First-year review and tool development. On 13-14 March 2025, the RISE project partners gathered in Belgrade, Serbia, for a key consortium meeting hosted by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia (CCIS). This meeting marked an important milestone, as the consortium conducted its first-year project review and advanced work on digital and green transformation tools for food industry SMEs.
First-year review and mentor academy introduction
The first day began with a project review session, attended by our Project Officer, Mrs Katalin Kovács-Kasza. Partners reflected on the achievements of the past year, evaluated financial and physical progress and discussed sustainability and risk management aspects to ensure the project’s long-term impact.
In the afternoon, the Mentor Academy Programme was introduced, laying the groundwork for a structured transnational mentorship network. This initiative will connect SMEs with industry experts to support their transition towards digitalisation and sustainability.
Advancing tool development in Working Groups
On the second day, the focus shifted to the development of digital tools designed to support SMEs in key areas. Three working groups (WGs) conducted in-depth analyses:
- WG1: Digital tool for SMEs – functionalities and feedback
- WG2: Energy Optimisation tool – focused on improving energy efficiency
- WG3: Material Circularity tool – promoting sustainable material use
Although significant progress was made, the limited timeframe meant that working groups could not finalise their tasks. As a result, partners agreed to continue discussions in online sessions to refine the tools further.
Next steps
The meeting concluded with a presentation on the e-knowledge base platform, the B2Green Hub, an essential resource for SMEs, followed by discussions on small-scale testing of the developed toolkit. The insights gained during these sessions will guide the next stages of the project, ensuring that the tools are tailored to the needs of food industry stakeholders.
With valuable discussions and concrete plans for further collaboration, the Belgrade meeting reinforced the project’s commitment to fostering digital and green innovations in the Danube Region’s food sector.
The project is co-financed by the European Union and the Hungarian State within the framework of the Interreg Danube Region programme.
