Growing Kent & Medway and Canterbury Christ Church University collaborate in food innovation research
Growing Kent & Medway has announced a new partnership with Canterbury Christ Church University in a bid to connect horticultural and food and drink businesses with agri-technology research.
This partnership comes off the back of development of the Industrial Agri-Engineering Hub at the University with Growing Kent & Medway stating that ''the hub will complement and enhance our existing activities for business-led research and innovation in the horticultural, and food and drink sector''.
The Hub is based at Canterbury Christ Church University’s Verena Holmes Building, one of the largest STEM buildings in the southeast. Businesses will be able to access the University’s facilities and technology.
Programme director for Growing Kent & Medway Dr Nikki Harrison said: “Our partnership with Canterbury Christ Church University, and the addition of the Industrial Agri-Engineering Hub to our innovation cluster, will complement the cutting-edge research facilities we currently have as part of our network to support the industry.
“The new Hub enables us to connect businesses with the impressive equipment and specialist knowledge in agri-engineering at the University. This will help drive innovative ideas and projects for commercial application in the Agri-food sector, helping us to strengthen our regional offering, as well as attracting international businesses and scientists to collaborate in the UK. ”
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Growing Kent & Medway has made clear that they want the hub to assist in their plans to turn Kent and Medway into a 'world-leading region in research and innovation for horticultural production, food processing, and climate-smart farming technologies'.
Pro Vice-Chancellor for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) at Canterbury Christ Church University said: “I am thrilled to see the realisation of our partnership with Growing Kent & Medway. This marks a significant milestone in the implementation of our new research theme centred around 'Society 5.0 and the Artificial Intelligence-enabled world.’ Through the establishment of the Industrial Agri-Engineering Hub, we are creating a vibrant collaborative platform that brings together staff and students from our science, engineering, data intelligence, business, and law teams at Canterbury Christ Church University, alongside regional industry experts.
“Working together in a unified transdisciplinary effort, we are committed to positioning Kent and Medway as a driving force in the development of cost-effective and sustainable food and drink supply chains. This collaboration also aligns seamlessly with the recently announced development of 'The Data Lab' in partnership with Discovery Park. These initiatives exemplify our unwavering dedication to fostering innovation, tackling critical challenges, and making a positive societal impact through interdisciplinary collaboration.”
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