On April 11, 2025, the first co-creation meeting of the Irristaud Interreg project took place on the premises of our project partner Compas Agro in Venlo – and was a complete success. With around 20 to 25 participants from agricultural consulting, horticultural practice (including blueberry cultivation), science and network organizations, the group was diverse and practice-oriented.

At the beginning, we presented the project, our results from the first year of the project to date and our plans for 2025. We then went on a field tour together: the participants were able to get a first-hand impression of the ongoing experiments at the Compas Agro trial sites. Even there in the field, a lively exchange developed between the participants – exactly in the spirit of the co-creation approach.

In another part of the program, small groups discussed various aspects of the project. The feedback gathered was extremely valuable for the project team. We will now carefully process the feedback and examine how we can specifically integrate it into further project work – with the aim of developing solutions that are of practical benefit to all stakeholders.

There was also plenty of opportunity for personal exchange: over lunch, the participants continued to discuss current challenges, experiences and perspectives – both professionally and personally.

We would like to thank all participants for their openness, commitment and contributions. The co-creation group is a central component of Irristaud and we are very much looking forward to continuing our collaboration. We will of course keep the group up to date on all further developments in the project – and are always open to further exchange.

Would you like to become part of the group? Simply send an informal e-mail to ellenberger@ko-ga.eu