The Food Pilot of ILVO and Flanders’ FOOD has more than 100 food processing pilot devices on a semi-industrial scale. It helps food companies with product development, process optimization or troubleshooting technical production problems. Most of the trials run by Food Pilot today are about new protein sources. The new, experimental protein hall makes it possible for food companies and researchers to test out the entire process from raw alternative protein source (plant, insect, microbial, algae) to pure protein ingredient and ready-to-eat, safe and tasty food product. You will take a tour around the pilot hall with an expert guide.
At the ILVO Plant Sciences unit, a tour of the labs and greenhouses will guide you through different steps of our CRISPR research and other innovative techniques. The tour includes a visit to the HYDRAS (https://hydras.ilvo.be/en/) field phenotyping platform, which is equipped for both above- and below-ground phenotyping. Developed to address challenges in plant breeding for climate adaptation, HYDRAS provides access to below-ground plant traits, and allows translation of basic plant science results to realistic field conditions. Examples of possible applications are the selection of plant varieties suited to drought conditions and testing the effectiveness of biostimulants. HYDRAS is an open-access facility for research institutions and industry, unique in its scale in Europe.
ILVO’s Living lab Agrifood Technology offers tailored services for technology companies to assist in the development of innovative technology to increase efficiency and sustainability in agriculture and agrifood processing. Prototypes are developed and tested using a multi-stakeholder, user-centered approach, often incorporating an agile (iterative) development process. Additionally, within the Flemish Agrifood Test and Experimentation Facility (TEF), services are offered to test innovative, broadly applicable innovations in practice-relevant conditions just before or after market introduction. The overarching goal is to bridge the gap between research and application by ensuring that innovations address real-world challenges, thereby increasing their adoption in practice. At the testing facility of the living lab, you can see different automated robots and drones for automating different tasks such as data collection or testing application technology.
