French agri-food innovation cluster nurtures French and Japanese collaboration

Located in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in Eastern France, the agri-food innovation cluster Vitagora has tied strong relationships with its Japanese partners for more than 15 years. Since the COVID-19 crisis, Vitagora has opened a subsidiary office in Kumamoto, Japan, to deepen these relationships and find out new opportunities that could lead to a better world through food and health.

2023 has been a fruitful year as Vitagora organized the French & Japanese symposium on fermentation and innovation. This September, another symposium took place in Dijon, the theme being “soil microorganisms’ interactions”. Whilst Vitagora’s efforts mainly concentrate on academic and industrial activities, its links with Japan have also led local institutions to collaborate. In 2023, Dijon metropole and Kumamoto prefecture agreed to a collaboration regarding several aspects, such as industrial collaboration, but also culture, and tourism. 
Vitagora will celebrate its 20 years in 2025 at its annual networking event “Vitaconnect” which will take place on 8 April 2025, but also as a partner for the France pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka.

The cluster will participate in the “Land and food: striving for sustainable production and consumption practices” fortnight, on 13-30 April 2025, and will also hold an “agricultural and agrifood innovation day” with conferences and workshops highlighting goals and challenges of sustainable food. Bourgogne-France-Comté region’s gourmet products will also be showcased with tasting sessions. This mission will gather diverse Vitagora network members, from regional SMEs to national big companies, all involved in food excellence and innovative initiatives to lead to a more sustainable world. It will also be the opportunity for B2B meetings to be held and to develop international partnerships.

Source: Vitagora