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HIBA+ promotes digitalisation at the I European Funding Conference during EXPO AGRITECH 2024 - Finnova Foundation

HIBA+ promotes digitalisation at the I European Funding Conference during EXPO AGRITECH 2024

  • The international event took place on Thursday, November 28, at the Malaga Trade Fair and Congress Center (FYCMA)

Valencia, December 2, 2024 – Last Thursday, December 28, the I Conference on European Financing for Agri-Food Digitalization and Innovation took place during the AGRITECH EXPO 2024 at the Malaga Trade Fair and Congress Center (FYCMA). Organised by Finnova within the framework of the HIBA+ project, it brought together experts, companies and public entities to discuss how European funds are transforming the agri-food sector.

In his speech, Juan Manuel Revuelta, Managing Director of Finnova and representative partner of HIBA+, highlighted the fundamental role of European funding: “Interreg HIBA+ is committed to helping digitalisation in SMEs throughout the territory of the Spain-Portugal cross-border regions. This project can inspire others, such as LIFE NextFUMIGREEN, with 2.7 million euros in non-refundable funds.”

He also invited attendees to register in the catalogue of digital solutions for SMEs and in strategic courses offered by the project, thus promoting the adoption of innovative technologies to improve the competitiveness of the agri-food sector.

Carlos Ramos, head of operations at FUMI-HOGAR and lead partner of the LIFE NextFUMIGREEN project, gave several pills on advice when starting a project within the European LIFE programme:

“Once we understood the justification needs, we joined the LIFE project with several partners thanks to Finnova’s advice. The most important thing is to have a strong consortium, not just a leading company. Thanks to partners such as Centro Tecnológico Tecnova, Comercial Química Masso and Finnova, we have gained enough strength to successfully access a call like this.”

Ramos also highlighted the importance of digitalization in the LIFE NextFUMIGREEN project:

“The basis of our project is that LIFE NextFUMIGREEN’s technology optimizes the efficiency of a natural pesticide. With digitalisation, the farmer will be able to know in real time what happens in the greenhouse sensors when the smoke is applied. In a second phase, we hope to incorporate artificial intelligence to optimize the moment of application.”

Manuel Rodríguez, CEO of M2R Agrofarm, spoke about how HIBA+ and other European funding projects are crucial for its innovation. “We produce insects in completely home automation laboratories, and we need a significant investment to continue growing. This type of project is essential for us. We are working with Andalucía Open Future and Telefónica on the Cube, applying AI to our insect models since 2017,” he concludes.

Rodríguez explained that financing also plays a key role in sustainability. “Our goal is to generate superfoods that we can produce in any territory with few resources, since they do not require much water. European funding helps us to bring these innovations to reality.”

Juan Manuel Revuelta added that, in addition to the Horizon Europe and Digital Europe programmes, there are also regional alternatives that complement European funds, such as those from the ERDF and the autonomous communities:

“We are now at the right time because financing policies are aligned with the objectives of digitalisation and sustainability. There are multiple sources of funding that allow companies like those represented here today to innovate and grow.”

The day concluded by reaffirming HIBA+‘s commitment to digitalisation and sustainability in the agri-food sector, and highlighting how European funds can accelerate innovation in the sector.

About Expo Agritech 2024

Expo Agritech is a benchmark event in the agri-food sector, held on 26, 27 and 28 December at the Malaga Trade Fair and Congress Centre. This event brings together companies, experts and institutions to promote digitalisation and sustainability in agriculture. This meeting has been a key meeting point for innovations in agri-food technology, highlighting the importance of sustainable solutions and collaboration between European companies and projects.

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