To create a meeting place where young researchers can present their scientific work, exchange knowledge and establish links within the Catalan research community: this is the main objective of the 1st Catalan Conference of Young Researchers in Food Sciences , a scientific forum that will bring together around 150 participants on 10 December in the sala de graus of the Gramenet building on the Food and Nutrition Torribera Campus of the University of Barcelona.
This initiative is promoted by the Catalan Association of Food Scientists and Technologists, the University of Barcelona and the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, in collaboration with universities and research centres in Catalonia linked to food sciences. It also has the support of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food of the Government of Catalonia.
The opening ceremony will be attended by the vice-rector for Teaching Policy at the UB, Concepció Amat Miralles; the mayor of Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Mireia González Sáez; the secretary-general for Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food of the Government of Catalonia, Cristina Massot Berna; the director of the Food and Nutrition Torribera Campus, Carmen Vidal Carou, who is also a member of the conference's scientific committee; and the presidents of the scientific and organizing committees of the conference, Carolina Ripollés Ávila (UAB) and Oriol Comas Basté (UB).
The opening lecture, "L'alimentació del futur: reptes i tendències en nutrició, seguretat i sostenibilitat alimentària" (Food for the future: challenges and trends in nutrition, food safety and sustainability), will be given by Marta Hugas Maurici, president of the Scientific Council of the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) and former scientific director of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
From technological innovation to food sustainability
The programme will consist mainly of oral presentations and poster sessions, addressing the main challenges and opportunities facing the scientific world in the agri-food sector. Topics will include the most notable advances in technology and innovation, food safety and quality in times of change, nutrition for health and well-being, food sustainability in all its dimensions, and the socio-cultural aspects of food.
The conference will feature the round table discussion "Recerca amb impacte: transferència i innovació en el sector agroalimentari" (Research with impact: transfer and innovation in the agri-food sector), organized in collaboration with the Annual Technology Transfer Plan (PATT) and chaired by Glòria Cugat Pujol, deputy director general of Agri-Food Transfer and Innovation at the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food. Three young researchers linked to three innovative business projects in the agri-food sector in Catalonia will participate: Raúl Reyes Caballero, founder and CEO of the biotechnology company Insectius; Àlex Gómez Palma, member of the OPTICmizing group (CERTA-UAB); and Jess Padilla, executive director of the Food & Agri Tech Europe (FATE) association.
Finally, before the closing ceremony, there will also be an awards ceremony recognizing the best oral presentations and posters.
