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Applied Agri-Food Pilots (CS1–CS6)

Six interconnected regional Living Labs operating at TRL 3–5 to validate CoARA assessment reforms, hands-on upskilling, and FAIR data workflows under real operational conditions.

Co-Design → Implementation → Validation → Open Replication

From Regional RIS3 Priorities to Transferable Replication Packages

Each Widening university will lead a regional pilot case study aligned with Smart Specialisation (RIS3) priorities, producing open Replication Packages (SOPs, DOIs, FAIR datasets, and sustainability benchmarks) on the REACtOE Digital Hub.

CS1 · METU (Ankara, Türkiye) · TRL 4→6

National Pilot-Scale Processing Hub for Alternative Proteins and Fiber Production

RIS3 Alignment: Green & Digital Transformation; Circular Bio-Based Economy; Advanced Food Processing.

Planned Scope: METU will establish a shared pilot-scale processing hub bridging laboratory research and SME scale-up through protein and fiber extraction, extrusion, drying, and texturization lines, while piloting CoARA recognition of prototypes and datasets.

Consortium Synergy: Will supply protein/fiber residues to TFNS (CS2); adopt immobilized enzyme protocols from UCP (CS3); provide ingredient samples to UM (CS4) for safety validation and HUA (CS5) for sensory testing; and share LCA/TEA data with V-Tech (CS6).

CS2 · TFNS (Novi Sad, Serbia) · TRL 3→5

Bio-Circular Valorisation Platform for Agro-Industrial Side Streams

RIS3 Alignment: Food 4 Future; Machines & Production Processes; Circular Bioeconomy.

Planned Scope: TFNS will combine enzymatic hydrolysis, pilot bioreactor fermentation, and biopolymer structuring to convert fruit pomace, oilseed cakes, and brewery side streams into functional encapsulation matrices, active packaging films, and enzyme supports.

Consortium Synergy: Will process side-stream residues from METU (CS1); utilize biocatalytic supports from UCP (CS3); transfer compositional data to UM (CS4); and deposit open process/LCA datasets into the HUA/V-Tech Digital Hub.

CS3 · UCP (Porto, Portugal) · TRL 3→5

Enzymatic Valorisation and Immobilisation Platform for Bio-Circular Applications

RIS3 Alignment: Agri-Food & Bioeconomy; Health & Life Sciences (Industrial Biotechnology).

Planned Scope: UCP will translate laboratory enzyme discovery into stable, reusable pilot-scale biocatalytic systems using partner agro-residues as immobilization carriers, while embedding CoARA recognition for applied enzymology protocols.

Consortium Synergy: Will deliver enzyme formulations and immobilization protocols to METU (CS1) and TFNS (CS2); track digital enzyme kinetics with HUA (CS5); and share LCA/TEA datasets with V-Tech (CS6) and training modules with UM (CS4).

CS4 · UM (Maribor, Slovenia) · TRL 3→5

Regional Innovation Governance Lab (RIG-Lab) for Food Safety, Health & Policy

RIS3 Alignment: Transition to Circular Economy; Sustainable Food Production; Health & Medicine.

Planned Scope: UM will develop harmonized validation protocols assessing the safety, allergenicity, and nutritional quality of novel protein and fiber ingredients, translating scientific evidence into regulatory-ready governance models with public authorities.

Consortium Synergy: Will validate novel food samples from METU (CS1) and TFNS (CS2); integrate LCA/TEA inputs from UCP (CS3), citizen perception data from HUA (CS5), and AI dashboards from V-Tech (CS6).

CS5 · HUA (Athens, Greece) · TRL 3→5

Digital Consumer & Citizen Living Labs for Engagement, Claims & Data Openness

RIS3 Alignment: Digitalisation; Circular Economy; Societal Engagement & Consumer Trust.

Planned Scope: HUA will establish a Digital Consumer & Citizen Living Labs Network combining sensory testing, discrete-choice experiments, citizen juries, and geospatial analysis to map regional acceptance patterns and co-create transparent digital food labels.

Consortium Synergy: Will evaluate ingredients and prototypes from METU (CS1), TFNS (CS2), and UCP (CS3) with citizens; provide behavioral evidence to UM (CS4); and deposit anonymized FAIR datasets with V-Tech (CS6).

CS6 · VILNIUS TECH (Vilnius, Lithuania) · TRL 3→5

Sustainability Entrepreneurship and Innovation Translation Hub

RIS3 Alignment: New Production Processes & Energy Efficiency; ICT; Inclusive & Creative Society.

Planned Scope: VILNIUS TECH will integrate process, LCA, and TEA data from all pilots into a unified FAIR/AI benchmarking environment while running entrepreneurship bootcamps and CoARA reform pilots rewarding spin-offs and industry co-creation.

Consortium Synergy: Will aggregate multi-pilot datasets for cross-comparative sustainability benchmarking; deliver AI decision-support dashboards to UM (CS4) and HUA (CS5); and supply business modelling toolkits to METU, TFNS, and UCP.