INTERACT

The Northern region of Portugal has several opportunities and economic potential based on local-economy exploitation, particularly agro-food resources from animal production (meat and milk), vegetables, fruits, olives and nuts, to wine, native flora and medicinal plants.

The undergoing efforts of UTAD (University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro) researchers, as well as other’s from public and private institutions of R&D, in the last decades have been fundamental to increment the region’s technological value, mainly through the development and dissemination of innovation and know-how.

The competitiveness of the region has also been accomplished through new methods, technologies and more environmentally and efficiently friendly processes. Nonetheless, this achievement implies continuous efforts
in research and development; this is always a non-finished work.

Therefore, within the INTERACT global proposal, the research line “Innovation for Sustainable Agro-food Chains” (ISAC) is connected with two other lines: “BioEconomy and Sustainability” (BEST) and “Sustainable Viticulture and Wine Production” (VITALITY WINE). The lines described in INTERACT are complementary and do not overlap.

In fact, the main goal is to increase the production and the quality of the products that arise from the main crops in the northern region, by developing specific technology and adding commercial value to them (ISAC & VITALITY WINE) but, at the same time, by taking profit from the wastes and residual products that result from the chains of production, exploiting their potential values (and decreasing consequently their negative impact in the environment), which is developed by BEST line.