On 10 July 2026, the event “BioTech2Agri Meets Businesses: Innovation and Cross-Border Opportunities” took place at the Udine Exhibition Centre. Organised within the framework of the BioTech2Agri project, the event was dedicated to SMEs benefiting from the Innovation Coin scheme.
The initiative represented Service 4 – Cross-Border Networking Event, the final stage of the Innovation Coin pathway, which supported participating SMEs through services focused on technical feasibility assessment, business model development, funding opportunities and, ultimately, the creation of new connections and collaborations among businesses, project partners, universities and experts.
The event offered participants the opportunity to explore concrete examples of innovation applied to the agri-food and biotechnology sectors. Among them, the UNITED project, presented by Prof. Stella Plazzotta from the University of Udine, showcased how agri-food waste and by-products can be transformed into new resources through innovative biotechnological solutions and circular economy approaches.
A further contribution came from LabDerma, a Slovenian company specialising in the development of innovative cosmetic products. Through the presentation delivered by Anja Rijavec, participants gained insight into the process that takes an idea from concept to market-ready product, highlighting the importance of research, testing, validation, safety and regulatory compliance.
Special attention was also given to innovation financing. Presentations by CiviBank – Sparkasse Group and Finreco provided an overview of the opportunities available to SMEs, illustrating how financial instruments, guarantees and specialised support services can facilitate new investments and innovative projects.
The key moment of the event was the interactive networking session, during which Italian and Slovenian companies discussed common innovation-related challenges. Through facilitated working tables, participants exchanged ideas and explored possible solutions concerning by-product valorisation, the transition from idea to market, the search for skills and strategic partnerships, and the economic sustainability of innovation processes.
The direct exchange among businesses, researchers and experts helped identify shared interests, collaboration opportunities and new synergies, confirming the value of networking as a tool to foster innovation and support the development of future projects.
Service 4 therefore marks the conclusion of the Innovation Coin pathway. The final event represented not only an opportunity to share the results achieved, but also a concrete occasion to strengthen cross-border dialogue and lay the foundations for future collaborations among businesses, research institutions and local innovation ecosystems.
