The client
The client for this project was a leading European university, which ranks among the top institutions globally in the areas of agriculture and bioscience and serves as a hub for world-class academics in the fields of food science, nutrition, health, and environmental sustainability. Through its research centres and technology transfer programmes, it plays a pivotal role in connecting fundamental scientific discovery with commercial application, particularly through partnerships with multinational and SME partners in the food and agribusiness sector.
Background
The EU’s agri-food sector is a critical pillar of the bloc’s economy, supporting over 30 million jobs. Downstream, the food and drink industry alone generates ~EUR 1.5 trillion and employs approximately 4.8 million people. Research and innovation within the sector is central to sustaining competitiveness and productivity across the value chain. Recognising this, the EU has committed substantial public funding to agri-food research, most notably through Horizon Europe Cluster 6, which carries an overall budget of around EUR 8.95 billion across the 2021–2027 funding period. However, with the sector facing intensifying pressures from climate change obligations, shifting dietary patterns, and supply chain disruptions, there is a growing need to understand where Europe’s research strengths and gaps lie and how finite public investment can be directed to the areas where it will deliver the greatest impact.
The problem
Our client sought a comprehensive and independent assessment of the food and health landscape to inform its future research strategy and investment priorities. While the university had long been at the forefront of agri-food research, it lacked a consolidated, evidence-based view of global trends, emerging technologies, and innovation gaps. Without this intelligence, its ability to align its research programmes with future market demands and to position its programmes for maximum impact would be constrained.
Consequently, the client needed a horizon-scanning report that would capture current and forecasted technology trends, assess macroeconomic drivers, identify plausible market constraints, and outline what research capabilities and infrastructure would be necessary to remain competitive over the next five to ten years. Alongside this, the client required a detailed analysis of the existing research and innovation activities happening in Europe. This analysis would need to be benchmarked against international best practice in order to pinpoint gaps where investment and capability development were most urgently needed.
The client also required a clear, forward-looking blueprint for the research centre’s future operating model. This model would need to serve the varying needs of both multinational and SME partners while keeping pace with the evolution of the global food and health technology landscape.
The solution
Farrelly Mitchell delivered the project through three interconnected workstreams. The first workstream consisted of an extensive horizon-scanning exercise. This included a comprehensive overview of the food and health technology landscape at both regional and global levels, as well as a detailed analysis of the impact of political, economic, social, technological, environmental, and legal factors on the sector’s trajectory.
As part of this process, the team conducted a thorough literature review, which drew on published reports, academic publications, and proprietary market intelligence to identify the key trends, technologies, and issues that were most likely to shape the food and health space over the coming decade. In addition to the horizon-scanning report, a signal analysis was also undertaken. This analysis used media monitoring tools and emerging data sources to detect early indicators of potential future developments that conventional research might have overlooked.
The second workstream focused on research and innovation activities. In this phase Farrelly Mitchell mapped current food and nutrition research and innovation activities across Europe and benchmarked these against international standards and exemplars in comparable jurisdictions such as New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and Singapore. To complement the benchmarking work, the team undertook a structured consultation process and working group sessions with relevant experts, industry leaders, and stakeholders. The intelligence gathered from these stakeholder engagements generated qualitative insights on key technologies, drivers, constraints, challenges and opportunities shaping the sector.
These engagements were followed by a detailed gap analysis which compared the university’s research centre funding history and capabilities with the trends and technologies that were identified during the horizon-scanning phase. From this analysis our consultants were able to pinpoint the potential gaps in capacity, infrastructure and capabilities for both SME and multinational company support.
The third workstream synthesised the findings into actionable investment scenarios and a target operating model. Farrelly Mitchell identified several plausible future scenarios based on the previous research and used them along with the lessons learned from exemplar centres internationally to develop three investment options for the client. The final deliverable consisted of a comprehensive report which contained a series of key findings as well as a prioritised list of recommendations. This report was supported by a dissemination workshop which was conducted with the relevant stakeholders and the university’s project team.
Throughout the engagement, Farrelly Mitchell maintained close collaboration with the client through regular check-in meetings, clear records of all project communications, and a tailored reporting process that was built to cater for the client’s preferences. The project was executed over an eleven-week timeline, with workstreams running concurrently to maximise efficiency and ensure the timely delivery of outputs.
The impact
The horizon-scanning report and analysis provided by Farrelly Mitchell equipped our client with a detailed understanding of the global food and health technology landscape. It gave them a robust, evidence-based foundation they could use to leverage their existing expertise and align their programmes, partnerships, and resources to the demands of the sector.
At the same time, the benchmarking report, operational roadmap, gap analysis findings, and strategic recommendations enabled the university to make a clear-eyed decision about the scale and direction of its future investments, ultimately reinforcing the university’s position as a bridge between world-class research and commercial application.
Forge ahead with Farrelly Mitchell
At Farrelly Mitchell, our food and agribusiness experts bring together sector specialism, commercial judgement, and the analytical ability required to translate complex and opaque market dynamics into clear, actionable strategy. Our rigorous, insight-driven advisory services are trusted by leading institutions, investors, governments and operators from across the world. We offer an integrated, end-to-end approach that provides clients with the strategic intelligence they need to become globally competitive.
With deep expertise spanning the entire agri-food value chain, Farrelly Mitchell supports clients with market intelligence & insights, operational due diligence, agtech, business planning, operations improvement, policy & regulation, and a wide range of related disciplines. To explore how our food and agribusiness advisory services can support your organisation’s strategic priorities, contact our team today.
