Training of a New Generation of Talents Capable of Working Across Borders and Sectors, with an Inclusive Approach of Food Innovation: the Case of FIPDes, the ERASMUS Mundus Joint Master’s Degree in Food Innovation and Product Design

Abstract

Training of a new generation of talents capable of working across borders and sectors, with an inclusive approach of food innovation: the case of FIPDes, the ERASMUS mundus joint master’s degree in food innovation and product design.Food innovation applied to sustainable growth is driven by different needs and constraints. Sensory and nutritional aspects of food, as well as convenience are individual needs that cannot ignore the societal needs such as population growth and safety, as well as the urgent demand to ensure the availability of natural resources and reduce the impacts on environment. Innovation of products, processes, marketing strategies and organizations is the core approach to create incremental or breakthrough solutions for the food sector challenges. Innovation is always a transversal process and involves, in different manners and at different levels, the Research & Development, the Marketing, the Quality Management, and the Supplier and the Production departments. Recently, it has been shown that an integrative approach of these levels accelerates innovation at three different stages: the generation of ideas, development of concepts and prototypes, and the development of processes and products (Bertoluci, 2011).Companies of different size and organisation (from multinationals to start-ups) need skilled and versatile professionals to improve their innovation potential. However, worldwide there is still a lack of trained international food professionals and entrepreneurs that embrace and merge the multidisciplinary aspects of food innovation and product design as a whole.The Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree in Food Innovation and Product Design (FIPDes) has been created to meet this emerging need and bring a European solution to the global challenges of sustainable design, production and consumption of food.The competences of four recognized European Higher Education Institutions have been merged together to offer a deeply innovative learning approach, integrating technical and horizontal skills.The presentation will show how FIPDes is pinpointing the global training needs of innovation towards sustainable food systems