The domestic company assessments carried out within the RISE project show clearly that the development needs of food industry and related companies are increasingly interconnected. Digital operations, energy efficiency and circular thinking are no longer separate topics. In companies’ everyday operations, they often appear in the same processes, such as inventory management, logistics, customer relations, energy consumption tracking or packaging decisions.
One of the most important experiences of the assessments carried out by the South Transdanubian Regional Innovation Agency is that a significant share of the companies already have some working solutions in these areas. In many cases, companies already have an online presence, digital invoicing, spreadsheet-based records, energy consumption tracking, LED lighting, photovoltaic systems, waste separation or efforts towards more sustainable packaging. The challenge is often not that “nothing exists”, but rather that these elements do not yet form a consistent and well-functioning system.
Based on the digital assessments, one recurring development direction was the replacement of paper-based or ad hoc records. In several companies, daily operations are still partly managed in people’s heads, on paper, by email or in separate spreadsheets. This may work in the short term, but with growth, multiple sites, a wider customer base or more complex logistics, it can quickly become a bottleneck. In many cases, the first recommended steps were not about large enterprise systems, but about a unified data structure, a shared document repository, simple inventory and procurement records, and a clear internal division of responsibilities.
Digital customer management was also a frequent development point. Many companies already have a website, social media presence or online ordering option, but the handling of incoming inquiries, monitoring of response times, automatic confirmations, organisation of customer data and collection of feedback can still be improved. Significant improvements can already be achieved in these areas with smaller tools, such as contact forms, automatic email replies, simple CRM solutions, customer service templates or newsletter automation.
A third recurring lesson of the digital transition was the importance of data security and access management. As a company manages more and more processes digitally, multi-factor authentication, the review of access rights, regular backups, device protection and clear data management rules become increasingly important. These steps are not only IT issues, but also basic conditions for business security.
In the energy efficiency assessments, the most common shared issue was the lack of measurement and follow-up measurement. Many companies monitor their energy bills, but fewer have process-level, machine-level, site-level or product-unit-level energy data. Without this, it is difficult to determine exactly where losses occur, which equipment or period causes peak loads, and which measure has actually resulted in savings.
For this reason, the recommendations often started with the establishment of a simple energy management minimum: defining baseline consumption, regular meter readings, monthly or quarterly energy reviews, appointing an internal responsible person, and recording a few concrete, measurable targets. This then provides a sound basis for decisions on sub-metering, smart meters, energy monitoring systems, cooling or HVAC optimisation, or larger investments.
Among the energy efficiency quick wins, several companies identified lighting upgrades, fine-tuning of thermostats and temperature settings, maintenance of cooling and heating systems, checking doors, gates and windows, reducing standby consumption, and examining peak load periods. Some of these actions can be launched at low cost, but they only deliver lasting results if their impact is also measured afterwards.
Renewable energy is already present in several companies, primarily in the form of photovoltaic systems. Based on the assessments, the next development step in many cases is not simply increasing capacity, but better aligning production and consumption. This may include increasing self-consumption, understanding the consumption profile more precisely, examining storage options, or making operational decisions that are better aligned with renewable generation.
The assessments related to circular operations showed that circularity becomes tangible for companies when it is translated into concrete materials, packaging, waste streams and supplier decisions. In most cases, the first need is not an abstract sustainability strategy, but a short, one-page action plan: what are the three most important packaging or material-use issues, who is responsible for them, what will be measured, and within what timeframe results are expected.
In the area of packaging and material use, a frequent recommendation was to review the highest-volume packaging materials, reduce the proportion of mixed materials, examine recyclable or recycled-content alternatives, and introduce clear labelling. In food industry companies, these decisions must of course always take product safety, hygiene and logistics requirements into account.
Sustainable sourcing was also a recurring development point. In several companies, sustainability considerations already appear in certain decisions, but they are not always documented or applied consistently. A simple supplier minimum, a short supplier checklist, tracking the origin of main materials or examining local sourcing opportunities can already be a good first step.
In the field of waste reduction and resource efficiency, the key lesson was that it is difficult to improve without measurement. It can be useful for companies to identify their main waste streams, make separation routines more consistent, introduce input-output type material flow records, and map realistic utilisation routes for organic by-products, rejects or expired products.
The assessments also made it clear that sustainability communication needs to be handled carefully. It is worth presenting real steps to customers and partners, but exaggerated claims should be avoided. Credible communication is based on measurable and verifiable actions, such as packaging reduction, better management of waste streams, more sustainable sourcing decisions or reduced energy consumption.
Based on the domestic experiences of the RISE project, gradual development logic works best for companies. First, operations need to be made visible: data must be collected, processes clarified and responsibilities assigned. After that, quick and low-risk interventions can follow. Larger investments, certifications, complex systems or technological developments can only deliver real value if they are supported by internal routines and decision-supporting data.
One of the most important messages of the project is that digital, energy-related and circular transition is not only a technological issue. It is equally an organisational, managerial and mindset-related process. Companies can make progress when developments do not remain separate projects, but become embedded in everyday operations: procurement, production, logistics, customer relations and management decisions.
The RISE project provided practical support in this process: it helped systematise development opportunities, make intervention points visible, and define first steps that are adapted to the companies’ own operations and resources.
The RISE project was implemented with co-financing from the European Union under the Interreg Danube Region Programme.
