YPARD represents youth in the fight against food waste: Horizon2020 proposal has been submitted!

In a bid to contribute towards building a low-carbon, climate-resilient future and to enhance research and innovation in support of the European Green Deal, Monika Varga, YPARD Hungary country representative from Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences (formerly Szent Istvan University) have developed and successfully submitted a project proposal entitled ‘F2FTRANS (F2F Transition Lab: A methodological framework against losses and wastes of farm to fork chains within bio-based circular economy)’ for the Horizon 2020 ‘Call: H2020-LC-GD-2020’

This project proposal brings together 24 partner institutions, including 10 companies/SMEs, 13 universities/research organizations and non-profit organizations, 1 regional network, as well as the YPARD Europe hosting institution ‘the Czech University of Life Sciences Prague’ among others.

The main objective of the planned work is to test and demonstrate 22 innovative solutions for decreasing and proper utilizing of wastes and unsustainable packaging in 8 farm to fork supply chains.

Beyond the utilization of innovative technological solutions, a clear overview to quantify losses and waste, and to assess the performance of the possible waste-reducing options, is highly needed.

To support this, a common IT backbone, offering data with a full unquestionable audit trail and supported by a cutting-edge dynamic balance model, resulting in innovative IT solutions, will also be developed and tested.

The further exploitation of project results is planned in the framework of consultancy services by a Transition Lab and network.

The underlying strategic steps contain several parallel and synergistic actions.

First, project partners will test and demonstrate innovative solutions for decreasing and/or utilizing losses and waste in selected meat and milk, vegetable and fruit, as well as fish and seafood-related supply chains. It will result in scaled-up technologies and improved farm to fork chains, at the same time. In addition, the project will focus on avoiding unsustainable packaging by replacing it for active, sustainable ones.

In parallel with these activities, a blockchain and dynamic balance model-based backbone will also be developed and tested, to provide trusted and unequivocal quantitative overview about losses and wastes in the given supply chains. This solution makes possible the evaluation of performance, regarding possible alternative technological solutions at various steps of the supply chain, too.

Beyond these activities, partners will also analyze waste reduction related behaviour and engagement, focusing on consumers, resulting in the better motivation of stakeholders. Furthermore, economic, policy and social barrier-related analysis will be an important part of the work, to suggest favourable organizational architectures, resulting in better cooperation of the actors and improved governance.

For effective post-project utilization, partners aim to prepare a knowledge base and to consolidate all project results into a comprehensive consultancy framework of a Transition Lab, resulting in a formalized European network of consultancy services for delivery of project results to stakeholders.

Young professionals, represented by YPARD, are also involved in the project working packages. Based on the high percentage of newcomers amongst the leaders and participants, F2FTRANS promotes the good collaboration of experienced specialists with fresh young minds. The specific care to engage young professionals will also be ensured by the involvement of YPARD Europe, the European unit of the global network of Young Professional for Agricultural Development (YPARD). YPARD Europe is involved in the project via its host institution of the Czech University of Life Sciences Prague.

We are very excited about this project proposal; we hope you are too!

The project was submitted in late January 2021 and is still under review. We are keeping our fingers crossed and our hopes high as we await the final verdict!

Picture credit: YPARD Europe