Clust-ER Agroalimentare Emilia-Romagna

Further information

The following topics have been identified as priorities:

• competitivity and sustainability of the agro-food productions (innovative genotypes, protection of soil and natural resources);
• precision farming;
• food stabilization, reduction of thermic damages, risk monitoring, products traceability and certification;
• valorization of the regional food heritage and territorial typical products; 
• facilitate the adoption of innovative methodologies of design and implementation of food plants, with a scientific approach to process control and food security;
• strengthening the circular bio-economy, involving the value chain actions.

Three main value chains have been identified:

1. SOSFARM - Sustainable and Precision agriculture; this value chain aims to facilitate the digitalization of the farms, with a higher and better access to big data and promoting the rationalization of inputs (water, pesticides, fertilizers) maintaining the production’s quality; soil threats analysis protocols and reduction of soil degradation;
2. FoodQST - Quality, security, traceability and nutrition; defining methodologies to facilitate the integration of primary production with the high-convenience conservation and transformation processes; optimizing security and shelf-life prolongation, to define the best conditions of use, biological risk assessment; allowing the ICT applications and industry 4.0 techniques, to improve production sustainability; 
3. SPES - valorizing sub-products and agricultural residues; identifying the best strategies of transformation and re-use of the different sub-products, finalized to the different destinations of use (Pharma, Food, Feed, Bioplastics, Cosmetics, Chemicals). 

The Clust-ER Agrifood is composed of 49 members, of which innovation centres, laboratories and private companies operating in the most important agricultural production chains.