LESKOVAC – On April 22, 2015, the USAID Mission Director Azza El-Abd and Mayor of Leskovac Goran Cvetanovic opened a pilot plant for new food product development at the Food Technology Park (FTP) in Leskovac. USAID provided $90,000 for the establishment of pilot plant, to enable food processors to develop new and improved products in a cost-efficient way.

“The innovations coming out of this research and development facility will increase the food processing sector's competitiveness and boost sales,” said Azza El Abd, the USAID/Serbia Mission Director.   

For the development of a new product, food processors previously needed to use large samples to test products, which substantially increased the cost of product development. The new facility will support all stages of product development, from idea generation, through concept development, to the production of trial samples in small batches. Also, the plant’s capacity will expand to include other sectors of food processing, apart from confectionary and bakery product lines.

Leskovac Faculty of Technology Acting Dean Ljubiša Nikolić emphasized today that the pilot plant will also benefit Faculty students and post-graduates, who will be using the facility for training and demonstration. Through an internship program, they will be able to practice what they have learned in the classroom and test their ideas for new products. 

The first Food Technology Park (FTP) in the South of Serbia was established in 2013, as a public-private partnership between seven food processing companies, the City of Leskovac, and the Faculty of Technology. Food processors from the FTP have created a common brand, named "Top Food", under which they jointly market 19 products to buyers, primarily in the countries of the former Yugoslavia. The main goal of the FTP is to reduce food processors' production costs, boost their sales in the region, and develop and introduce new products through technology innovation.