Developing the food industry requires not only equipment and technologies. It requires the change of minds and hands, joined in one direction. When research and real production meet, a space emerges where knowledge begins to work and leads to a new quality. Such an environment is being created within the framework of the project “OFINU - Open Food Innovation University”, being implemented with the support of the European Union Erasmus+ programme and aimed at creating a new form of studies and educational programs in Central Asia.
Our company, “Golden Fruit”, participates in the project as an industrial partner for whom cooperation with universities is not a formality but a strategic foundation. We see education as a source of renewal, and the university as a place where the future of the region’s human and technological capacity is born.
The Isfara branch of the Technological University of Tajikistan (BTUTI) is an active participant in the project. Three employees of our enterprise are studying there, combining daily hands-on practice with gaining academic knowledge. Three teachers of the Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies - experts with extensive experience in developing food products and technologies, trained BTUTI students and external learners in modern technologies, including the production of Latvian bread, using precise, disciplined, and high-standard methods.
The knowledge and skills were immediately put in use. Our employees mastered the new method and implemented it in production. Now “Golden Fruit” produces and sells Latvian bread made in-house - a product that emerged from collaboration, from the chain: university — specialist — production — consumer.
Our beliefs: 1. When knowledge turns into action, it becomes a force. 2. When action is grounded in knowledge, it becomes quality. 3. The result is seen in every loaf purchased by the people of Isfara.
The OFINU project has shown that partnership between universities and businesses is not a theory. It is a working mechanism for economic and regional development. It simultaneously raises the competencies of young specialists and elevates food production to a new level. Every participant—students, lecturers, foreign experts, and employees of the company contributed their effort, responsibility, and discipline.
We express our gratitude to:
- The “OFINU” project team for creating an environment for open and practical learning;
- The specialists from Latvia who generously shared their professional expertise;
- The Isfara branch of the Technological University of Tajikistan for the high-quality training of students and staff;
- And our employees at “Golden Fruit”, who embraced the knowledge and turned it into a real product.
When work is based on sincere cooperation, the fruits appear naturally.
With each step, such a partnership strengthens trust, raises the quality of education, and makes the market stronger. The OFINU project has already produced results you can hold in your hands.
And that is the best indicator of being on the right path.