Strategic development of regional innovative food industry clusters
Since 1 January 2017, the Municipality of Debrecen, City of County Rank and the University of Debrecen have been jointly playing a role in the international STRING (STrategies for Regional INnovative Food Clusters) project, implemented as part of the INTERREG EUROPE programme, with the goal to put in place proper circumstances of innovation for the consistently developing food industry of the region by developing the operators involved in certain food industry clusters.
Another aim of the cooperation among the food clusters is to foster the creation of values within the region, as well as enhance the efficiency of research, developments and innovative initiatives in the food sector.
In the framework of the altogether 5-year project realized with the involvement of 11 partners, various knowledge-sharing workshops, study trips and action plans worked out in every region support the intended moderation of gaps among the regions and development of food clusters. Additionally, with reliance on the exploration of good international practices and exchange of information the project wishes to elevate the effectiveness of local measures and development guidelines. The project partners are going to meet in Debrecen, on 22–24 November 2017. The goal of the meeting is to demonstrate the current situation of food industry in the partner regions, share good practices and elaborate a methodology for the transfer of knowledge.
Total duration of the project: from 1 January 2017 to 30 June 2021
Phase 1: 01.01.2017–30.06.2019
Phase 2: 01.07.2019–30.06.2021
Partners participating in the project:
- North Brabant province (Netherlands) – Lead Partner
- Southern Agriculture and Horticulture Organization (Netherlands)
- Directorate-General for Agriculture, Hunting and Fisheries of the Emilia Romagna Region (Italy)
- Research Centre for Animal Production (Italy)
- Municipality of Debrecen, City of County Rank (Hungary)
- University of Debrecen (Hungary)
- Agency of Innovation, Business Financing and Internationalization of Castilla y León (Spain)
- VITARTIS, Food Industry Cluster of Castilla y León (Spain)
- Central Denmark Region (Denmark)
- Association of Small and Medium Size Enterprises of the County of Covasna (Romania)
- ARIA Alsace (Regional Association for Food Industries in Alsace) (France)