Globalisation is a big challenge, especially in the agri-food business. Borders between businesses, production stages and countries limit activities for more transparency, quality and process improvement of companies involved. Questions for research and development emerge, that can be better addressed in cooperation between organisations. Therefore, the Universities of Bonn (D) and Wageningen (NL) initiated the foundation of GIQS (German abbreviation for “Trans Border Integrated Quality Assurance”). Initially, GIQS was founded to act as a project holder for a Dutch-German collaborative Research and development project within the EU INTERREG IIIA programme of the Euregio Rhine Waal in 2001. The work was so successful that various partners within GIQS are now working in different projects along the Dutch-German border region and beyond. For its innovative role in knowledge transfer between business and science GIQS was awarded with the cooperation prize for Food Processing of the federal state North Rhine-Westfalia (D). Meanwhile GIQS is widely recognised as a dynamic institution for the facilitation of collaborative research and development in agriculture and food.

The main task

of the international network is to support partners in food chains and research bodies during

• planning
• preparation
• implementation, and
• communication of results for different target groups

in collaborative research and development projects.

The co-operations between science, industries and public services follows the public private partnership-approach.

As an open platform GIQS invites all interested private and public organisations to join the initiative.

Members are:

• Universities and Research bodies
• Public authorities and Professional associations
• Companies in the food chain from farm to retail
• their suppliers and service providers
• interested individuals.

GIQS stands for:

• facilitation of co-operation
• co-ordination of concerted research and development
• distribution of project results
• knowledge transfer.