Periodic Reporting for period 2 - Ploutos (Data-driven sustainable agri-food value chains)
Berichtszeitraum: 2022-04-01 bis 2023-09-30
Farmers, farm families, food processors, retailers and all those other agri-food actors, who ensure that fruit is picked, milk is processed, and bread is delivered to our plates every day, experience a number of pressures, including a) productivity pressures, b) environmental and social pressures, c) imbalances of power in the supply chain and d) potential disruption by data driven innovation.
The main objective of Ploutos project was to help rebalance the agri-food value chain and enhance its sustainability (economic, environmental and social) by establishing a Sustainable Innovation Framework whose foundation is an innovative combination of behaviour change, collaborative business model innovation and data driven technological services. Using a lean multi-stakeholder approach, Ploutos focused on leveraging the capacities of supporting services to help build mutuality (i.e. shared benefits) for all stakeholders involved in the agri-food ecosystem. With the support of the Ploutos Innovation Academy (PIA), a large number of sustainable innovations and best practices were validated across 11 Sustainable Innovation Pilots (SIPs) within the project. In the context of the SIPs, these innovations were piloted, demonstrated and tested in real conditions by the actors involved in the selected agri-food value chains.
At the end of the project, we can safely say that Ploutos and its results are more relevant than ever. Sustainability has been highlighted as a key priority and the relevant challenges of the sector have not been resolved yet. The different sustainable innovations validated in the context of Ploutos, but also the Sustainable Innovation Framework and the established mechanisms, have the potential to achieve real sustainability impact across Europe. This has been recognised by the actors engaged in the SIPs, who are keen to continue the work towards applying the Ploutos results in action, even after the end of the project.
The main objective of Ploutos project was to help rebalance the agri-food value chain and enhance its sustainability (economic, environmental and social) by establishing a Sustainable Innovation Framework whose foundation is an innovative combination of behaviour change, collaborative business model innovation and data driven technological services. Using a lean multi-stakeholder approach, Ploutos focused on leveraging the capacities of supporting services to help build mutuality (i.e. shared benefits) for all stakeholders involved in the agri-food ecosystem. With the support of the Ploutos Innovation Academy (PIA), a large number of sustainable innovations and best practices were validated across 11 Sustainable Innovation Pilots (SIPs) within the project. In the context of the SIPs, these innovations were piloted, demonstrated and tested in real conditions by the actors involved in the selected agri-food value chains.
At the end of the project, we can safely say that Ploutos and its results are more relevant than ever. Sustainability has been highlighted as a key priority and the relevant challenges of the sector have not been resolved yet. The different sustainable innovations validated in the context of Ploutos, but also the Sustainable Innovation Framework and the established mechanisms, have the potential to achieve real sustainability impact across Europe. This has been recognised by the actors engaged in the SIPs, who are keen to continue the work towards applying the Ploutos results in action, even after the end of the project.
The main focus of Ploutos was on developing the Sustainable Innovation Framework (SIF) and the key approaches and principles of its three core pillars (behaviour innovation, sustainable collaborative business model innovation and data driven technological innovation), launching the 11 SIPs and supporting them in co-creating, applying and validating the different sustainable innovations. The SIF was successfully developed and improved throughout the project. A number of key results were developed in the context of each of three core pillars:
1. Behavior innovation: The values, drivers and barriers concerning sustainable innovations in the agri-food value chain, were elaborated in collaboration with actors from the ecosystem.
2. Sustainable business model innovation: A key result is an approach for collaborative sustainable business model innovation (SCBMI), which supports agri-food actors in analyzing their context and designing and evaluating new business models. Furthermore, an approach for the valorization of data and digital services has been developed.
3. Data-driven technology innovation: A set of innovative data sharing mechanisms was developed, together with a common data model, namely the Ploutos Common Semantic Model (PCSM), to facilitate data sharing and interoperability.
The 11 SIPs have been launched, engaging the actors of >26 agri-food value chains across 13 (Greece, Italy, France, UK, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Ireland, Slovenia, Cyprus, Netherlands, Serbia and North Macedonia) in the co-creation, implementation and testing of different sustainable innovations. The SIPs were supported in their innovation process through the PIA, where experts representing the 3 core pillars of the SIF are offering guidance to the SIPs’ actors through 149 co-creation workshops and webinars as well as through an online support mechanism.
A total of 759 actors (farmers, advisors, food processors, etc) were engaged in piloting activities, in 2 annual rounds. All 96 sustainable innovations that were tested in the context of these activities, were evaluated as capable of increasing sustainability performance and cooperation within the targeted agri-food value chains. The results of each SIP were presented in the context of 41 demonstrations events to >4300 interested stakeholders.
As a way to support the replication of the project results, 18 practical guidelines, training materials and recommendations were developed. In this context, a set of Policy Recommendations have been identified and validated, focusing on two closely linked categories:
1. Policy Recommendations for Rebalancing the Agri-Food Value Chain
2. Policy Recommendations for Enabling the Uptake of Digital Technologies in the Agri-Food Sector
The Ploutos’ dissemination strategy focused on presenting the project results through both relevant events and social media. A total of 107 events were either attended or organised by Ploutos. Especially in the context of the Ploutos-led events, we were able to attract >4280 participants from different target groups and explain how Ploutos results can change the way we think agriculture. In terms of social media, due to the highly engaging material, the Ploutos community now counts of >1680 followers. In terms of exploitation, 28 exploitable results were identified, which have different commercial and/or non-commercial exploitation paths. Furthermore, a total of 7 business plans and a business case were defined for the key commercial results and validated with the relevant actors.
