In support of agro-food clusters
One of the best ways for agricultural regions or clusters to flourish is by working together and exchanging knowledge under a joint platform. Such synergy would enhance competitiveness of the regions, boosting their prosperity and economic growth. With this in mind, the EU-funded project Agforise achieved admirable synergy of European clusters. The project created a trans-Mediterranean platform and joint action plan to advance sustainable food production and related eco-innovations in three specific European regions. These were Emilia-Romagna in Italy, Mersin in Turkey and Murcia in Spain, where the project team held info-days to attract project proposals from researchers in sustainable food production. In addition, the project team selected five project proposals for each region and organised a brokerage event to bring project partners together. This led to 75 bilateral meetings in Mersin, 45 in Emilia-Romagna and 125 in Murcia, where idea owners met with industry and with research and development institutions to further their aim. Many side events were also organised in Mersin and Murcia to advance project proposals and innovation. In a bid to enlarge its sphere of influence, the project initiated links with agro-food food clusters in other countries, including the Bioagrofood Cluster of Greece and the fruits and vegetable cluster in south-eastern France. Empowered by these links, meetings and partnerships, Agforise finally elaborated an international action plan with six common strategic objectives that will strengthen the agro-food sector through better policymaking. All the project's results were disseminated through a final conference and distributed to stakeholders such as policymakers, universities and national authorities. Agforise ultimately enhanced the international experience of the project partners, initiated valuable exchanges and empowered regional production processes. This will surely lead to a more efficient and sustainable agro-food sector in the regions to the benefit of the entire EU.
