#WeValueFood will engage with students from primary, secondary and tertiary education all over Europe, as well as parents, educators, and representatives from the European agri-food industry.
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About WeValueFood
#WeValueFood has engaged with students from primary, secondary and tertiary education all over Europe, as well as parents, educators, and representatives from the European agri-food industry.
WeValueFood has tackled the erosion of society’s engagement with our food by:
- Providing a pan-European online inventory of existing educational resources to help teachers engage students on the topic of food
- Creating new tools and strategies for educating students from a primary, secondary and tertiary level about food
- Modifying and scaling up food engagement tools particularly in regions where levels of food disengagement are high and young people lack knowledge about food
- Helping the food industry learn how to engage with next-generation consumers in a positive and healthy way
- Inspiring a community of European Food Champions, a network of food-savvy young consumers who will share their food values via peer-to-peer communication
- Working together with high-profile Food Stars (e.g. chefs and social media influencers) to spread the WeValueFood message
WeValueFood has focussed on five areas of food knowledge:
Why WeValueFood
With society facing major problems in terms of obesity, food waste and the environment, the need for next-generation consumers to make improved food choices has never been more important. Unfortunately, we are also facing decreasing levels of engagement and knowledge about our food, particularly among our youth. It is difficult to encourage the next generation to make improved food choices if their engagement and comprehension of food is poor. Through closer links between consumers and the food industry, next-generation consumer food choices and values will lead to product differentiation and added value, ensuring a thriving European agri-food economy.
By engaging the next generation of European consumers, WeValueFood has helped to establish a society that is more knowledgeable and discerning about where food comes from and how it affects our health and the planet.
Project information
WeValueFood was a 2-year grand challenge project funded by EIT involving 12 European partners from education, academia and industry, communication sectors. The project ran from 2019-2020 and is led by Queen’s University Belfast.
Food Champions
WeValueFood has developed a network of food-savvy young consumers, called 'Food Champions'. These Food Champions were recruited from the UK, Spain and Iceland, and inspired their peers through sharing food-related information on social media and school networks. This way, they contributed towards a society that is more knowledgeable and engaged with matters around our food, health and planet.
Food Champions Press ReleaseIntroducing the Food Champions
In the video underneath, the Spanish Food Champions introduce themselves, the reason why they decided to join the WeValueFood project, and their project activities.
Events
28 November 2020 - Food Champions Weekend, Spain
During the last stage of the WeValueFood project, project partners IMDEA Food and UAM coordinated an online closing event for the Food Champions. At this event, Food Champions presented their project activities and shared how to communicate online about science and knowledge about food to the general public. After, they participated in an online cooking workshop led by chefs of BCCInnovations, followed by a virtual beer workshop.
19 November 2020 - WeValueFood Workshop: The Next Generation Influencers, Belgium
In collaboration with FoodAmbassadors and FoodUnfolded, both EIT Food projects, project partner EUFIC organised an online workshop to bring together established influencers and Food Champions, beginner influencers. The workshop was an opportunity to exchange knowledge about sustainability communication in the realm of food and health.
10 November 2020 - WeValueFood Dialogue, Italy
WeValueFood project partner UniTo organised an online event for over 400 participants to create a dialogue about the value of food, health and the environment.
19 October 2020 - Pre-Sharper Night Event, Italy
As a pre-event for the European Researchers' Night, project partner UniTo organised an online event within the context of the WeValueFood project. Among the speakers, was Italian Michelin starred chef Michele Griglio, who shared his international experiences with different foods and cultures.
3-4 December 2019 - 1st WeValueFood conference, Warsaw
The 2019 conference brought together a range of international speakers from research, education and industry sectors. Early stage researchers presented the latest project results and exchanged ideas around the main question: “How to engage the next generation consumers on food values?” The following key themes were explored:
- The latest research on food engagement
- Successful tools and strategies from around the world
- The role of social media
- Practical demonstrations
- How industry can learn to communicate with next generation consumers
