Oost NL is proud to be one of the founding partners with support from the provinces of Gelderland and Overijssel of the Global Coordinating Secretariat of the Food Innovation Hubs. The Food Innovation Hubs initiative, which was launched by the World Economic Forum with public, private and civil society partners, is a call to action for a locally driven program, enabling innovations to improve the way we produce and consume food sustainably, through an ecosystems approach.
Food systems transition
Nearly 2 billion people worldwide lack access to sufficient, nutritious and safe food, and 690 million people suffer from chronic hunger or lack of proper nutrition. The current food system needs to produce much more food, while planetary boundaries are already being crossed. Our food systems must become more sustainable, efficient, inclusive and deliver more nutritious and healthy food.
Innovations that can help transform our food systems are often already out there. Unfortunately, the adoption and scale-up of innovations in the agri-food sector lags behind other sectors. Collaboration between stakeholders, who are working from “farm to fork”, is key. That is why the World Economic Forum and partners have initiated Food Innovation Hubs across the globe. Food Innovation Hubs are a multistakeholder, pre-competitive and market-based partnership platform aimed at strengthening local innovation ecosystems to sustainably scale innovative solutions for the transformation of food systems
Locally driven – Globally supported
The Food Innovation Hubs are founded by partners from government, the private sector, innovators, entrepreneurs, farmer organizations, civil society, international organizations and others
The hubs are designed locally to address the needs of the local food system to:
- Foster and cultivate food systems innovation
- Support delivery and adoption of innovations at scale
- Develop a community of practice to share learnings and build capacity
Global Coordinating Secretariat
A growing set of global players from the private and public sector drives and supports this exciting initiative. The Food Innovation Hubs are supported by a Global Coordinating Secretariat hosted by the World Economic Forum and housed in Wageningen, The Netherlands. The Netherlands is frontrunner in technological innovation in agriculture and food. Wageningen is in the heart of Food Valley and home to Wageningen University & Research, world’s leading agricultural university.
The secretariat enables the founding of local hubs, supports their functioning, stimulates adoption of innovation and creates a global network and learning environment. The first Food Innovation Hubs are being developed in Colombia, India, Europe, Kenya and Viet Nam. The network of Food Innovation Hubs is continuously expanding with new partners and countries joining.
Mark Rutte (prime minister of the Netherlands):
"Global food insecurity has been rising again. This stresses the need to redesign how we produce and consume food. The Netherlands is committed to forming partnerships that will catalyze the innovations that are needed to address the food systems challenges.”
Contact:
Interested in Food Innovation Hubs? Contact Angelique van Helvoort, Programme Manager Global Coordinating Secretariat.
