Year: 2015

Sixteen European countries are competing for the title of Europe's most innovative food in 2015 on 5 and 6 October at the International Food Exhibition in Milan, Feeding the Planet "Energy for Life".

What will be the food of the future? What will be the main trends and trends in food consumption in Europe?

In October, these questions will be answered with the innovation of 85 university students in the Ecotrophelia Europe competition in Milan. Competitors from Austria, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Denmark, France, Greece, the Netherlands, Iceland, Italy, Croatia, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Hungary and Germany will present attractive, tasty and innovative products to a jury composed of representatives from the same countries. The chairman of the jury is Michel COOMANS, former President of the Food Division of the Ministry of Industry of the European Union. The total value of the prize is 15,000 euros. 

Iceland represents the product Humarpaté or Paté de Langoustine developed by 7 students from the University of Akureyri and the University of Iceland with support from Matís, the Icelandic Innovation Center and the Confederation of Icelandic Industries. 

Studying food innovation increases the competitiveness of companies

Since 2011, the ECOTROPHELIA initiative has organized 75 competitions and mobilized 550 universities and over 3000 students to participate. Forty products, designed within the framework of the European competition, have been developed and placed on the market. ECOTROPHELIA Europe is a study model for universities and students, accredited by the Ministry of Industry of the European Union. The competition combines talent, skills and innovation. It is also a platform for people in teaching, research, production and business to have effective communication.

ECOTROPHELIA Europe is organized by the Chamber of Commerce of the Vaucluse region of France with the support of the food industry associations in France and elsewhere in Europe, including the Confederation of Icelandic Industries. Other sponsors are various public bodies in France and the large companies NESTLÉ World and Campden BRI in the United Kingdom.

PRIZE IN THE ECOTROPHELIA EUROPE COMPETITION will be presented on Tuesday 6 October at the exhibition area of the International Food Exhibition in Milan, Feeding the Planet "Energy for Life".

This article first appeared on the website of the Confederation of Icelandic Industries, www.si.is, where you can get more information.

Signed a co-operation agreement on studies for foreign managers in the international fisheries sector at RU

The Open University of RU and Matís, in collaboration with the Association of Companies in the Fisheries Sector (SFS) and other university and research institutes in Iceland, has established comprehensive studies for foreign managers and specialists in the fisheries sector. Ari Kristinn Jónsson, Rector of Reykjavík University and Sveinn Margeirsson, CEO of Matís, signed a co-operation agreement on the establishment of the Iceland School of Fisheries at RU yesterday.

The Icelandic seafood industry is known for high quality products and responsible fishing. The Iceland School of Fisheries' goal is to share valuable knowledge of Icelandic experts in this field. The course will cover management in the fisheries sector, processing of marine products, marketing and the latest developments in technology and innovation in the fishing industry. Furthermore, fisheries management, regulations, research and monitoring in the fisheries sector will be discussed.

"At Reykjavík University, we have extensive experience of building international studies in areas where Icelanders have expertise. In the development of such studies, collaboration with leading Icelandic companies and institutions is very important and we are therefore very pleased with this agreement with Matís, "said Ari Kristinn Jónsson, Rector of RU. "We have already felt great interest from abroad and we also hope that Icelandic companies will benefit from inviting foreign customers and partners to Iceland School of Fisheries courses to gain expertise in a strong and sustainable fishing industry."

Sveinn Margeirsson, CEO of Matís, emphasizes that the co-operation platform between Matís and Reykjavík University fits in very well with Matís 'operations, as one of Matís' goals is to involve parties in the fisheries sector, whether in Iceland or abroad. In recent years, Matís has taken great strides in increasing foreign co-operation, and it is therefore a matter of great anticipation to participate with RU in building an international, strong management program for parties in the fisheries sector. "With this, we strengthen the knowledge of those who handle the important raw material that fish is and thus ensure increased quality that results in higher prices for the nations that fish," says Sveinn. 

