SIXFOLD · Stimulating Innovation eXperiments in Food prOcessing Live Demonstrators

SIXFOLD unites partners from the ‘Smart Sensors 4 Agri-food’ Partnership, and its network of Living Labs with a clear aim, Stimulating Innovation eXperiments in Food prOcessing Live Demonstrators. The twin transition stands at the heart of the Green Deal and Farm to Fork strategy. The agri-food sector plays a critical role in the realisation of these ambitions. The nature of deep tech innovation also shows the need for a transition via responsible regulatory frameworks. Living Labs are looking for more experimentation by engaging societal stakeholders and addressing innovation barriers experienced by agri-food companies. SIXFOLD aims to facilitate implementation of deep tech within the agri-food sector, by building a robust network of Living Labs across the EU. This network will support a dynamic and regionally embedded ecosystem thriving with deep tech innovations relevant for the agri-food industry such as AI and machine learning, robots and co-bots, biotech, etc. throughout the food system. The timing is critical for agri-food companies to experiment with innovative technologies and collaboration with deep tech innovators. SIXFOLD builds on an existing framework. Nevertheless, a careful assessment of the current state of play through interviews and study visits is made after which assessed barriers to innovation is tackled by a tailor-made co-creation process. This ensures maximum participation of external experts, regulators, and broader societal actors on regional and European levels and in turn generates a more complete and validated Action Plan adapted to real-world needs. The network of Living Labs will in this way facilitate collaborative knowledge exchange by actively engaging stakeholders from various regions and ensuring inclusivity and diversity in participation. Amongst other objectives, the updated Operational Handbook of the network of Living Labs will form the basis of a successful transition towards sustainable food systems across Europe.