Innovation Hubs overview

To strengthen co-creation and collaboration between partners and ensure double-directional flow of information between research and practice within the SMARTCHAIN consortium, 9 Innovation & Collaboration Hubs were established from the very beginning of the project in France (ACTIA), Germany (UHOH), Greece (UOC), Hungary (KIS), Italy (UNIBO), Netherlands (AMP), Serbia (UOB), Spain (AZTI) and Switzerland (WBF). Several workshops will be carried out at national and European level by the Hubs in collaboration with the farmers-, food SME- and consumer associations involved in the consortium.

To reflect different types of short food supply chain models, to generate more precise, quantitative data regarding the impact of short food supply chains for a determined area and/or products as well as to capture the degree of geographical diversity across the EU, 18 case studies of widespread short food supply chains with remarkable social, economic and ecological impacts on rural, peri-urban and urban communities will be evaluated in terms of innovation potential, consumer perspectives towards short food supply chains and overall sustainability (environmental, economic and social).