VALUMICS

Understanding food value chains and network dynamics

Abstract

The overall objective of the VALUMICS project is to provide decision makers throughout food value chains with a comprehensive suite of approaches and tools that will enable them to evaluate the impact of strategic and operational policies, and enhance the resilience, integrity and sustainability of food value chains for European countries. The consortium driving this proposal has a core of 19 European partners from 14 countries, and two Asian partners. Given the complexity and diversity of food value chains, and the contexts within which they operate, the VALUMICS project offers a comprehensive and multi-dimensional scope that will go beyond the current state of art to provide new approaches and tools for stakeholders on several fronts. This includes new modelling approaches, consumer research, foresight analysis and synthesis into policy options, adding new perspectives for policy makers, both in government and within the food industry sector. The dynamics within the food systems will be modelled using a causal loop analysis framework, covering the interconnected value, supply, and decision chains. The causality dynamics framework for the VALUMICS project methodological approach will be implemented as a key driver of the project work through workshops involving stakeholders. The causal loop framework will be built with involvement of all participants in the project in order to construct a shared vision of the overall system. VALUMICS will challenge and go beyond previous research limitations and boundaries through a highly crossfunctional project design that will provide a bridging analysis across the economic, environmental and social dimensions previously kept separate. This whole chain analysis perspective will deliver comparative assessments at the European level and beyond. The case studies will cover short supply chains, with local and national analysis, as well as reaching global food chains relevant for sustainable food and nutrition security in Europe.

Project details

Unibo Team Leader: Antonella Samoggia

Unibo involved Department/s:
Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Agro-Alimentari

Coordinator:
UNIVERSITY OF ICELAND UoI HASKOLI ISLANDS(Iceland)

Other Participants:
Truong Dai Hoc Kinh Te Thanh Pho Ho Chi Minh-University Of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (Viet Nam)
Chalmers Tekniska Hogskola Aktiebolag (Sweden)
Kasetsart University (Thailand)
ALMA MATER STUDIORUM - Università di Bologna (Italy)
ERVET SpA (Italy)
FEDERACION ESPANOLA DE INDUSTRIAS DE LA ALlMENTACiON Y BEBIDAS (Spain)
ČESKÁ ZEMěDěLSKÁ UNIVERZITA V PRAZE - CZECH UNIVERSITY OF LIFE SCIENCES PRAGUE (Czech Republic)
University Of Hertfordshire (United Kingdom)
Newcastle University (United Kingdom)
China Agricultural University (China)
Lappeenranta-Lahti University Of Technology ( Lut) (Finland)
Markmar Ehf (Iceland)
Unep/Wuppertal Institute Collaborating Centre On Sustainable Consumption And Production Ggmbh-Cscp (Germany)
Sintef As (Norway)
Eas-European Aquaculture Society (Belgium)
Luonnonvarakeskus Natural Resources Institute Finland (Finland)
University College Dublin, National University Of Ireland (Ireland)
Assist Software Srl (Romania)
Fondation Institut De Recherche Pour Le Developpement Durable Et Les Relations Internationales (France)
Leibniz Institut Fuer Agrarentwickung In Mittel- Und Osteuropa-Iamo (Germany)

Total Eu Contribution: Euro (EUR) 5.999.999,99
Project Duration in months: 48
Start Date: 01/06/2017
End Date: 31/05/2021

Cordis webpage

Zero hunger This project contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN 2030 Agenda.

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 727243 This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 727243