The University of Thessaly achieved another significant distinction a few days ago. The research team of the Plant Health Management Laboratory of the Department of Agriculture and Agrifood Technology in Larissa received the second prize for an innovative business idea in the Pan-European EIT JUMPSTARTER Competition in the Agrifood sector.
This competition, organized annually for the past decade by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) of the European Union, is considered the most important innovation and entrepreneurship competition, having supported hundreds of teams in developing their ideas.
The research team, led by Professor Panagiotis Iliopoulos from the University of Thessaly, presented an innovative biological product for nutrition and plant protection in horticultural crops. Their idea and business plan earned them second prize in the Agrifood sector and a cash prize of €5,000 during the Grand Finale in Budapest on November 28, 2024.
Apart from Prof. Iliopoulos, the team includes: Dr. Spyros Mantzoukas, Researcher C at ELGO–DIMITRA, Dimitrios Natsiopoulos and Ilias Platis, Special Teaching Staff at the Department of Agriculture and Agrifood Technology, and two final-year students of the department, Iliana Katsogianni and Yiannos Platis.
It is worth noting that the entire effort began two years ago as part of entrepreneurship seminars by the University of Thessaly's Innovation and Entrepreneurship Unit (MOKE).
Warm congratulations to all involved, and we wish continued success to the team with the active support of the University of Thessaly.
Achievements like this highlight the excellent scientific training of our human resources and the university's focus on internationalization and extroversion.