The Iceland School of Fisheries will teach three-week courses this autumn and will include instructors from the Icelandic business community and academia. Speakers include Svein Margeirsson, CEO of Matís; Þór Sigfússon, managing director of Sjávarklasan; Guðbjörg H Guðmundsdóttir, project manager for innovation at Marel; Eggert Benedikt Guðmundsson, former CEO of Grandi; Daði Már Kristófersson, President of the School of Social Sciences at the University of Iceland and Bjarni Már Magnússon, Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Law at RU. Visits will also be made to Icelandic fisheries companies and institutions working in the field of fisheries.

For further information:

• Eiríkur Sigurðsson, Head of Marketing and Communications at RU, tel. +354 859 5117, e-mail eirikursig@hr.is
• Steinar B. Aðalbjörnsson, Marketing Director of Matís, tel. 858 5111, e-mail steinar@matis.is

The Fisheries Conference calls for a futuristic idea to strengthen the Icelandic fisheries sector and related industries. Prize money up to ISK 500 thousand is available.

If you're an inventor, think outside the box, please submit a futuristic idea. Individuals and / or companies can submit ideas or nominate others.
A good opportunity to present good ideas and the following prizes are awarded:

• Prize money will be awarded in the amount of ISK. 500 thous.
• The three best ideas are presented and given special recognition at the Fisheries Conference.
• The best ideas get a booth at the conference to present their ideas.
• More ideas will then be presented in a special conference issue of the Fisheries Conference.
• The 10 best creators get one for free at the conference.

At the Fisheries Conference 2015, there will be five presentations where older avant-garde ideas will be presented and, among other things, how far they have come in development.

The deadline for submitting applications is 1 October next.
 
More information on the conference website under the heading PRIZE

The World Seafood Congress (WSC) 2015 is about to end, but this time the conference is being held in Grimsby, England. At the end of each conference, it will be announced who will hold the next one, and it was just announced that WSC 2017 will be held in Reykjavík on September 10-14, 2017.

It is a great honor to host the WSC, but the conference is very large and draws people from all corners of the fishing industry and fishing, from wild fishing to aquaculture and everything in between. The conference will be attended by members of the fishing industry, fish processing companies, importers, exporters, people from educational institutions, companies and state-run institutions around the world.

Main theme

The main theme of the 2017 conference is growth in the blue bioeconomy, but the blue bioeconomy is a reference to the importance of the ocean where there are significant opportunities for growth, innovation, research, marketing with food safety, food security, sustainability and food integrity as a guiding principle.

Highlights:

• Innovation in the fisheries sector - new products and investment opportunities
• Food safety - a prerequisite for innovation in food production and international food trade
• Food integrity - the fight against fraud in food production and sales in the age of online shopping, food-related tourism and consumers' desire for traceability in food production

For further information, contact Sigrún Elsa Smáradóttir (858-5113) or Steinar B. Aðalbjörnsson (858-5111).

Conference website: www.wsc2017.com
Twitter: @ WSC_2017
Facebook: World Seafood Congress

Work has begun on a new international project for the utilization of grain in the Arctic. The project is funded by the Northern Periphery & Arctic Program and lasts for three years. Participants are from Iceland (Matís and the Agricultural University), Northern Norway, the Faroe Islands, Orkney and Newfoundland.

Training is available to companies

The aim of the project is to increase food production from domestic grain and find new ways to utilize the grain. The intention is also to increase the value of grain production and increase the number of jobs related to grain. Guidelines will be provided on how best to grow grain under different conditions, information on the grain market will be extracted and efforts will be made in the product development of baked goods and beverages in collaboration with companies.

Cross-border information sharing is a key element of the project. Companies in the baking and beverage industry are available to use a variety of information as well as courses and tutoring. Three Icelandic companies in the baking industry are invited to take part in courses and road guidance NOFIMA in Norway. This includes a product development course in the spring of 2016 and a course on marketing in the spring of 2017 as well as consulting during the period. NOFIMA has an advanced experimental bakery and extensive experience in the development of grain products. Beverage manufacturers can take advantage of Orkney's experience in the beverage industry.

