INNOVACC is the Catalan cluster of the meat and alternative protein sector, a business association that aims to strengthen the competitiveness of companies through innovation and cooperation.
The association was established in 2008 and currently belongs to the registry of Innovative Business Groups (AEI) of the Ministry of Industry, in the Catalonia Clusters of ACTION Program of the Generalitat of Catalonia and has the European Cluster Excellence Gold Label certificate of the European Secretariat for Cluster Analysis
The entity is made up of a group of companies and institutions that come together voluntarily and freely to achieve, without profit, a purpose of general or particular interest with the desire to pool their knowledge, activities and/or economic resources. The association is autonomous, has its own personality and its internal organization and operation must be democratic, with full respect for pluralism.
More than 140 partners
COMPANIES
From the meat sector (farms, slaughterhouses, disposal rooms and processed meat companies) and auxiliary services (feed, genetics, machinery, logistics, additives, waste and by-product management, health laboratories and hygiene solutions, engineering and consulting, etc), of which more than 70 are SMEs.
INSTITUTIONS
Universitats, trade chambers, R+D+I centers, professional associations.
The area of activity of the cluster has been evolving, due to the extension of the product range of the associated companies. Most of the products offered are pork, but all kinds of meat products have been incorporated (veal, lamb, chicken, turkey, etc.) and also meat analogues (vegetable base and others) .
For this reason, the cluster has begun a growth process in 2021, to welcome new companies and agents in the alternative protein sector (vegetable protein, laboratory protein "cultured meat", other sources of protein) while maintaining the same activity in the field of animal protein. In this way it is being converted towards an Alternative Meat and Protein Cluster.
Evolution in figures
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
Total members
61
57
57
58
64
72
78
84
91
96
96
103
101
108
123
140
Member companies
44
40
40
41
47
56
61
67
73
78
80
88
87
94
108
124
Member insitutions
17
17
17
17
17
16
17
17
18
18
16
15
14
14
15
16
Own staff
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2,5
3
3
3,5
4
5
5
7
Aggregate turnover of member companies (M€)
2120
2130
2213
2235
2275
2299
3094
3340
3568
4305*
5743
6720
6802
7073
-
Total employees of member companies
5515
5449
5613
6652
7019
9715
13336
14071
14643
17008
18828
20459
20841
21639
-
Mission and objectives
MISSION
Strengthen the competitiveness of the meat and alternative protein sector, through innovation and cooperation.
GOALS
To promote innovation
To foster cooperation
To plan future strategies
To promote technologic transfer
To promote training
Advice
To establish external strategic relationships
To promote the distinctive quality and the prestige of INNOVACC
To define policies and actions of common interest
Initiatives and advantages
INITIATIVES
Ensure the continuity and development of collective projects already started with the participation of associates.
Promote and enhance new collective projects and look for potential partners.
Seek grants to finance part of the projects and prepare applications, if applicable.
Inform associates mainly about the possibilities of innovation and financing alternatives.
Support for business internationalization.
Share information with and between associates through the web and other communication channels, in a fluid and direct manner, and restricted in specific cases.
Collaboration in the dissemination of conferences, training, fairs, missions, etc.
Participate in the development of strategic plans, sectoral tables, etc.
Increase the critical mass of the cluster (new accessions).
ADVANTAGES
Share problems and solutions, and foster mutual support among all partners
Support for R&D&i projects
Possibility of greater productivity thanks to projects driven and developed
Training and support for business internationalization
Possibility of receiving grants to finance part of the projects
Increase of the innovative capacity of the company
Opportunity to promote and contribute to the competitiveness of the Catalan meat sector and alternative protein in order to face globalization favorably by boosting its partners’ innovation. Participate in the improvement of the position of the cluster and the sector in the world
Receive information from the sector, especially related to the possibilities of innovation of companies and alternative financing
What is a cluster
Michael Porter (1998) defines clusters as a “geographical proximate group of interconnected companies and associated institutions in a particular field, linked by commonalities and externalities”.
Michael Porter is the most popular author in the field of clusters: he has proposed an attractive model and he has been able to highlight the consistent elements for success. In the early nineties, in his book “Competitive Advantages of Nations” 1990, Porter not only develops a new methodology for analyzing determinants factors of competitiveness of a country, but also he energizes it with a new design of public policies of reinforcement. Someone has called him the Harry Potter of economists. He proposes a “Strategic Management “, considerating a region as a company, from its competitive advantages. M. Porter was invited to Catalonia, and he directed a first study about “The Competitive Advantages of Catalonia” Department of Economics and Finance 1992, Monitor Company /Michael Porter. Since then, the Catalan Government have applied their analysis and an accurate model of help in the development proposals of the industrial sectors of Catalonia.
The definition of a cluster is a group of people or things gathered or growing together. A bunch of grapes or a bouquet of flowers are examples of a cluster.
CONDITION FOR DEFINING A CLUSTER
Proximity:the companies need to be sufficiently close in space to allow any positive spillovers and the sharing of common resources to occur.
Interactions: being close and working on related issues is not enough. For positive cluster effects to occur, some level of active interaction has to be present.
Linkages: they need to share a common goal (for example, final market demand) for them to be able to profit from proximity and interaction.
Critical mass: there needs to be sufficient number of participants present for the interactions to have a meaningful impact on companies’ performance.