The Øresund Region (ØR) is confronted with major societal challenges. The future food supply chain and distribution have to be more efficient and sustainable. To minimize future public spending on health care food has to be healthy and tasty. The food sector in ØR is of crucial importance for the regional economy. The production is covered by a number of SME's and few large companies. Innovation within the food industry is low with few start-up companies and spin-off's from existing companies. There is also low level of technology transfer and knowledge sharing. Compared with ICT and biotech, the number of start-up companies within food is much lower. Therefore, it is time for a transformation from the traditional food industry and low technology culture into a new innovation driven, high-tech culture with new business models.

To catalyze regional economic growth within the food sector it is important to increase knowledge sharing, innovative conditions and support for entrepreneurs. Along with an increasing focus on added-value-products, this will develop ØR into an innovative environment with increasing investments and growth in number of employees. Moreover, the opportunities for being competitive on the global scene must be improved. These challenges need to be solved by all influential organisations in ØR; Universities, innovation organisations, industry, interest organisations/trade associations, public authorities, etc.

Øresund Region is the one of the leading European R&D regions within food with world leading universities and companies. However, ØR is not branded as such a world-class cluster and the international awareness of all the great opportunities is low. To put strong efforts in an strong international marketing campaign will lead to higher awareness among leading international R&D companies and investors resulting in more investments in ØR.

The new EU initiative, KIC (Knowledge and Innovation Communities) organised by EIT (European Institute of Innovation and Technology) will be a unique springboard for this transformation process.

A location of a Food KIC in ØR with one co-location centre at each side of Øresund is the overall objective of this project. This will be the first initiative within the food sector where all important actors on both sides of Øresund will be unified and act as one region in attracting a major international institution. To organise ØR as a strong international actor and candidate for the Food KIC wil thus be a subsidiary objective of this project. Most probably  the Food KIC will be announced by EIT in the summer 2011.

Three scenarios are connected to this project:

Scenario A: Food KIC is announced and will be located in ØR
Scenario B: Food KIC is announced and will not be located in Øresund
Scenario C: Food KIC will not be announced within the deadline of this project    

It is important to notice that the work prior to the KIC-application will create so many important and positive side effects that the strengthening of the food sector in ØR will be substantial even if the Food KIC won't be located in ØR. Thus, this project will improve the development potential and innovation system of the food sector resulting in higher profitability and more employees within high technology and R&D.

The process of attracting Food KIC to ØR is very complex and connected with a profound and long term working effort. It will require regional consensus, international and national marketing, EU-lobbyism, and regional models for innovation and public private partnerships designed for the future challenges within the food sector in ØR and KIC. Therefore, the development of the candidature of ØR for the Food KIC shall be initiated as soon as possible.