AQUAGIS

Identification of innovative projects for the intelligent and sustainable management of the water cycle in the food sector using digital technologies: AquaGIS.

Execution period:

December 2021 – August 2022

Coordinator

Participants

Description

The AQUAGIS project is a feasibility study that aims to investigate the challenges faced by companies in the food sector in terms of water cycle management and provide solutions to improve their management through the implementation of digital technologies and to help food companies move towards the Industry 4.0 model.

AquaGIS is based on the collaboration of two clusters in the agri-food sector, VITARTIS and NAGRIFOOD, a technology supply cluster (GAIA) and an industrial demand cluster in the water sector (CWP). The project focuses its attention on identifying challenges in the food sector in terms of water cycle management in order to identify opportunities for new projects linked to Industry 4.0, and focused on validating the successful and functional implementation of technologies in the water sector, applied to solving the needs of companies in the food sector.

Within the AquaGIS work plan, close collaboration between representatives of the food (representing the demand side), water and digital (representing the supply side) sectors is carried out to identify these challenges and opportunities through cross-sectoral activities and workshops. As a next step, the existing complementarities in the water-food nexus will be explored to identify solutions and technologies that can respond to the challenges identified by the food companies.

The final objective of the project will be to close mixed consortia between entities from the food, digital and water sectors in order to be able to present larger collaborative R&D projects to European and national funding lines.

Therefore, the expected final impact will be to increase business competitiveness in the food sector through the implementation of smart solutions to efficiently manage the water cycle. This greater control of the cycle will also allow for greater sustainability of the sector and, consequently, an improvement in its positioning vis-à-vis the customer.

Funding:

AQUAGIS with file number AEI-010500-2021b-1, is co-financed by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism (MINCOTUR) through the second call for AEIs of 2021 in the framework of the Next Generation grants and the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan.