Research for better food
Minister for economics in lower saxony Jörg Bode visits the DIL in Quakenbrück
As is known, the German Institute of Food Technologies (DIL) is a research organization that strives for improving our foods and for streamlining the way they are produced. It is less known that the DIL is not a public body but rather an independent organization in the form of a registered association representing about 140 member companies from the food area. With an annual turnover of more than EUR 7m, the institute handles a significant share of the research expenditures of these companies.
Despite the fact that the food industry ranks fourth among the manufacturing industries in Germany, the companies spend only 0.2% of their turnover for research and development (R&D). For comparison: The automotive industry dedicates 5% to this task.
This was reason enough for the Minister for Economics in Lower Saxony Jörg Bode to visit the DIL and to learn more about the possibilities on how to increase the R&D share for this industrial sector that is of high significance for the Federal State because in Lower Saxony, the food industry ranks second right after the automotive industry.
Accompanied by Petra Fischer, leader of the FDP Ortsverband Artland (chapter of the liberal party in the rural district of Artland), and Frank Diekel, chairman of the FDP in the Samtgemeinderat Artland (parliamentary liberal party group of the rural district council Artland), Minister Bode saw for himself the variety and width of the DIL's activities. “We are the only institute in the world offering services for the food industry from the test tube to the ready-to-operate industrial equipment," explained Dr. Volker Heinz, head of the DIL. He added: “Theoretical knowledge does not help the enterprises. Together with us our customers create innovations that increase the competitiveness of the industry on a global scale."
The minister was pleased that it has been possible to establish a research institute as the DIL permanently in Lower Saxony because of the locational advantage for the Federal State. “Research and development are of vital importance for the efficient production of high quality and appealing products from domestic raw materials, in particular under consideration of the global competition.” Bode explained that the cooperation between the food industry and the research is supported sustainably by the state government with numerous accompanying measures. The DIL is an excellent example for how state funds used in a public private partnership situation can be multiplied for the benefit of companies and consumers alike.
During the tour through the institute, the minister was very interested in DIL’s proprietary ELCRACK® technology for the “cold” degermination of liquids that is already used in many countries around the globe.