Matís requests information from the companies that want to use information sharing in the project. Interested companies are also requested to participate in the courses, but they will be selected on the basis of their expected results. Companies must send information about interest and plans to Ólafur Reykdal at Matís ( olafur.reykdal@matis.is).

The company Villimey slf produces organically certified products from Icelandic herbs that grow in the wild nature of the Westfjords. Villimey's products came on the market in August 2005 and production has been growing in recent years. The products have been well received in Iceland and where they have been introduced abroad.

Villimey bases its operations on the utilization of the resources of Vestur-Barðastrandasýsla, which are pure and unpolluted nature and plants that grow wild in nature. Aðalbjörg Þorsteinsdóttir, owner and managing director of Villimeyjar, uses this purity of nature to produce products from herbs and bases the production on centuries-old recipes that she has developed in line with modern requirements and needs. Villimeyjar's products have become well-known in Iceland and are becoming increasingly popular.

Results from bioactivity studies of Villimey products

In recent months, herbal products produced by Villimey in Tálknafjörður have been studied at Matís' laboratory in Sauðárkrókur and in Reykjavík. The production of the herbal ointments from Villimey is in accordance with the strictest requirements regarding hygiene and quality workmanship. No preservatives are added to the ointments and they meet the requirements generally made for such production. These are natural products that have their natural activity against bacteria. This activity of the ointments was demonstrated by a so-called "Preservative efficiency test (challenge test)", which was carried out in Matís' laboratory. These tests followed the guidelines of the European Pharmacopoeia (7th edition from 2011).

Villimeyjar skin care products have also been tested in a variety of skin cell tests where it is possible to measure the activity of various substances in skin cells and thus find out their effect on the structure of skin cells. The skin cell tests measure the amount of collagen that promotes the development of skin cells, the elastase that causes the skin to degenerate, the metal proteinase 1 that breaks down collagen and the metal proteinase 2 that is necessary for the regeneration of body tissues.

These tests showed a positive effect of Villimey's skin care products on these substances and they either prevent their formation such as elastase and thus counteract the degeneration of the skin or stimulate their production such as collagen and thus contribute to the regeneration of the skin. There was also a considerable positive response of the skin care products in tests that measure their inhibitory effect on inflammation in muscles and joints.

Furthermore, the skin products were found to be effective in healing cells in the epithelium by means of a so-called "Scratch wound healing" test, and their healing effect in this test was found to be significant beyond the untreated criteria.

Antioxidant effects were also measured in Villimeyjar's products, both skin care products and herbal apple cider vinegar, and the antioxidant activity was found to be significantly higher than untreated criteria, and this antioxidant activity can be traced to the herbs used in the products. There was also a significant anti-inflammatory effect of the herbal mixture in the apple cider vinegar.

Matís 'research on Villimey's products has been funded by the V-Barðastrandasýsla Research and Innovation Fund, and Villimey and Matís' fund would like to thank the fund for their important support.

Guðjón Þorkelsson, an employee of Matís, recently received the position of professor at the University of Iceland. Guðjón has taught at the University or all the streets for a long time since 1978. Guðjón studied biology at the University of Iceland where he graduated in 1977 and subsequently studied food science, but Guðjón has a master's degree in food science from the University of Leeds in England where he graduated in 1981. In addition, Guðjón sits on the board of the School of Health Sciences at the University of Iceland.

At Matís, Guðjón oversees everything related to education and food production, and Guðjón is an important connection between Matís and the universities in Iceland. We are very proud of Guðjón's professorship and look forward to tackling future projects together.

Guðjón gave a lecture at a special introductory lecture last week. week, but at the School of Health Sciences at the University of Iceland, the promotion or hiring of new professors is celebrated with such a presentation. The ceremony began with a brief overview of Guðjón's main jobs, but then he took over himself and gave a talk on his work and vision in teaching and research.
 
Matís sincerely congratulates Guðjón on his professorship.