DIH AGRIFOOD

Digital Innovation Hub for Agriculture and Food production (DIH AGRIFOOD) brings together Slovenian and European research and development expertise in the field of Agriculture and Food production. The network provides you with the latest knowledge on digitalization of this industry – so called ‘’Smart Agriculture’’. The goal of DIH AGRIFOOD is to represents a One-Stop-Shop providing services to organisations in the region through a multipartner cooperation in order to provide safe, sustainable and quality food.

- Formation of the quadruple helix logic, with policy makers, academia, business and civil society.
- Numerous projects supporting the digitalization of the agricultural sector and food production sector (H2020, Interreg, Erasmus, national tenders)
- Introduction of digitalization to small farmers (help with co-financing of the solutions)

DIH AGRIFOOD vision is to become Slovenian leader in the development, technology transfer and innovative application of smart farming solutions and services in areas where it creates maximum value for Slovenian and European Agri-Food system.Mission of DIH AGRIFOOD:• Increase productivity and profitability through the development, transfer and implementation of smart agricultural solutions and services;• Promote research, development and innovation by seeking new combinations of knowledge, technologies and actors, and thus building links between solution providers (research institutions, SMEs and industry) and target groups (farmers and farmers' associations);• To increase the internationalization of DIH AGRIFOOD members by accessing the most qualified and relevant knowledge as well as technologies through appropriate cooperation with international clusters, networks, knowledge institutions and companies;• Ensure the financing of knowledge, technological transfers and concrete implementations of digital solutions at target groups, thus promoting the digitization of food production.

The main territory of implementation so far is Pomurje region (North eastern part of Slovenia), where we are trying to help small farmers at introduction of digitalization into their production process, while also helping them to increase sale in domestic market, by introuducing the short supply chain mechanism, where local food is transfered to public institutions such as kindergartens, schools, hospitals...

To be able to fully implement the DIH AGRIFOOD and its core activities the main resources needed are in form of people. Human resources are the one implementing all activities on the ground, with help of co-financing or financing from the EU.

Key conditions for success is getting as closer to the target group (farmers, farmer associations and food producers) in order to help them realize that digitalization can help them speed up the process and bring them positive things (more production, less resources, economic advantage,...). On other hand digitalization is also multi-actor approach, where the main point is not only technology but also social aspect of people having to deal with new environment.

Key steps for activity implementation are connected to the living lab environment, where different solutions shuold be implemented on the ground so that farmers could see and feel how digitalization is done. On other hand also financing and funding needs to be acquired in order to help speed up the process of introduction of new technologies.

Lessons learned: Farmers are still very traditional, which means that it is hard to convince them to start implementing new technologies. This is why living lab approach (real case implementation) is very important that farmers can touch and try out the technology.