Consiglio nazionale delle ricerche (CNR)

Its scientific network is organized in 7 Departments and 88 Institutes consisting of 308 divisions widely distributed throughout the national territory, with a total of about 8.500 employees, out of which more than 7.600 are involved in research activities (>600 on ONFOODS -related research topics). About 4.000 young researchers are engaged in postgraduate studies and research training within the CNR’s top-priority areas of interest. A significant contribution also comes from research associates from universities. Thanks to its transversal and multi-disciplinary structure, infrastructural and instrumental assets, as well as its close interaction with the industrial sector, CNR can significantly contribute to the achievement of PNRR and PNR goals, strengthening the international role of Italian research in strategic areas such as health, cultural and social heritage, industry, safety, energy, sustainable mobility, bioeconomy, forestry, agriculture, food industry and environment protection.

Over the last 5 years, 67 projects related to the development of an innovative agri-food system were funded under the Horizon 2020 Programme, 15 of which were coordinated by CNR. UE also financed 13 and 5 CNR proposals in the PRIMA and EIT-Food initiatives, respectively. Relevant funded projects coordinated by CNR in the ONFOODS related topics are: EU FNS- Cloud aimed at facilitating access to scientific knowledge in food and nutrition; EU FOODSAFETY4EU aimed at improving food safety across Europe through the development of a multi-stakeholder platform and innovative digital tool; EU BBI-JU-PHENOLEXA aimed at developing a low environmental impact biorefinery for converting agri-food side streams into high-value polyphenolic bioactives and functional fibres for pharma, cosmeceuticals, nutraceuticals and food products; EU H2020 GRACED aimed at developing a novel plasmo-photonic sensor platform for food quality monitoring; EU H2020 TRADITOM focused on the identification and the enhancement of traditional European tomato varieties; PON I&C 2014-20-Horizon 2020- FCS-Sportello "AGRIFOOD" MISE NUTRABEST aimed at developing molecular and cellular platforms for the identification of innovative products with nutraceutical activity; EU EIT-FOOD MAMMAL for the improvement of the infant formula by determining the impact of food processing on the generation of specific proteins included in the product which in turn promote a healthy gut microbiome.

The combination of several research institutes into a single organisation allows a very broad approach to tackle knowledge questions in each research domain allowing researchers to easily overcome any problem that could arise during the research activities. In this context, the role of CNR in supporting the realization of the goals addressed by ONFOODS should be seen in all its efficacy as it integrates several scientific and technological skills in different food research areas together with a very rich infrastructural and instrumental asset of great value. In particular, the provided multidisciplinary skills include: food biochemistry, food (bio)technologies, nutrition and health, computational modeling and artificial intelligence, new technologies for genetic improvement, agronomic technologies, breeding, cultivation and sustainable protection, bio-molecular analysis of productions, management of genetic resources of species of food interest, development of circular economy and logistics processes.

The internationalization strategy implemented by CNR has led to a large number of collaborations with many European and non-European research institutions on topics of global importance such as sustainable food production and consumption, food safety, food security, bioeconomy. In particular, CNR has built significant collaborations with international organisations such as FAO, CNRS and INRA in France, CSIC in Spain, Max Planck Society, Fraunhofer Gesellschaft and Helmholtz Association in Germany, University of Wageningen in Holland, Universidade de Sao Paulo in Brazil, CINVESTAV in Mexico, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology of South Korea, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Volcani Centre in Israel, USDA in USA, Plants For Human Health Institute in USA, University of HAIFA in Israel, United Arab Emirates University, CONICET in Argentina, University of Toronto in Canada, Norwegian Institute for Bioeconomy-NIBIO. Beyond collaborating with many Italian universities and research centres, CNR is a long-time partner in target projects with different private companies such as: Barilla, Enza Zaden, De Cecco, Danone, Nutricia, Ponti, Saclà, Ferrero, Consorzio Parmigiano Reggiano and Colussi.