Cooperative business models for bio-based chains in rural areas

Aiming at increasing farmers income and to be fully aligned with the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) while addressing also Green Deal and Bioeconomy Strategy objectives, BRILIAN will support the adoption of sustainable cooperative business models in rural areas. These business models will enhance rural development, biodiversity preservation and climate-neutrality.

For that, BRILIAN will implement a multi-actor approach for the validation of a group of Actions for the Bio Innovation (ABI) both at macro and micro level.The Actions for the Bio-Innovation are ABI 1. Forging robust rural bio-communities. ABI 2. Achieving circularity and sustainability. ABI 3. Integration of short supply chains and ABI 4.

Production of value-added bioproducts. Therefore, BRILIAN innovations will allow primary producers to diversify their incomes while reducing risks. These ABI will be particularized for 3 pilots in Italy, Spain and Denmark.

Within these pilots, a set of business models will be enhanced and tested for the validation of 10 value chains. 6 in Italy, 2 in Spain and 2 in Denmark.

BRILIAN pilots will make use of existing rural infrastructures but implementing adaptations to the current main processes and contractual agreements between actors.

To strength that, business model design aproaches will be supported by modules dealing with logistic, organizational and sustainability factors weighted in the BRILIAN optimization toolkit, a toolkit based on complex models which will provide support for the design and optimization of biobased value chains, putting primary producers in the centre.

As a result, BRILIAN will set long-term strategies for the adoption of cooperative business models in EU, facilitated by the generation of 11 key exploitable results during the project, including Technical, Socioeconomic, Policy & regulation and Academic ones. The implementation of such an ambitious project requires of a consortium of 13 partners with 11 BIC members.