Periodic Reporting for period 3 - VALORTECH (ERA Chair for Food (By-) Products Valorisation Technologies of the Estonian University of Life Sciences)
Berichtszeitraum: 2021-07-01 bis 2023-12-31
The Estonian University of Life Sciences (EMU) has, for a long time and from various perspectives, carried out RD&I activities in the domain of zero waste/maximum utilization and food valorization technologies. The field constitutes a highly relevant and developing area of research, where scientific and technological advancements positively impact multiple disciplines and offer benefits for society and the environment. With vast competencies in the key domains of the field, the EMU has an excellent perspective to become a leading actor in the food waste/by-product valorization R&D arena. Various research teams inside EMU are dealing with topics related to minimizing waste and inefficiency in food production and processing; other groups cover almost all aspects of the 'farm to fork' production and processing chain. However, the different topics have been studied under loosely integrated units that lacked cooperation. With the current project, the EMU has, building on the preconditions already in place – a modern infrastructure, top local researchers and scientists, strong national government support, good reputation, etc. – established a new interdisciplinary, inter-unit entity – the ERA Chair for Food (By-) Products Valorisation Technologies. The unit brings various competencies under one umbrella, covering the gaps that were hindering further development. To lead this new unit, the EMU recruited a top-level scientist (ERA Chair holder). The new Chair is expected to considerably improve the RD&I performance of EMU and conduct forefront research that would create significant benefits for the institution, Estonia, EU, and beyond.
Major achievements of the project include:
- Building a top-level research team - following the appointment of internationally recognized researcher Prof. R. Bhat as the ERA Chair in Valortech at EMU, a team of experts in the fields of sustainable food production, food chemistry, and food science & technology was assembled to conduct top-level research on zero-waste food raw material processing and by-products valorization.
- The ERA Chair and the recruited team of researchers were able to bring about the necessary structural changes at EMU by merging the competencies of existing research groups previously dispersed in different units - and based on additional competencies, networks, and experience, catalyzed changes to improve EMU's research and innovation performance in the field.
- Contributing to advancing the level of education provided by EMU in the Chair’s focus areas was achieved by the development of new study modules for PhD and MSc curricula. Additionally, advanced research schools, training courses, and seminars were organized for MSc/PhD students, postdoc fellows, and industry professionals, bringing an increase in the number of external researchers, specialists, and students visiting EMU.
- The capability to compete successfully for internationally competitive research funding was improved and the target for research applications submitted in the course of the action was met and exceeded. An accompanying benefit of this effort has been the building of collaboration ties with other excellent research institutions as well as exploiting research synergies with other groups within EMU.
Major achievements of the project include:
- Building a top-level research team - following the appointment of internationally recognized researcher Prof. R. Bhat as the ERA Chair in Valortech at EMU, a team of experts in the fields of sustainable food production, food chemistry, and food science & technology was assembled to conduct top-level research on zero-waste food raw material processing and by-products valorization.
- The ERA Chair and the recruited team of researchers were able to bring about the necessary structural changes at EMU by merging the competencies of existing research groups previously dispersed in different units - and based on additional competencies, networks, and experience, catalyzed changes to improve EMU's research and innovation performance in the field.
- Contributing to advancing the level of education provided by EMU in the Chair’s focus areas was achieved by the development of new study modules for PhD and MSc curricula. Additionally, advanced research schools, training courses, and seminars were organized for MSc/PhD students, postdoc fellows, and industry professionals, bringing an increase in the number of external researchers, specialists, and students visiting EMU.
- The capability to compete successfully for internationally competitive research funding was improved and the target for research applications submitted in the course of the action was met and exceeded. An accompanying benefit of this effort has been the building of collaboration ties with other excellent research institutions as well as exploiting research synergies with other groups within EMU.
The team became fully operational in the 2nd period and carried out the planned research under the supervision of the Chair. The general facilities necessary for the team were set up, equipment was purchased and put to use.
The management structure of the Chair was established - division of administration was split into two dimensions: the strategic and the operational level. For relevant strategic input, specific organizational bodies were formed - the Valortech Advisory Board (AB) and the Steering Committee. For smooth day-to-day operational management Project Manager was hired to support the Chair and Financial Manager/Accountant with project administration.
Activities oriented at team building and integration of the new chair into EMU took place in the form of internal training days, institutional meetings and visits. The team building activities were also addressed to key staff of EMU´s other chairs and units expected to be deeply involved in the ERA Chair´s work.
The project has improved EMU’s doctoral training by developing 3 new study modules based on the Valortech research theme. 5 PhD's conducted their thesis projects within the ERA Chair research topics, plus 1 joint PhD student was supervised together with the ERA Chair in Combivet at EMU.
