AgrotecUV advances in the creation of a community of entrepreneurship in the agri-food sector

The Incubator of High Technology in Sustainable Agri-Food, AgrotecUV, is born as a pole of entrepreneurship in the agri-food sector thanks to the union between the University of Valencia, a leader in agri-food in Spain according to the 'Shanghai Ranking: Food Science and Technology Area', and the ecosystem of reference in research, innovation and entrepreneurship of the Parc Científic 

Directed by Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and director of the Parc científic de la Universitat de València (PCUV) Pedro Carrasco Sorlí, the new AgrotecUV incubator aims to promote entrepreneurship in agri-food, increase the participation of UV research groups in collaborative R+D+i projects, and increase the rate of technology transfer between university research and the productive sector, in order to contribute to the transformation of the agri-food sector towards a sustainable, healthy, inclusive and adapted to the needs of consumers, and increase the rate of technology transfer between university research and the productive sector, to contribute to the transformation of the agri-food sector towards a sustainable, healthy, inclusive and adapted to the needs of consumers and society.

Along with its director, the AgrotecUV team is made up of Isidre March, professor of the Department of Business Management 'Juan José Renau Piqueras' of the UV, as head of Business Area Initiatives; Giuseppe Meca, professor of Nutrition and Bromatology, as head of Initiatives of the Scientific-Technological Area, and Eva Bataller, as head of Business Development. 

The incubator has a personalized training, mentoring and networking program, and will provide companies with access to the different scientific and technical services of the academic institution

Co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), through the INCYDE Foundation, AgrotecUV is awaiting the completion of the innovation building that will definitively house it in the Science Park by the end of 2023. This building will have a shared-use laboratory and a laboratory of Experimental Economics to serve the incubated projects, access to meeting rooms and individual use spaces for companies.

The vice-rector of Innovation and Transfer of the University of Valencia, Rosa Donat, and the director of the Parc Científic, Pedro Carrasco, during the presentation of the companies selected in the first call for business projects that will be forged in AgrotecUV, in November 2022. PHOTO: FPCUV

The incubator's activity is currently focused on the generation of an entrepreneurial community that brings together associations (Biovegen) and tractor companies (Anecoop, GBT, Iab) together with the entrepreneurial initiatives selected as a result of the first AgrotecUV call, recently resolved and which has resulted in the incubation of the following projects:

• One Phage Solution (OPS): Biocontrol systems for the prevention and treatment of bacteria on farms and farmsteads.
• Plant Predictor: real-time monitoring of crop health status.

• Madeinplant: biomolecules produced in plants for food, cosmetics or research.
• Indunar: compounds of industrial interest obtained from orange residues.
• Cucare: detection of pathogens in insects from genetics.
• Uhmamix 3S Foods: plant-based food creams as an alternative to ultra-processed foods.
• Oscillum: smart labels that monitor food health status.
• Datipic: use of data for decision making in the development of agri-food solutions.
• Oleoway company: functional foods with low glycemic index and anti-inflammatory properties.
• Aerofybers technologies: biodegradable aerogels for food packaging.

The incubator has a training, mentoring and networking program, which will be applied individually to each of the selected projects. On the other hand, companies will be provided with access to the different scientific-technical services of the UV centralized in the Central Support Service for Experimental Research (SCSIE), the Spanish Type Culture Collection (CET) and the Spanish Supercomputing Network.