The Interreg Spain–Portugal cooperation project Interreg España-Portugal Hub Iberia Agrotech Plus (HIBA+) Hub Iberia Agrotech Plus (HIBA+) is strengthening its mission to create a common market of opportunities for digital innovation within the Spanish-Portuguese agri-food value chain. This was the main conclusion of the Steering Committee meeting of the European initiative, coordinated by the Regional Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development of Andalusia Junta de Andalucía - Consejería de Agricultura.

The online meeting, held on February 19, brought together representatives from the 15 partners participating in this three-year collaborative action, which involves nearly three million euros of public investment co-financed through the Interreg VI-A Spain–Portugal Cooperation Programme (POCTEP) 2021–2027 POCTEP 2021-2027. The project aims to consolidate the network established through the original HUB Iberia Agrotech initiative (2018–2023) HUB Iberia Agrotech.

During the Steering Committee session, participants reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening and expanding the HIBA+ network. They shared progress achieved over the past two years across technical committees focused on awareness-raising activities, contributions from each partner to reinforce the HIBA+ corridor, and the next steps in the roadmap.

Key areas of work include the design and planning of cross-border awareness-raising activities targeting businesses and innovation-driven groups; the review of shared services among European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs) European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs) for integration into the HIBA+ platform; and the definition of collaborative training programs and Living Labs between the HIBA+ EDIHs to support corridor development.

The HIBA+ partnership is composed of 15 Spanish and Portuguese beneficiaries, including public administrations, the agri-food sector, universities, and research centers.

Spanish partners, that include three regions cooperating under the Traceability & Big Data Partnership: Extremadura, Galicia and Andalusia: the Regional Government of Andalusia, Andalusian Agri-food Cooperatives, the University of Córdoba Universidad de Córdoba; the Andalusian Foundation for Aerospace Development, Finnova Foundation, FUNDECYT Science and Technology Park Foundation, the European Foundation for Innovation and Technology Application, and DATAlife.

Portuguese partners include the University of Algarve, the Polytechnic Institute of Beja, Smart Farm Colab, and the National Institute for Agrarian and Veterinary Research (INIAV). 

Additional collaborating entities include the Galician Innovation Agency, the Galileo Galilei Secondary School, and INESC TEC.

Further information: https://hubiberiaagrotech.eu/