3 research schools, 6 workshops, and 3 lecture series were organized. The events were attended by international groups of MSc and PhD students of Agriculture, Food Science & Technology, and other interdisciplinary fields, as well as other experts and stakeholders. Additionally, 1 symposium was hosted and 2 conference panels were curated.
A considerable number of research publications were published. The overall research efforts of the project resulted in 36 publications. The ERA Chair team has also actively promoted the project in scientific communities by attending and presenting at over 40 conferences/seminars with over 50 speeches and up to 30 poster presentations.
Systematic networking at the national and EU level with stakeholders from the academy, industry, and public sector was carried out, resulting in knowledge exchange and contribution to evidence-based policy development. Additionally, the Valortech group was able to submit 14 funding applications as coordinators (plus 4 stipend/scholarship applications). The Chair and his team gave also substantial input into 10 other applications led by other groups.
The management structure of the Chair was established - division of administration was split into two dimensions: the strategic and the operational level. For relevant strategic input, specific organizational bodies were formed - the Valortech Advisory Board (AB) and the Steering Committee. For smooth day-to-day operational management Project Manager was hired to support the Chair and Financial Manager/Accountant with project administration.
Activities oriented at team building and integration of the new chair into EMU took place in the form of internal training days, institutional meetings and visits. The team building activities were also addressed to key staff of EMU´s other chairs and units expected to be deeply involved in the ERA Chair´s work.
The project has improved EMU’s doctoral training by developing 3 new study modules based on the Valortech research theme. 5 PhD's conducted their thesis projects within the ERA Chair research topics, plus 1 joint PhD student was supervised together with the ERA Chair in Combivet at EMU.
3 research schools, 6 workshops, and 3 lecture series were organized. The events were attended by international groups of MSc and PhD students of Agriculture, Food Science & Technology, and other interdisciplinary fields, as well as other experts and stakeholders. Additionally, 1 symposium was hosted and 2 conference panels were curated.
A considerable number of research publications were published. The overall research efforts of the project resulted in 36 publications. The ERA Chair team has also actively promoted the project in scientific communities by attending and presenting at over 40 conferences/seminars with over 50 speeches and up to 30 poster presentations.
Systematic networking at the national and EU level with stakeholders from the academy, industry, and public sector was carried out, resulting in knowledge exchange and contribution to evidence-based policy development. Additionally, the Valortech group was able to submit 14 funding applications as coordinators (plus 4 stipend/scholarship applications). The Chair and his team gave also substantial input into 10 other applications led by other groups.
The project was dedicated to unlock, develop and extend the research potential of the ERA Chair host institution. The actions taken to implement this objective have impacted the results beyond state of the art in many ways. The activities described above have all contributed to reaching the key impacts anticipated by the end of the project:
- Increased attractiveness of the institution, region, and country for internationally excellent and mobile researchers. Of the 17 researchers employed in Valortech since the start of the project, 9 have been recruited from outside of the country (including the ERA Chair holder).
- Increased research excellence of the institution in the specific fields covered by the Chair holder. There has been an increase in both the quantity and the quality of the scientific publications produced in the institute since the start of the project.
- The ERA Chair's objective has been to create long-term benefits for society by boosting the research field to attract talented researchers, both women and men, to Valortech topics. The project aimed to make a special effort to recruit female researchers to counterbalance the current trend in Estonia, where less than a third of the foreign researchers are women. Of the 17 Researchers and PhD students recruited to the project, 12 were female.
- To ensure the sustainability, the majority of the researchers have been retained at EMU and are now engaged in agri-food wastes and by-product valorisation-related works. In addition, a new structural unit related to ‘Future Foods’ was proposed by the Chair holder and endorsed by the Institute director. This new structural unit (once approved formally by the university senate) is being planned based on the experiences and output of the ERA Chair in VALORTECH.
- Increased attractiveness of the institution, region, and country for internationally excellent and mobile researchers. Of the 17 researchers employed in Valortech since the start of the project, 9 have been recruited from outside of the country (including the ERA Chair holder).
- Increased research excellence of the institution in the specific fields covered by the Chair holder. There has been an increase in both the quantity and the quality of the scientific publications produced in the institute since the start of the project.
- The ERA Chair's objective has been to create long-term benefits for society by boosting the research field to attract talented researchers, both women and men, to Valortech topics. The project aimed to make a special effort to recruit female researchers to counterbalance the current trend in Estonia, where less than a third of the foreign researchers are women. Of the 17 Researchers and PhD students recruited to the project, 12 were female.
- To ensure the sustainability, the majority of the researchers have been retained at EMU and are now engaged in agri-food wastes and by-product valorisation-related works. In addition, a new structural unit related to ‘Future Foods’ was proposed by the Chair holder and endorsed by the Institute director. This new structural unit (once approved formally by the university senate) is being planned based on the experiences and output of the ERA Chair in VALORTECH.