Key Takeaways
- A team from South East Technological University won the 2025 Best Market Discovery Prize for their digital platform, Eye-Q, designed to reduce food waste.
- The Eye-Q technology enables better decision-making for businesses and consumers, addressing food loss throughout the supply chain.
- The award recognition underscores Ireland’s role in advancing sustainable agri-food solutions and highlights effective collaboration in research.
Innovative Technology to Combat Food Waste
An Irish research team at South East Technological University (SETU) has developed a digital platform named Eye-Q that effectively addresses food waste in the supply chain. This innovation has earned the team the prestigious 2025 Best Market Discovery Prize within the ‘Fair & Resilient Food System Mission’ category of the European Institute of Technology (EIT) Food Seedbed Incubator Programme.
The Seedbed Incubator is a six-month initiative aimed at helping scientific innovations tackle global food challenges by transforming them into viable market solutions. Eye-Q leverages an intuitive platform that aids stakeholders—ranging from businesses to consumers—in making informed decisions to minimize food waste across various stages of the agri-food supply chain.
Dr Ultan McCarthy from the Department of Land Sciences at SETU expressed enthusiasm over the win, noting that the program connected the Eye-Q team with a global network engaged in food waste reduction while facilitating the platform’s development for wider impact. This recognition highlights Eye-Q’s alignment with major sustainability objectives and food security efforts.
Eleanor Kent, head of the Department of Land Sciences at SETU, emphasized that Eye-Q aligns with the institution’s mission of promoting sustainable agriculture, biodiversity, and environmental stewardship. She remarked on the project’s potential to address critical global issues effectively through applied research that delivers significant economic, environmental, and social benefits.
Dr James O’Sullivan, SETU’s Head of Innovation and Commercialisation, noted that the award signifies the innovation capacity within SETU’s research community, showcasing the benefits of collaboration between researchers and the support systems in place for commercialization.
The success of Eye-Q not only reflects advancement in technology but also emphasizes Ireland’s growing status as a leader in sustainable agri-food innovation. The initiative demonstrates how research, collaborative efforts, and digital transformation can yield impactful real-world solutions in the ongoing battle against food waste.
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