Market Analysis Report
inexistent at the producer level and almost full used at the retail side. But even at the retail side this is limited to financial related information. Food safety and certification processes, with several standards being used demanding for different but overlapping sets of information, are mostly done manually with a few exceptions of some web platforms. Some pilot experiments have also been conducted by ICT service providers to integrate logistics processes in specific sectors. The main challenges and trends identified in the interviews point in the direction of further developments in EDI support for information related with logistics, safety and certification processes. There is currently a growing awareness of the benefits associated with more and better integration which the eFoodChain project can take advantage of. Several possible pilots have already been identified, some of them involving cross border messages exchange, and will be further explored in the upcoming months. XII.1.7 Spain 1. Brief characterization of the interview sample (types of companies/organisations interviews, their representativeness, profile of functions within the companies that were presenting their views, etc.) Companies interviewed were at the level of production: one farmer, one owner of several farms and one producers’ group. The last one is from the sector of fresh fruits and vegetables whereas the two others are from livestock farming. 2. Reality of data exchange systems and e-business conditions along the value chain (i.e. differentiated depending on the stage of the value chain) The companies surveyed don’t use electronic Exchange of data. They explain that at the level of production, these technologies are very rarely used. They use it principally for the exchange of data with administration (social security, banks). For other exchanges, the phone is still the most common used means of data exchange. Anyway, companies using computers have quite often an ERP, and would like that future ICT solutions were integrated with it. 3. Main barriers and challenges identified, projects and plans for future – summary of trends Lots of difficulties appear to these companies in relation with the implementation of an ICT solution. In general, they stress problems in relation with formation and training. They accord to say that there is a cultural gap between producers and downstream, which have to be crossed before developing ICT. The lack of specialized personal is crucial. They also insist on the importance of integration of ICT solutions with ERP. The two main projects quoted in the survey are the implementation of an E-catalogue and the development of an EAI. Yet, the development time is identified as a major problem, and some fears due to confidentiality still remain. 4. Future outlook based on the interviews conducted: main conclusions/lesson for the framework development
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