Research Building VEG-i-TEC
Funding
EFRO/ERDF (European Regional Development Fund)
Project budget: € 7.493.948
Summary
This project realizes a research facility for industrial applied research and developments concerning (1) the processing of vegetables and potatoes, and (2) concerning energy and water management in the agro food industry.
The new research facility is supported by an analytical and microbiological lab, and will contain several flexible spaces for:
- Piloting of process- and wastewater treatment technologies in a broad sense, but also specific for the food industry. Several water sources (tap, surface, ground, rain, etc.) are available and facilities are foreseen to store (waste- or process) water on site
- Piloting of vegetable and potato processing procedures from harvested to packaged product
- Storage at different temperatures
- Fermentation using solid state and (fed-)batch fermenters
The objectives are to provide the possibility to evaluate the effect of different unit operations, including innovative technologies, on the quality of the final product (i.e. effect on shelf life with desired organoleptic quality and food safety); to maintain or increase the (process) water quality; to improve the hygienic design and to measure the water and energy consumption.
Partners
Duration
From January 2018 to June 2022