DRAXIS contributing to new EU project on sustainable transformation of our food system

A new project on transforming the European food system towards a low carbon circular future applies a groundbreaking mechanism for maturing, combining, upscaling and multiplying sustainable food system innovations. The project has received EUR 7.5 million from the EU Horizon 2020 programme.

Starting in January 2020, the FoodSHIFT2030 project will launch an ambitious citizen-driven transition of the European food system towards a low carbon circular future. The transition includes a shift to less meat and more plant based diets, while improving food and nutrition security, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and revitalizing urban-rural linkages.

Christian Bugge Henriksen, who is leading the Research Group on Climate and Food Security at the University of Copenhagen, coordinates the project. The project features a strong multi-actor consortium with 31 partners composed of local governments, SMEs, NGOs, universities, research institutions and network partners, including DRAXIS.

“By supporting the transformative power of citizens already engaged in developing sustainable and innovative food system solutions in European city-regions, FoodSHIFT2030 aims to increase food sector jobs, boost small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), empower citizens and facilitate urban-rural cohesion. By doing so we aim to have a lasting positive impact on food system sustainability that will continue beyond the project lifetime,” says Christian Bugge Henriksen.

Boosting innovation in FoodSHIFT Accelerator Labs

The fast citizen-driven food system transition will be initiated in FoodSHIFT Accelerator Labs in nine front-runner city-regions: Greater Athens, Avignon, Barcelona, Bari, Brasov, Berlin, Greater Copenhagen, Oostende and Wroclaw. Subsequently knowledge will be transferred to FoodSHIFT Enabler Labs in twenty-seven follower city-regions. Each lab will work on maturing, combining and upscaling existing food system innovations within a specific innovation focus.

The benefits of the food system innovations on the environment, the economy and the society will be determined by assessing their effects on a set of FoodSHIFT Indicators. DRAXIS will be leading the identification and classification of these indicators and the subsequent development of a FoodSHIFT Sustainability Scoring System. Strategies and advisory plans for citizen-driven food system governance will be co-created to support food system transition and foster market uptake in the participating city-regions.

The Lab in Greater Athens will focus on exploring new approaches for overcoming the growing divide between consumption and food knowledge by engaging schools in connecting and reconnecting young people with the land and strengthening the link between urban and agricultural communities, while providing hands-on learning opportunities for the leaders of tomorrow. All interested food system stakeholders will be invited to join and collaborate on accelerating relevant food system innovations for developing “The Open School Lab”.

The Greater Athens Lab will be led by Ellinogermaniki Agogi, hosted by the Municipality Pallini and supported by Draxis. Katerina Valta from Draxis will be leading an impact pathway on sustainability to ensure that sustainability is adequately addressed and fully integrated across all work packages.

For more information about the FoodSHIFT2030 project check out www.foodshift2030.eu