Development and implementation of an approach for promoting technology transfer in agri-food

This work explores the role of universities in strengthening entrepreneurship and knowledge transfer from academia to industry, specifically focusing on the agri-food sector. It presents a novel methodological approach to support entrepreneurship, valorising academic knowledge and agri-food technology, ultimately, fostering university-industry cooperation (UIC). The study also examines the positive side effects of promoting technology transfer and the market impact of university research resulting from participation in pre-acceleration programs. The findings indicate that the approach effectively promoted entrepreneurship, facilitated technology transfer, initiated new industry-university co-development projects, and improved stakeholder communication. Furthermore, the study reveals that academic entrepreneurship led to several technology transfer conduits besides the creation of spinoffs. It highlights regional innovation challenges, including the need for crucial innovation ecosystem actors, and specific knowledge and tech transfer barriers in agri-food biotechnology. These barriers include the emergence of market-aligned research lines and the development of business competencies among researchers.