Brussels, 21/06/2012 (Agence Europe) - Three co-operatives were awarded prizes on Wednesday 20 June for the role that they have played in the field of innovation. COGECA (European agri-cooperatives) organised the European award for cooperative innovation 2012 ceremony in the European Parliament.
The first award in the food processing category was presented by MEP Christel Schaldemose (S&D, Denmark) to the Danish dairy cooperative Naturmaelk for its new healthy, refreshing organic protein drink for athletes, joggers and elderly people during rehabilitation. The product is based on whey and offers a healthy alternative to other energy drinks in a market where demand is great and steadily increasing. Naturmaelk is expecting high success from this new product.
The second award for innovative achievements in sustainability and resource efficiency was presented by MEP Michel Dantin (EPP, France) to the French cooperative Terrena for its satellite-based IT system “Ecologically Intensive Agriculture” which has tailor-made software systems to support precision farming and better coordination in decision-making through a wider choice base. This enables a more efficient use of resources, cost savings and better farm profitability.
The third award for innovative achievements in cooperative entrepreneurship/member service was presented by MEP Britta Reimers (ALDE, Germany) to the German cooperative ZG Raiffeisen for an incentive scheme to reward loyalty for transactions, as well as for capital participation, combined with new services and training of young members.
COGECA President Paolo Bruni explained that “we received a good number of applications for this highly prestigious award this year which aims to promote innovation and show how creative and innovative European agricultural cooperatives are. It also aims to encourage other cooperatives to improve their competitiveness and positioning in the food chain and to create more innovative products”. (LC/transl.fl)