National Agriculture and Food Centre – Food Research Institute, Slovak Republic

Description of the expertise offered

Food Research Institute (FRI) has expertise in human nutrition optimization, rapid methods for identification of pathogenic bacteria, allergens and species identification via PCR and other up to date methods in many foods (cheese, wine). FRI is skilled in analytical methods for the determination of contaminants, food additives, natural toxicants, for authentication and adulteration of food, in elimination and minimization of toxic processing contaminants (acrylamide, furan). The department of FRI – Biocentre is designed to fulfil processing experiments with small production of biologically active substances of plant origin (e.g. β- glucans, β- carotenes), fermentation, ultrafiltration, up and down stream processing. FRI cooperated several projects of fundamental or applied research of national and international character in the above mentioned fields as a principal investigator or a cooperating organisation, hence it gained essential experience and competence. Some of the projects were aimed on the building and development of the infrastructure and instrumental base, so that the organisation disposes of the modern devices for physico-chemical and molecular biology methods of food analysis, such as HPLC/QQQ, HPLC/Q/TOF, GC/QQQ, EPR, UV/VIS/NIR and AAS spectrometer, GC for olfactometry, texturometer, gas permeability analyzer, dough rheology analyzer, devices for processing cereals, such as mill, granary, sieve and others, PCR cyclers, TGGE, PFGE, DGGE, capillary, horizontal, column and cooled electrophoresis, etc. The department Biocentre is equipped with the fermenters up to 1400 L, flow and discontinual separators, decanters, membrane and other filters, adsorption columns, high pressure homogenisator, extractors, vacuum evaporators, rectification column, reverse osmosis, molecular distillation, vibro fluid and spray dryer and lyophilisator.

Potential Contribution to the Project Proposal

• Capacity Building
• Dissemination and Outreach
• Hosting/Sending Secondments
• Innovation
• Networking
• Prototype / Model
• Research development

Relevant work programme

• Climate action, environment, resource efficiency and raw materials
• Europe in a changing world - inclusive, innovative and reflective Societies
• European Research Council
• Food security, sustainable agriculture and forestry, marine and maritime and inland water research
• Health, demographic change and wellbeing
• Marie Sklodowska-Curie actions
• Nanotechnologies, advanced materials, advanced manufacturing and processing, biotechnology
• Research infrastructures
• Science with and for Society
• Space

Former participation in FP or other international cooperation projects

Projects of FRI from 2000 Framework programme projects ­- Validation and standardisation of diagnostic polymerase chain reaction for detection of food-borne pathogens (FOOD-PCR), FP5, 2000-2003 ­- Development of Quantitative and Qualitative Molecular Biological Methods to Identify Plant and Animal Species in Foods (MolSpec-ID), FP5, 2001-2004 ­- Chemical Food Safety Network for the enlarging Europe (SAFEFOODNET), FP6, 2005-2006 ­- European Food Information Resource Network (EuroFIR), FP6, 01/2005-06/2010 ­- Improved bio-traceability of unintended microorganisms and their substances in food and feed chains (BIOTRACE IP), FP6, 2007-2011 ­- The EuroFIR Food Platform: Further integration, refinement and exploitation for its long-term self-sustainability (EuroFIR Nexus), FP7, 04/2011-03/2013 ­- Safe Food for Europe – Coordination of research activities and Dissemination of research results of EC funded research on food safety (FOODSEG), FP7, 05/2011-04/2014 ­- Protection of consumers by microbial risk mitigation through combating segregation of expertise (PROMISE), FP7, 2012-2014 ­- Securing the spices and herbs commodity chains in Europe against deliberate, accidental ornatural biological and chemical contamination (SPICED), FP7, 07/2013-06/2016 Other EC projects ­- Comparative analysis of existing data on nutrition and lifestyle of the ageing population in Europe, especially in the „new” baltic, central and eastern regions of the community (Ageing Nutrition), project funded by EC, 05/2004-08/2006 ­- Expansion of the DAFNE databank to new European Member States: Data Food Networking, based on household budget surveys (DAFNE), project funded by EC, 01/2005-06/2007 ­- Dissemination of food research results to consumer groups, health professionals and the food industry, Flair-Flow Europe IV, 2001-2003 COST projects ­- Thermally processed foods: possible health implications, COST Action 927, 05/2004-05/2009 FAO projects ­- Central and Eastern European Food Data Systems (CEECFOODS), project funded by FAO, 1999-2001 ­- European Food Consumption Survey Method (EFCOSUM), project funded by FAO, 1999-2001 ­- Strengthening Food Quality Control (TCP/SLO 8921), project funded by FAO, 1999-2001 EFSA projects ­- DPPA/EFSA/DATEX/2008 – Compilation of existing individual food consumption data collected within the most recent national dietary surveys in Europe, project funded by EFSA, 12/2008-11/2009 ­- CFP/EFSA/DATEX/2009/01 – Electronic Transmission of Chemical Occurrence Data, project funded by EFSA, 11/2009-03/2011 ­- Pilot project on the implementation of FoodEx2 as part of the Standard Sample Description for the electronic transmission of harmonised chemical occurrence data to EFSA, project funded by EFSA, 07/2012-03/2013 Hungary-Slovakia Cross-Border Co-operation Programme 2007-2013 ­- Utilization of regional sources for functional food production, 10/2010-12/2012 Slovak Aid projects ­- Assistance at implementing the EU hygiene standards in small enterprises and farm food production, Serbia, 03/2006 – 12/2006 ­- Training and assistance to ecological farming and production of ecological food products in the region of Bac, Serbia, 11/2007-12/2009 ­- Increasing hygiene and quality at milk processing under the conditions of small farmers and small processing units, Serbia, 10/2008 – 12/2009 Europe Aid projects ­- Vocational excellence ensuring food product safety, consumer protection and competitiveness in Western Balkans, 12/2010-11/2012 Leonardo da Vinci – student exchange programme participation ­- Connecting Theory with Practice: European Mobility of University Graduates for Training Purposes, Greece, 01/2013 – 05/2014

