Agrotechnology and IRBLleida promote an internal call for joint research in the fields of agriculture and health

The World Health Organisation has recently stated that "by working together, the health and agriculture sectors can provide a safe and nutritious food supply that contributes to good health and well-being and fosters healthy communities and economies". For this reason, the Agrotechnology Research Centre Foundation Agrotecnio and the Biomedical Research Institute of Lleida Dr. Pifarré Foundation (IRBLleida), with the support of the Department of Climate Action, Food and Rural Agenda of the Generalitat de Catalunya, are launching the first call for joint research projects in agriculture, food, nutrition and health: AgroHealth 2022.

This call will support collaborative projects that push the boundaries of knowledge and unite agriculture, in its broadest sense, with biomedical research. According to the terms and conditions of the call, published on the websites of the research centres, AgroHealth 2022 will be able to fund a maximum of three joint proposals with a budget of up to 45,000 euros per project, with a maximum duration of two years. Likewise, at least one research group from Agrotecnio and another from IRBLleida will have to participate in the initiatives, aiming to create new collaborations that can be maintained after their completion. The call will be open from 15 May to 15 June 2022.

With regard to the topics, the projects must focus on medical needs such as obesity, diabetes or metabolic syndrome, among others, and the reduction of harmful residues of food ingredients, the impact of nutritional intervention on disease or the interactions between nutrients and nothing.

According to Agrotecnio's director, Ignacio Romagosa, "we hope that the collaborations that have emerged between our CERCA centres will lay the foundations for a multidisciplinary model where agriculture and health go hand in hand, given their important links".

For his part, the director of IRBLleida, Diego Arango, believes that "this type of initiative is essential to create synergies between the research staff of Agrotecnio and IRBLleida, which will open up new ways to promote research in the region".

Finally, the Secretary for Food of the Government of Catalonia, Carmel Mòdol, added that: "for the Department of Climate Action it is important that centres of excellence such as Agrotecnio and IRBLleida initiate research collaborations, as their advances will help to make Catalonia more innovative and healthy".