An innovative food supply chain for reduced waste through collaboration

Research Project, 2012 – 2013

Objective and Goal - FulfillmentThe aim of the project was to set up a consortium that cooperates with the goal of decreasing waste in the food chain from the raw material supplier to the end consumer. The aim has been to identify and confirm the essential topics to be investigated in a next step (B) project. Such a B project has to meet and find answers on these topics. The goal for the project was, for the consortium, to obtain a clearer picture of the whole chain, planning, and implementation as well as create good collaboration across organizational boundaries.

In this project, both aim and goals are fulfilled.Result and Expected Effects - OutcomeThe result shows a consensus in the consortium to continue with a next stage or B-application. The aim of this project is to reduce waste and costs in the food chain from suppliers of the raw material to the end consumers. The effect is that companies in the food chain are ready to make a real effort to implement changes in order to reduce waste in the food chain - from raw materials to the store. Another achievement is that the consortium has developed a better understanding of consumer behavior in order to help them reduce waste.

Approach and Implementation - AnalysisA next stage B-application has a high degree of complexity and requires multi-disciplinary skills which can be obtained through the cooperation of research institutes and universities including SIK, Chalmers and LTH in order to run a successful workshop with the consortium and industry associations. The outcome of the workshop has provided companies with new insights and novel scientific input to the project for example Consumer driven innovation. After the workshop, discussions were held with the individual companies and industry associations for planning the B-project.