The food industry is fully aware that the production and consumption of its products (a farm-to-fork approach) also have environmental implications. For this reason, and to ensure long-term sustainability, the European and Spanish food sectors aim for continuous improvement in the environmental performance of their products and processes, while meeting consumer needs in other areas such as food safety, nutrition, and health. New technologies offer innovative solutions in this field, from process monitoring and control to non-invasive product analysis.

What is food sustainability?

The reduction of biodiversity limits the possibility of a rich and varied diet, but even more importantly, it compromises the natural resources of future generations. Given that 40% of the Earth's land surface is used for agriculture, farmers bear a great responsibility for protecting biodiversity.

According to the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations), a sustainable food system consists of Using resources efficiently at all stages, from field to table: optimizing food production processes; converting waste products into fertilizer or energy; and, as consumers, minimizing food waste”.

The fundamental premises for food sustainability

• Choose and consume local and seasonal foods
• Take an interest in and use terrestrial and aquatic biodiversity sustainably to ensure its continuity.
• If you are a farmer, plan the irrigation and fertilization of your crops.
• Utilizar las nuevas tecnologías para mejorar la eficiencia de los cultivos.

Ciudades como centros de alimentos sostenibles

Although they occupy barely three percent of the Earth's land surface, they are home to some 3.5 billion people. Cities can play a key role in preserving biodiversity.

The goal for sustainable food is the development of projects based on social, environmental and economic factors.

Some of the possible courses of action would be:

• Connecting the city with its surroundings, through the use of ICTs (Information and Communication Technologies) to bring together farmers, citizens and businesses to discuss important issues such as supplying the city, presenting regional products or how to minimize the carbon footprint from transportation.
• Highlighting the healthy aspects of food, with proposals such as delicious and healthy food in schools through dissemination and awareness through blogs, social networks, influencers...and in this way reach awareness among both parents and children.
• Using food as a social factor, promoting projects such as the "week of flavors" in which producers, catering companies and food stores present regional products to citizens and thus create a social union of great importance.

Allergies and intolerances due to poor food quality?

An allergy is an adverse reaction that occurs in an individual after ingesting, coming into contact with, or inhaling a food due to the production of antibodies by their immune system.

Food intolerance is the inability to digest and metabolize a food.

In Europe, more than 17 million people suffer from food allergies, with a significant increase among children and young people. These food allergies are the leading cause of anaphylaxis in children between the ages of 0 and 14.

Allergen information table

These allergies can be caused by multiple factors such as genetic predisposition, pollution in cities, medications… but they are also caused by foods with preservatives, colorings, and other chemicals in the food, so one way to limit these conditions is through an organic and sustainable diet.

SOLTEL has created an Android application with a database of gluten-free items for celiacs.

More information: https://soltel-glutenfreelist.softonic.com/android

Examples of success stories

Large technological platforms already exist to communicate and raise awareness among citizens about the importance of sustainable agriculture. This platform is made up of associations and companies representing the entire Spanish agri-food sector.

More information: http://www.agriculturasostenible.org/v_portal/informacion/informacionver.asp?cod=7632&te=26&idage=11163&vap=0

EIT Food is a European consortium focused on collaboration and innovation in the food sector. It comprises over 50 partners from leading companies, research centers, and universities across 13 countries. One of its main objectives is to improve food sustainability, among other goals, such as creating healthier food for consumers and building a more connected and consumer-centric food system.

More information: https://eit.europa.eu/eit-community/eit-food

Citizens are also becoming increasingly aware of the importance of food sustainability; examples of this can be found on social media.

There are already Twitter users and bloggers advocating for food activism that reaches hundreds of users and seeks to teach and raise awareness about a healthier life while caring for the environment.

More info: https://twitter.com/aalimentario?lang=es

More information: http://blog.tiching.com/7-interesantes-recursos-sobre-soberania-alimentaria/

SOLTEL Group has several projects that support food sustainability models, such as the SACROPS project, which focuses on improving crop efficiency by preventing waste due to early or late harvesting and ensuring harvesting under optimal quality conditions. This makes farming both more efficient and more sustainable.

More information: http://www.soltel.es/sacrops/

In addition to projects with olives, SOLTEL is also working with other crops such as tomatoes and grapes to create more sustainable processes.

SOLTEL's HYQUM project uses spectral technology to optimize the meat selection process, thus avoiding unnecessary product waste, preventing large-scale contamination of perfectly consumable products, and creating a more efficient process while minimizing food waste.

More information: http://www.soltel.es/exito-del-proyecto-hyqum/

In conclusion, SOLTEL collaborates with various partners in the agri-food sector in the development of innovative solutions that use new technologies to improve sustainability and food safety in the production of different foods, especially in agriculture and the meat industry.

In the agricultural sector, SOLTEL provides a technological platform for data management in crop monitoring projects, controlling variables such as fruit maturity, water stress, soil parameters, and early detection of pests and diseases. The goal is to optimize the use of inputs (water, fertilizers, and plant protection products) and agricultural practices, especially determining the optimal harvest time, to improve the sustainability of farms in terms of both economics and environmental impact. In the meat industry, SOLTEL collaborates on projects for the automation and control of tasks involving the detection of foreign bodies and microbiological contamination using non-invasive, real-time techniques, improving the quality of the final product and food safety.

Finally, the R&D department is working on the continuous improvement of these solutions and the creation of new ones, and we are open to collaboration with companies and universities.