The Institute of Food Research is part of a group of European agrifood organisations that have set up the European Food Alliance. Working with the latest technologies and with top experts from all over Europe, testing and launching innovative ideas, products and ingredients at European level, nine successful agrifood clusters have joined forces in the European Food Alliance. They have a common goal: to provide agrifood companies the best service and network contacts from all over Europe in order to be able to attain to innovation and growth at an accelerated rate.

An initiative of Food Valley, the European Food Alliance was launched among the cluster organizations in Europe and has been received with much enthusiasm. “In recent years we have experienced a considerable increase in the number of questions from companies approaching us through clusters from other European countries”, says Roger van Hoesel, Director of Food Valley. “At the same time, we are increasingly being commissioned by Dutch companies to collaborate with other European food clusters. And so intensifying the collaboration and opening up networks to one another feels like a logical step in enhancing the European agrifood world.”

The European Food Alliance is a partnership of Agrofoodpark Aarhus (Denmark), Flanders’ FOOD (Belgium), Food Processing Initiative FPI (North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany), Institute of Food Research IFR (United Kingdom), NiekE/DIL (Lower Saxony, Germany), PdC Nutrition, Health and Longevity NSL (France) , Food Valley, Skåne Food Innovation Network SFIN (Sweden) and Wagralim (Belgium).

There is a chance for businesses  to learn more about these successful European food clusters and examine the opportunities at Food Valley Expo on 13 October 2011, where President of Competitiveness, Emiliano Duch, will host a session, “Getting to know European Food Clusters.” Differences and similarities between the clusters will come to the fore. Subsequently, the possible benefits of the newly formed alliance will be addressed.

[Food Valley Press Release] Further information
Contact person European Food Alliance Netherlands:
Food Valley
Annemarie Nulle
Manager International Relations and Projects
+31 317 466 511
annemarie.nulle@foodvalley.nl