Nofima leading a new center for research-driven innovation

Ragnhild Dragøy Whitaker, Jens Petter Wold and Øyvind Fylling-Jensen Photo: Joe Urrutia

Nofima will host a new center for research-driven innovation (SFI). SFI Digital Food Quality Center – digitization in food production

In addition, Nofima becomes an important partner to Sintef Ocean and NTNU in the SFI Harvest Center Technologies for sustainable biomarine value creation.

– I appreciate the Research Council of Norway grants to new SFIs, ie Centers for research-driven innovation. These grants create predictability in important areas. Nofima is naturally very pleased with the grants to SFI Digital Food Quality, which we host and SFI Harvest, says Øyvind Fylling-Jensen, CEO of Nofima.

He will also use the opportunity to congratulate the other research communities that receive the status of the Center for Research-Driven Innovation.

188 Million Norwegian crones to digitization of the food production

– We have entered the fourth industrial revolution, where digital data is the driving force. All machines and instruments communicate with each other and collaborate via digital networks. This creates new opportunities for the food industry, says senior researcher Jens Petter Wold at Nofima.

He will lead SFI Digital Food Quality. With him he has a consortium of 27 partners from the food industry and technology providers within spectroscopic sensors, robotics and data analytics. The most important Norwegian R&D partners are SINTEF Digital and NMBU.

The purpose of Digital Food Quality is to contribute to a greener globe, a healthier population and better dining experiences for the consumers. Smart sensors and robots, combined with machine learning and efficient analysis of big data, make it possible to tailor exactly the quality both the food producers and the consumers want, in a sustainable way.

– The Norwegian food industry is technologically advanced and there is great interest in good digital solutions. A total of 188 Million over eight years gives SFI Digital Food Quality å unique opportunity to develop solutions which will be available and useful to farmers, food industry, grocery stores and consumers, says Jens Petter.

By using smart measurement methods and machine learning it will be possible to model relationships between farmer’s practices, raw material characteristics, food processing and product quality.