Five European LIFE Clean Energy Transition projects have joined forces to publish a Joint Policy Statement highlighting key recommendations to accelerate energy efficiency, competitiveness and decarbonisation across the European agri-food sector.
The BETTED project, together with AENEAM, EENOVA, AUDIT PLUS and REEValue, has contributed to the Joint Policy Statement “Energy Efficiency: The First Ingredient of a Competitive Food Sector”, bringing together experiences and insights from initiatives supporting the energy transition of agri-food companies, particularly SMEs.
The statement highlights the importance of moving beyond traditional energy audits and ensuring that their recommendations translate into concrete investments and improvements. It also emphasises that energy efficiency delivers benefits beyond energy and cost savings, including improved productivity, product quality, operational resilience and competitiveness.
Four key policy recommendations
Drawing on the experience of the five projects, the Joint Policy Statement identifies four priority areas for action:
- Make energy audits strategic and action-oriented: Encourage audits that support long-term energy strategies and decarbonisation objectives, while considering both energy savings and wider business benefits.
- Bridge the gap between audits and implementation: Strengthen technical and financial support to help companies turn energy audit recommendations into concrete investments and actions.
- Accelerate digitalisation and data-driven energy management: Promote the adoption of Energy Management Systems (EMS), advanced monitoring technologies and digital solutions to improve energy performance.
- Strengthen ecosystem support and peer learning: Recognise the role of industry networks, innovation clusters and regional organisations in facilitating knowledge exchange, capacity building and access to expertise and financing.
BETTED’s contribution to the energy transition
Through its activities supporting energy efficiency across the dairy value chain, BETTED contributes to the shared objectives reflected in this Joint Policy Statement.
The project promotes the uptake of energy efficiency measures, renewable energy solutions and heat pumps, helping dairy companies, particularly SMEs, reduce their dependence on fossil fuels and advance towards a more sustainable and competitive future.
Collaboration between European projects is essential to maximise the impact of their results, exchange experiences and contribute to the development of effective policies supporting the energy transition of the agri-food industry.
From recommendations to action
The Joint Policy Statement underlines a central message: energy audits should be the starting point of a continuous energy management and decarbonisation journey, rather than simply a compliance exercise.
By combining strategic energy management, targeted investment support, digitalisation and cooperation across the agri-food ecosystem, European companies can unlock the full potential of energy efficiency.
Read the full Joint Policy Statement and discover the recommendations for accelerating the energy transition in the European agri-food sector.
Download the Joint Policy Statement – PDF
