SII

Strategic Innovation Initiatives (SIIs ) in Wallonia are targeted actions designed to catalyze innovation inspecific fields identified as priorities under the Smart Specialization Strategy (S3). These initiatives aim to achieve the objectives of the Strategic Innovation Domains (SIDs) by supporting projects with high potential for economic, environmental and social impact.

The Strategic Innovation Domain "Agri-food chains of the future and innovative environmental management" covers innovative activities to support the emergence of products and services with high added value and market potential within a sustainable and circular agri-food system. Wallonia's current strengths in agri-food research and innovation are centered on :

• food quality and safety;
• sustainable and circular agri-food systems;
• nutritional and functional ingredients;
• industrial biotechnologies (white biotechnologies).

To ensure the long-term sustainability of the natural ecosystems (soil health and water cycle) on which the production of healthy food products depends, Wallonia's potential in the field of environmental services for monitoring ecosystems and biodiversity, agroecology and sustainable agricultural/forestry innovation will be strengthened. Wallonia also has strong RDI skills in biodiversity and green and blue infrastructure, notably in the following areas: natural resource management, technologies for environmental remediation (soil, air and water) and in particular soil monitoring, treatment and health (brownfields, soil conservation).

This SID responds to several societal challenges :

• The food system contributes to the goal of guaranteeing good health and quality of life for all citizens, a challenge to which a healthy diet adapted to all ages and conditions provides answers in the short term, but also in the long term via its impact on health systems. Healthy, accessible food for all is also an important element of an inclusive society: social inequalities are reflected in food insecurity and disparities in preventive health behaviors, including diet ;
• The health and economic crisis caused by Covid-19 has highlighted the challenges of sovereignty and relocating the production of so-called "strategic" products ;
• The food sector requires a high-performance, sustainable agricultural sector ;
• The agri-food sector must contribute to the fight against the climate crisis and to the European objective of becoming a net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emitting zone by 2050: even moderate changes in diet (reduced consumption of animal-source foods), as well as reductions in food waste, can lead to substantial reductions in GHG emissions ;
• Preserving the water cycle plays an important role in balancing biodiversity. Water quality is a Walloon asset (city water supply, spa and beverage industry, river tourism and water-based leisure activities, etc.), but at the same time more than half (55%) of surface water bodies and 39% of groundwater bodies are not in good ecological health ;
• The agri-food sector is a major player in the optimization of biobased resources and the circular economy, thanks to the intelligent use of agricultural biomass from farming and processing businesses.

In this way, SIIs not only respond to current challenges in the agri-food sector, they also anticipate future needs, creating a framework conducive to continuous innovation and the improvement of agricultural and industrial practices.