€110 million project was approved to transform the agrifood sector
The ‘VIIAFOOD’ project was recently approved, within the scope of the Recovery and Resilience Programme, to boost the transformation of the Portuguese food sector and increase the competitiveness of national companies. The consortium, made up of around 50 entities, including companies, laboratories and associations in the sector, is led by MC and coordinated by ‘PortugalFoods’. It promises to develop more than 130 new products, services and processes by 2025, in line with national and international trends on healthy eating and sustainability.
‘VIIAFOOD’ represents a global investment of around 110 million euros, of which around 50% is financed under the Recovery and Resilience Programme‘s “Mobilizing Agendas for Corporate Innovation” and the remaining 50% by the companies involved.
“Our country has unique resources and conditions that we cannot waste. With ‘VIIAFOOD’ we want to raise the Portuguese agri-food sector to a higher level, in which our companies are able to intervene in foreign markets in a competent way and with strong arguments. There are business areas to explore and opportunities for improvement in the way we produce and deliver products to customers, which we have to secure. This is a project to boost the national economy” explains José Fortunato, Administrator at MC, the leading company in the consortium.
Through the research and development of new products and the improvement of production processes through new technologies, the developments obtained will contribute to promoting a healthier and more sustainable diet, in line with global nutrition and sustainability trends, as well as to training this sector of the Portuguese economy, increasing its international competitiveness.
According to Amândio Santos, Chairman of the Board of Directors at PortugalFoods, “the ‘VIIAFOOD’ Innovation Pact is, without a doubt, the biggest movement in the Portuguese agri-food sector. With a strong investment by the companies, advocating a more competitive, more digitized and more sustainable sector, this initiative will help to accelerate the recovery and increase the resilience of national industry, which is the main objective of the investments and support under the Recovery and Resilience Programme. As the food sector is a pillar of the national economy, due to its weight in terms of turnover and exports, it is also essential in the lives of Portuguese families, thus we aim of having the consumer closer, in the validation of the industry’s bets, and of the foreseen developments, with the national scientific and technological system’s entity partners.”
In all, 29 companies from different areas of activity in the food sector and 20 entities from the National Scientific System as well as sector Associations and collaborative laboratories, with expertise in the R&D fields applied to the food sector, are involved.
The public ceremony for the funding approval took place on July 23rd, in Lisbon, and was attended by the Prime Minister, António Costa, the Minister of Health, Marta Temido, the Minister of Economy and the Sea, António Costa Silva and the Minist
‘VIIAFOOD’ represents a global investment of around 110 million euros, of which around 50% is financed under the Recovery and Resilience Programme‘s “Mobilizing Agendas for Corporate Innovation” and the remaining 50% by the companies involved.
“Our country has unique resources and conditions that we cannot waste. With ‘VIIAFOOD’ we want to raise the Portuguese agri-food sector to a higher level, in which our companies are able to intervene in foreign markets in a competent way and with strong arguments. There are business areas to explore and opportunities for improvement in the way we produce and deliver products to customers, which we have to secure. This is a project to boost the national economy” explains José Fortunato, Administrator at MC, the leading company in the consortium.
Through the research and development of new products and the improvement of production processes through new technologies, the developments obtained will contribute to promoting a healthier and more sustainable diet, in line with global nutrition and sustainability trends, as well as to training this sector of the Portuguese economy, increasing its international competitiveness.
According to Amândio Santos, Chairman of the Board of Directors at PortugalFoods, “the ‘VIIAFOOD’ Innovation Pact is, without a doubt, the biggest movement in the Portuguese agri-food sector. With a strong investment by the companies, advocating a more competitive, more digitized and more sustainable sector, this initiative will help to accelerate the recovery and increase the resilience of national industry, which is the main objective of the investments and support under the Recovery and Resilience Programme. As the food sector is a pillar of the national economy, due to its weight in terms of turnover and exports, it is also essential in the lives of Portuguese families, thus we aim of having the consumer closer, in the validation of the industry’s bets, and of the foreseen developments, with the national scientific and technological system’s entity partners.”
In all, 29 companies from different areas of activity in the food sector and 20 entities from the National Scientific System as well as sector Associations and collaborative laboratories, with expertise in the R&D fields applied to the food sector, are involved.
The public ceremony for the funding approval took place on July 23rd, in Lisbon, and was attended by the Prime Minister, António Costa, the Minister of Health, Marta Temido, the Minister of Economy and the Sea, António Costa Silva and the Minist