Project: How to make the best choice for careful, minimal and mild processing methods

Acronym ProOrg (Reference Number: 1978)
Duration 01/05/2018 - 01/05/2021
Project Topic The organic food market is one of the fastest growing food sector in the world. A major part of the organic food consumed is processed. Therefore, the increasing demand of organic food represents a major challenge for the organic food industry. With the exclusion of a positive list of additives and technological aids, mandatory standards for the processing of organic food are lacking in the EU Regulation, as well as indications that can represent a guide for the processors in the selection of appropriate technologies and innovations in line with the organic principles. To contribute to the sustainable innovation in the organic food sector, the project has the objective to develop a flexible and practicable Code of Practice (CoP) for processors of organic foods, as well as labelling organizations. The CoP aims to provide the operators with strategies and tools for making decisions that can help them to take the best choice for careful processing methods and formulations with a limited use of additives, while addressing the organic principles, high food quality, low environmental impact and high degree of consumer acceptance. To labelling organizations, the CoP will provide an assessment and decision support tool to evaluate the compliance of process innovations with the general organic principles. The project builds on a participatory design and involves experts from different scientific disciplines, representatives of processors, traders, labelling organizations and other relevant stakeholders, as well as individual companies. The development of the CoP will be based on an iterative process in which the CoP will be tested at industry and retail level by case studies and a market survey, supported with scientific experiments and analytical determinations, to define the final version. Studies will be performed to identify consumer preferences and acceptance of processing technologies of organic food. A dissemination plan completes the project.
Website visit project website
Network CORE Organic Cofund
Call CORE Organic Call 2016

Project partner

Number Name Role Country
1 Istituto Nazionale di Ricerca per gli Alimenti e la Nutrizione Coordinator Italy
2 Research Institute of Organic Agriculture Partner Switzerland
3 Wageningen University & Research Partner Netherlands
4 Hungarian Research Institute of Organic Agriculture Partner Hungary
5 Institut Technique de l'Agriculture Biologique Partner France
6 Warsaw University of Life Sciences Partner Poland
7 Münster University of Applied Sciences Partner Germany
8 University of Copenhagen Partner Denmark
9 Assoziation oekologischer Lebensmittelhersteller Partner Germany
10 Johann Heinrich von Thünen Institute Federal Research Institute for Rural Areas, Forestry and Fisheries, Institute of Market Analysis Partner Germany
11 INSTITUT NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE AGRONOMIQUE Partner France
12 Associazione nazionale delle imprese di trasformazione e distribuzione dei prodotti biologici Partner Italy
13 Association Générale des Producteurs de Houblon de France Partner France
14 Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences Partner Italy