Organisation and country

National Agriculture and Food Centre - Food Research Institute, Slovak Republic

Type of organisation

• Research institute

Web address

www.vup.sk, www.nppc.sk

Description of the organisation

Food Research Institute (FRI) was established in 1950 by the Ministry of Agriculture of the Slovak Republic as a state non-profit organization. By the 1st January 2014 it became the part of the National Agricultural and Food Centre, the organisation established by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Slovak Republic. As of the 1st March 2016 the former Research Institute of Viticulture and Enology (RIVE), a part of the National Agricultural and Food Centre, was affiliated to FRI as its organic part. FRI thus continues in the traditional activities of RIVE. The main activities of FRI are: ■ Basic and applied research and development in the fields of food chemistry, analysis and technology, analytical chemistry, microbiology, molecular biology, biotechnology, genetics, food hygiene and sanitation processes and food informatics, such as: - development of new analytical, microbiological and molecular-biological methods for food safety control, determination and identification of pathogens, autochonnous microflora, GMO and allergens, authentification and determination of food adulteration - evaluation of processes occuring in food during production and storage - study of the behavior and mutual interactions of food ingredients aimed on clarification of the mechanisms of formation and elimination of substances with adverse effects on human health - evaluation and monitoring of processes and practices affecting food safety - research in the area of good hygiene practices and sanitation systems - development of new/innovative food production/technological processes - procedures of obtaining food additives and technologies for obtaining natural concentrates - pilot plant verification of food and biotechnological production technologies - modelling of nutrition and creation of food databases. ■ Other related activities: - consultancy, training activities and laboratory testing, especially in the field of food technology and its verification, sanitation procedures and human nutrition - education activities – education of students within the accredited PhD programme „chemistry and technology of foodstuffs“ in cooperation with Slovak Technical University or as the supervisors or supervisor-consultants of PhD students - edition and publishing activities – FRI publishes the only Slovak peer reviewed scientific journal in the field of food research and technology, the Journal of Food and Nutrition Research (JFNR), indexed in the databases as Current Contents, SCOPUS or SCI. JFNR publishes papers focusing on fundamental and applied research in chemistry, physics, microbiology, nutrition aspects, bioactivity, quality, safety, and technology of foods. Impact factor 2015 = 1,676. FRI also publishes the special-purpose periodicum of the Ministry of Agricultutre and Rural Development of the Slovak Republic, Trendy v potravinárstve (Trends in Food Industry), focused on the actual knowledge in the field of food science on the domestic and international level. In 2015 one number was issued. - Food Composition Database – established in 1976 as the Food Section of the Central Data Bank of the Ministry of Agriculture and Nutrition of the Slovak Republic and later on became the coordination centre for the net of databases of Middle and Eastern Europe. Besides Besides data collection, documentation and compilation, it provides outputs for users and thus application of the food composition data in different ways and areas (nutrition, health, school education, etc.), including e.g. nutrition and energy value calculations for individual foodstuffs or consultancy on food labelling, purchase of the full version database, printed Food Tables or the software Alimenta, which enables also e.g. also creation of specific diet models. The part of the database is accessible online free of charge at the website http://www.pbd-online.sk/en.

Are you contributor or participant?

• Are you looking for participation in project proposal as a partner?

Organisation details

• Academic
• Enterprise
• Public Body
• Research institute
• SME

Target Partner Country

• Any Country

Contact person

Marcela Matulova

Telephone

+421250237039

E-mail

matulova@vup.sk

Country

Slovak Republic