Project: Innovative sustainable solutions for ready-to-eat traditional Mediterranean products and non-conventional healthy foods
| Acronym | InnoSol4Med |
| Project Topic | The Mediterranean diet is acceptable and easily adaptable in different cultures and promotes the health and well-being of individuals in all areas. To contribute to individual and overall public health, the InnoSol4Med project proposal is launched based on the concept that prevention of unhealthy lifestyle and dietary habits is more effective when healthy foods are formulated to fit modern lifestyles and are readily available and ready to eat. The strategic options for the development and commercialization of the new healthier foods are possible through the formulation of new concepts that include ingredient improvement (from nutritive to functional/nutraceutical) and technological solutions (from intense to mild). In this context, InnoSol4Med aims to introduce innovative matrices (essential oils, natural compounds and extracts) from sustainable sources (agricultural by-products) and autochthonous microbial strains as new functional ingredients and solutions to improve the quality, safety, nutritional value and functionality of traditional foods. Moreover, these concepts will be used in synergy with non-thermal innovative technological solutions (ozone, nanoemulsions) and fermentation by autochthonous Mediterranean starter cultures for the development of new ready-to-eat foods. Another objective is to conduct a cross-national survey on consumer attitudes and preferences for mild processed and healthy ready-to-eat foods and promote customised business models to support local producers, create new market opportunities, and improve consumer value perception through awareness campaigns that can support the adoption and use of the innovative food prototypes developed in the project. InnoSol4Med will use an interdisciplinary approach (from the perspective of food safety, technological properties, and nutritional value assessment) to investigate bioprotective protocols using ingredients from Mediterranean agriculture by-products and starter/bioprotective strains with environmentally friendly technologies (TRL5 for fresh and TRL6 for fermented foods). The project will raise public awareness of the health benefits of the Mediterranean diet and the benefits derived from the improved properties of the innovative solutions developed under the project, thus changing consumption habits towards a healthier and more sustainable diet. The environmental impact of InnoSol4Med is related to the valorization of local agricultural by-products for the production of new high-value functional compounds and the promotion of their application in more cost-effective industrial processes as a contribution to waste reduction and sector sustainability. |
| Network | PRIMA |
| Call | Section 2 – Multi-topic 2022 |
Project partner
| Number | Name | Role | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | UNIVERSITY OF SPLIT | Coordinator | Croatia |
| 2 | Green Environmental Research Ltd. | Partner | Croatia |
| 3 | Centaurus Ltd | Partner | Croatia |
| 4 | Spanish National Research Council | Partner | Spain |
| 5 | DOMCA S.A. | Partner | Spain |
| 6 | UNIVERSITA DI BOLOGNA, Department of Agriculture and Food Sciences | Partner | Italy |
| 7 | UNIVERSITY CATTOLICA del SACRO CUORE, Department for Sustainable Food Process | Partner | Italy |
| 8 | Martino Rossi S.p.A. | Partner | Italy |
| 9 | CHOUAIB DOUKKALI UNIVERSITY | Partner | Morocco |
| 10 | SIDI MOHAMED BEN ABDELLAH UNIVERSITY | Partner | Morocco |
| 11 | ÇUKUROVA UNIVERSITY, Department of Seafood Processing Technology | Partner | Türkiye |