As EXCEL4MED approaches the conclusion of its journey, Koperattivi Malta looks back on several years of collaboration, learning and action that brought the principles of sustainability, innovation and circularity closer to communities across Malta.

Funded through the European Union’s Horizon Europe programme, EXCEL4MED was established to strengthen innovation ecosystems around Mediterranean fruit supply chains, particularly in Malta and Greece. Its work explored how agricultural and food-industry side-streams, including citrus and pomegranate by-products, can be transformed into new opportunities rather than simply treated as waste. The project also sought to connect research, businesses, consumers, policymakers and producers while creating conditions in which innovative ideas could move closer to practical implementation.

 

For Koperattivi Malta, participation in EXCEL4MED was therefore about more than being part of an international research consortium. Our role was to help bring the project into the Maltese community: connecting its research to people, creating spaces for discussion and learning, engaging younger generations, communicating its results and helping translate its ambitions into initiatives with the potential to continue beyond the lifetime of the project.

From the early stages of EXCEL4MED, stakeholder participation was an essential element of the project. Koperattivi Malta contributed to discussions aimed at understanding consumer behaviour, the challenges facing Mediterranean food supply chains and the conditions needed for innovation to take place. In May 2023, for example, Koperattivi Malta was among the Maltese organisations consulted during the development of the project’s consumer research, helping identify questions and issues that should be explored from the consumer perspective.

Throughout the project, Malta also hosted Living Labs and co-creation activities bringing together stakeholders from different parts of the food ecosystem. These spaces allowed farmers, researchers, industry representatives, consumers and other actors to exchange experiences and consider how Mediterranean food systems could become more sustainable, innovative and resilient.

One of Koperattivi Malta’s most important contributions was helping ensure that EXCEL4MED did not remain confined to research institutions and project meetings. We actively brought the project to public events, educational institutions and community spaces, explaining complex ideas such as circular food systems, food-waste valorisation and green technologies in a way that people could connect with in their everyday lives.

At Festa Ikel Malti in October 2024, Koperattivi Malta joined other Maltese EXCEL4MED partners in an interactive project presence at the Pitkali Vegetable Market. The wider event attracted around 50,000 visitors, providing an important opportunity to speak directly with the public about local agriculture, sustainable food systems and the objectives of EXCEL4MED.

In November 2024, Koperattivi Malta also presented EXCEL4MED to students at the Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology (MCAST), extending the project’s reach to young people preparing to enter
In January 2025, approximately 400 primary and secondary students from 12 classrooms at San Anton School engaged with EXCEL4MED through the school’s Food for Thought: A Human Library Experience. Students explored themes including food waste, sustainability, local food, innovation and the role of green technologies in the Mediterranean food system.

The collaboration continued in April 2025 when Koperattivi Malta returned to San Anton School together with Professor Ruben Gatt from the University of Malta. This time, students were introduced to the science behind the project through practical experiments showing how agricultural by-products such as citrus and pomegranate waste can potentially be transformed into useful ingredients and products.

Further outreach was carried out at St Monica School in Birkirkara, where 28 primary-school students participated in an interactive activity about food, innovation and waste. Koperattivi Malta continued expanding this educational work during the project’s final stages, including further engagement with schools such as Chiswick House School.

At the University of Malta Farmers’ Market, Koperattivi Malta represented EXCEL4MED through an outreach activity centred on citrus, local produce and food waste. Visitors were invited to participate in a short questionnaire, which received 34 responses.

Among those respondents, approximately 91% identified overbuying as the biggest contributor to household food waste. Participants also mentioned food expiring before use, preparing excessive quantities, insufficient meal planning and uncertainty about how to reuse leftovers and food by-products. While the exercise was not based on a predetermined scientific sampling method, it offered a useful snapshot of the everyday barriers consumers associate with reducing food waste.

One of the largest public moments of Koperattivi Malta’s involvement came during Malta AgriFair 2026, held between 17 and 19 April. Koperattivi Malta led EXCEL4MED’s participation, supported by the project’s other Maltese partners, including the University of Malta, Malta Food Agency, Malta Enterprise and Mġarr Farming. Across the three-day event, EXCEL4MED brought the conversation about agricultural side-streams directly to farmers, students, families, researchers and industry representatives. More than 20,000 people attended AgriFair, while over 3,000 schoolchildren had the opportunity to encounter the EXCEL4MED exhibition. Citrus waste became a practical starting point for discussing a much bigger idea: materials commonly considered waste can have another life when research, technology and entrepreneurship come together.

Perhaps the most tangible outcome of Koperattivi Malta’s EXCEL4MED journey is The Food Coop. Opened in October 2025, The Food Coop emerged directly from research, stakeholder discussions and consumer insights developed through EXCEL4MED. These conversations highlighted challenges surrounding access to fresh, sustainable and fairly priced Mediterranean produce, while pointing towards the potential of models that connect consumers more directly with producers. The Food Coop was created as a community-based cooperative initiative designed to shorten supply chains, strengthen producer-consumer relationships, support access to quality produce and demonstrate how cooperative organisation can contribute to more sustainable food systems.

Importantly, this means that one of EXCEL4MED’s outcomes in Malta is not simply a recommendation contained in a report. It became a structure operating within the community. Its establishment, supported by collaboration with the Malta Food Agency, shows how European research projects can generate lasting local impact when findings are combined with the right partners, community involvement and an appropriate business model.

In January 2026, we hosted the third EXCEL4MED Annual Meeting in Malta, bringing partners together as the project entered its final year. The meeting provided an opportunity to assess progress and coordinate the work still ahead, covering areas including sustainable food systems, green extraction technologies, functional food development, investment, impact assessment and dissemination.

Koperattivi Malta also supported the project’s wider communication efforts, including contributing to the Italian translation of the EXCEL4MED website. On the Koperattivi Malta website, Koperattivi Malta wrote 18 articles, with practical information about how to use all elements of citrus, information about activities and workshops organised by Koperattivi and research about the project. Koparattivi Malta, also took lead into the production of 2 videos with farmers and consumers, sharing impactful stories. A production of a podcast with Koperattivi Malta staff members, sharing more information about EXCEL4MED project through digital means.

In conclusion, working alongside organisations in Malta, and Grecce therefore provided an opportunity not simply to exchange knowledge, but to develop relationships that can continue supporting innovation after the project’s formal conclusion.

 

This article is a part series of the EXCEL4MED project, funded by the Horizon Europe programme, which aims to boost innovation in the agri-food sector across Malta, Greece, and France. With its website now fully available in French, Italian, Spanish, and English, more stakeholders, including researchers, producers, policymakers, and consumers, can engage with the project in the language they feel most comfortable with. Read more on: https://excel4med.eu/.

 

Koperattivi Malta is proud to support this initiative in collaboration with

@EXCEL4MED @MaltaFoodAgency @MaltaEnterprise @TheMaltaChamber @UniversityofMalta @SmartAgroHub