1. Behavior innovation: The values, drivers and barriers concerning sustainable innovations in the agri-food value chain, were elaborated in collaboration with actors from the ecosystem.
2. Sustainable business model innovation: A key result is an approach for collaborative sustainable business model innovation (SCBMI), which supports agri-food actors in analyzing their context and designing and evaluating new business models. Furthermore, an approach for the valorization of data and digital services has been developed.
3. Data-driven technology innovation: A set of innovative data sharing mechanisms was developed, together with a common data model, namely the Ploutos Common Semantic Model (PCSM), to facilitate data sharing and interoperability.
The 11 SIPs have been launched, engaging the actors of >26 agri-food value chains across 13 (Greece, Italy, France, UK, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Ireland, Slovenia, Cyprus, Netherlands, Serbia and North Macedonia) in the co-creation, implementation and testing of different sustainable innovations. The SIPs were supported in their innovation process through the PIA, where experts representing the 3 core pillars of the SIF are offering guidance to the SIPs’ actors through 149 co-creation workshops and webinars as well as through an online support mechanism.
A total of 759 actors (farmers, advisors, food processors, etc) were engaged in piloting activities, in 2 annual rounds. All 96 sustainable innovations that were tested in the context of these activities, were evaluated as capable of increasing sustainability performance and cooperation within the targeted agri-food value chains. The results of each SIP were presented in the context of 41 demonstrations events to >4300 interested stakeholders.
As a way to support the replication of the project results, 18 practical guidelines, training materials and recommendations were developed. In this context, a set of Policy Recommendations have been identified and validated, focusing on two closely linked categories:
1. Policy Recommendations for Rebalancing the Agri-Food Value Chain
2. Policy Recommendations for Enabling the Uptake of Digital Technologies in the Agri-Food Sector
The Ploutos’ dissemination strategy focused on presenting the project results through both relevant events and social media. A total of 107 events were either attended or organised by Ploutos. Especially in the context of the Ploutos-led events, we were able to attract >4280 participants from different target groups and explain how Ploutos results can change the way we think agriculture. In terms of social media, due to the highly engaging material, the Ploutos community now counts of >1680 followers. In terms of exploitation, 28 exploitable results were identified, which have different commercial and/or non-commercial exploitation paths. Furthermore, a total of 7 business plans and a business case were defined for the key commercial results and validated with the relevant actors.
The European agri-food sector, whose complex value chain encompasses a huge diversity and variety at each stage, faces interconnected challenges. It needs to simultaneously: (i) produce safe and adequate food for a growing population with changing dietary habits; (ii) reduce input use and environmental footprint while facing changing climate conditions; and (iii) sustain incomes for farmers and rural communities who are up against increasing power imbalances in the value chain.
Ploutos addressed these challenges with a three-dimensional approach. The project leveraged scientific knowledge on behaviour innovation, innovative collaborative business models and data driven technology innovation, to deliver a SIF that will contribute towards rebalancing value chains for the good of competitive agri-food production, value chain-wide sustainability (social, economic and environmental) and equally distributed income. Ploutos managed to:
1. Gain a thorough understanding of perceptions, incentives and barriers of stakeholders to redefining roles and cooperation in the value chain, especially regarding sustainability.
2. Design the Ploutos SCBMI approach and provide opportunities for new co-created business models to be applied in the agri-food sector, bringing in new revenue streams.
3. Design a SIF that enables the assessment of the sustainability performance of the agri-food value chains.
4. Provide targeted supporting services to increase farming production competitiveness, especially focusing on small farms.
5. Deploy innovative technologies, which will ensure in an interoperable manner the flow of data and information with the specific intention to strengthen the position of farmers in the value chain.
6. Deliver a set of guidelines to support the replication of the different sustainable innovations across Europe.
7. Formulate a number of policy recommendations to support the transition of agri-food system towards a Sustainable model.
Ploutos addressed these challenges with a three-dimensional approach. The project leveraged scientific knowledge on behaviour innovation, innovative collaborative business models and data driven technology innovation, to deliver a SIF that will contribute towards rebalancing value chains for the good of competitive agri-food production, value chain-wide sustainability (social, economic and environmental) and equally distributed income. Ploutos managed to:
1. Gain a thorough understanding of perceptions, incentives and barriers of stakeholders to redefining roles and cooperation in the value chain, especially regarding sustainability.
2. Design the Ploutos SCBMI approach and provide opportunities for new co-created business models to be applied in the agri-food sector, bringing in new revenue streams.
3. Design a SIF that enables the assessment of the sustainability performance of the agri-food value chains.
4. Provide targeted supporting services to increase farming production competitiveness, especially focusing on small farms.
5. Deploy innovative technologies, which will ensure in an interoperable manner the flow of data and information with the specific intention to strengthen the position of farmers in the value chain.
6. Deliver a set of guidelines to support the replication of the different sustainable innovations across Europe.
7. Formulate a number of policy recommendations to support the transition of agri-food system towards a Sustainable model.