The Vall Companys, the Spanish agro-food group, and the University of Lleida (UdL), a leading university in the study of food, announced that they have established a chair in sustainable food. The new Vall Companys Group-UdL Chair will have associated prizes for undergraduate and master’s degree final dissertations in all academic disciplines, where students from universities all over Europe can apply.
The University of Lleida (UdL) and the Vall Companys Group presented the new Vall Companys Group-UdL Chair in Sustainable Food at a press conference that took place at the Senate House of the University. The Chair, which has its website, covers the promotion of training, dissemination, and knowledge transfer in the production of food in all contexts, using systems that ensure secure, healthy, and sustainable food in terms of the environment and the economy, and for wider society and those working in the industry.
This alliance formalises the work that the most significant food business in Lleida, Catalonia, and Spain has been doing with the leading universities in Catalonia, Spain, and Southern Europe in the study of the agro-food industry and animal husbandry. The purpose of the Chair is to promote the professional development of the best talent at the University with focused training and to boost the competitiveness of Lleida and the Western (Ponent) counties as the leading food producing area in Europe.
During the presentation of the Vall Companys Group-UdL Chair in Sustainable Food, the Chancellor of the University, Jaume Puy, underlined the importance of the alliance: “This chair is an opportunity for the university to work right alongside the industry. It is a source of satisfaction for us to be able to establish this link with the Vall Companys Group, an undoubted leader in the agro-food industry. Our partnership and joint working will make us all better in the area of sustainable food in particular and the agro-food industry as a whole.”
Olga Martin, UdL’s Vice-Chancellor for Knowledge Transfer, said: “The objective of this chair is to boost research and knowledge transfer through carrying out good work, innovation, and the dissemination of the results of our research to the whole of society.”
The Director of the Vall Companys Group-UdL Chair in Sustainable Food, Lorenzo Fraile noted that “this agreement formalises the collaboration between UdL and the Vall Companys Group and opens the door to new opportunities for our students.” He also underlined that “this is a completely cross-cutting, transversal Chair, where sustainability is the thread that connects all areas of study. We hope to become a centre of knowledge for the agro-food industry within Catalonia, Spain, and Europe.
At the same time, Carmina Chia, Human Resources Director at the Vall Companys Group, underlined the importance of this Chair in the sense that it allows the University and the company to drive out even more synergies: “Today we are taking a step forward by formalising our alliance and forming the first such alliance between a leading agro-food business and a leading University in food and agriculture such as UdL. We are the leading agro-food group in Lleida, in Catalonia, and in Spain with more than 2,500 staff here in Catalonia and 12,000 across the rest of Spain. We are an opportunity for the university community and the university is an opportunity for us. Together we must ensure that Lleida continues to be a leading centre for the global agro-food industry”, she said.
The Vall Companys Group’s Director of Quality, Blanca González, also spoke and remarked that “we must ensure that the University’s best students see in the Vall Companys Group an opportunity for professional development.” Blanca González also stressed that “working with the University will allow us to engage in challenges and projects that generate synergies and at the same time enable us to innovate and convert that knowledge and innovation into improvements that benefit the whole community.”
Finally, Jaume Coma, Director of Nutrition at the Vall Companys Group said “Now we have a great challenge before us: to sustain this project”, he expressed his wishes for a long future for the Chair and concluded that “the principal objective of this initiative is to discover talent and to help people to have successful careers.”
PRIZES FOR THE BEST TALENT AT THE UNIVERSITY
The Vall Companys Group together with UdL has inaugurated the Vall Companys Group-UdL Chair in Sustainable Food Prizes to recognise excellence, talent, and vision of the future in the best undergraduate and master’s degree final dissertations on food-related topics. The awards are open to students from universities all over Europe.
In terms of the financial rewards attached to the prizes for the best undergraduate degree final dissertations, the first prize is worth €2,000, the second prize €1,000, and the third prize €500. For masters degrees, the prizes come with €4,000, €2,000, and €1,000 respectively.
Beyond those prizes, the Vall Companys Group will organise conferences and study days at different locations and with different departments at UdL, whether specifically involved with food or that can help the industry to develop in terms of engineering, finance, business administration, and so on.
