EAB/GB workshop 14/12/2017 Madrid: Impact of SUSFOOD2 ERA-Net
Since its first project phase, SUSFOOD benefited from an External Advisory Board (EAB), being composed of several stakeholders to provide external points of views and overall strategic advise. On December 14th, the SUSFOOD2 Governing Board invited the EAB for a strategic workshop on "Impact of the SUSFOOD2 ERA-Net Cofund network". Brainstorming on three thematic levels took place via interactive group sessions with 30 participants, of which 8 EAB members.
First, general challenges and needs of the area of sustainable food were discussed, how to increase the impact of the SUSFOOD2 network and how to secure and increase the importance of food in the European Bioeconomy.
After an update regarding the Strategic Research Agenda and the coming impact assessment approach, the participants choose to represent one of the 5 most important SUSFOOD stakeholder groups (researchers, industry, policy makers, funders and general public). World café style they contributed to questions concerning P2P/SUSFOOD2 specific contributions and expectations, such as how to improve the intensification of research and innovation in the European food industry or what is needed to maximize the support for researchers. Attention was also given to how SUSFOOD2 has already impacted the other initiatives present and the context in which the participants are working. Via group-specific questions, the stakeholders could also dig deeper into stakeholder specific problems and opportunities.
In a 3rd part (Interaction and synergies), the most interesting possibilities for collaboration with existing EU initiatives or actions were considered, to increase the impact of SUSFOOD2 on sustainable food production and consumption in existing food systems.
This intense interactive workshop generated many interesting ideas and proposals. The outcome and further details is be included in the WP6 Strategic Scene report 2018.
We would like to thank the present EAB members for their valuable input: EUFIC (Raymond Gemen), FoodDrinkEurope and ETP Food for Life (Rebecca Fernandez), JPI FACCE (Heather McKhann), JPI HDHL (Jolien Wenink), TP Organics (Bram Moeskops), SCAR SWG Food Systems (Béatrice Darcy-Vrillon), Food Force (Francisco Javier Casado Herbrard), PLATFORM (Christine Bunthof). And the SUSFOOD consortium hopes to welcome the EAB members not able to be present in Madrid on a next event (FAO, NFTPs, JPI Oceans, EIT Food, JRC-IRMM, REFRESH).