Looking Ahead: Food-scalEUp’s Legacy and Opportunities for Further Impact

To continue building on Food-scalEUp’s momentum, the panelists outlined three strategic priorities for the project’s legacy:

  • Strengthen Cross-Regional Collaboration
  • Establish Replicable Methodologies
  • Build Long-Term International Networks

These areas of focus will be further outlined in the project’s exploitation plan, which is currently under development. The plan will offer a pathway for Food-ScalEUps influence to extend well beyond the project timeline, ensuring that Europe’s agri-food startups continue to benefit from a more interconnected and resilient ecosystem.

Food-ScalEUp and Foodvalley

While the Synergy Days unfolded in Barcelona, Food-scalEUp’s findings were also shared with StartLife at Foodvalley’s office in Wageningen, aligning with StartLife’s mission to foster growth in agri-food innovation. This parallel exchange supported valuable knowledge transfer between regional players, strengthening cross-border collaboration. Next, Foodvalley NL will be present at Fi Europe, held from 19-21 November 2024 at Messe Frankfurt, Germany, and will use this occasion to share Food-scalEUp outcomes with a global audience in the food and beverage industry.

About Food-ScaleEUp

Funded by Horizon Europe, the project strengthens digital innovation ecosystems in agri-food, fostering sustainable growth in Europe’s food sector. Food-scalEUp is implemented by the following partners:

Project Coordinator: 

Clusaga 
Ana FELGUEIRAS 
European Programmes Coordinator 
europa@clusaga.org 

Project Communication: 

Foodvalley 
Sake Kolhoff 
Project Coordinator
Sake.kolhoff@foodvalley.nl