ILU e. V. (Institute for Food and Environmental Research) is the German partner in the EU TRADEIT project. The acronym stands for traditional foods, entrepreneurism, innovation and technology transfer. This project involves a network of small and medium-sized businesses in the traditional food production sector, scientific institutions, and multiplcators, with the common goal of striding ahead with innovations in the sector. 

Nine regional network centres have been established, with the aim of making a reality of an ambitious programme of workshops and consultancy services by way of know-hoe and technology transfer. The goal set by TRADEIT is to provide knowledge of new technologies in a practical way, and to support existing networks as well. This aim has been pursued since the beginning of the project with the organization of a large number of national and international events for companies from the sectors of the traditional processing of dairy, meat, and baked products. The online platform TRADEIT Marketplace provides support not only for the network events, but also for the establishment of co-operation links between companies, technology providers, and research institutions. Special innovations as a result of the close interaction of science and commerce are publicised, among other means, by the project-sponsored science magazine Taste of Science.  

The TRADEIT consortium is a close-knit body of European experts from the fields of technology transfer, food technology and food safety, and economic associations and commercial concerns. Food safety, logistics, product development, sustainability, and consumer information are vital topics for all branches of the food industry, and are all taken into consideration in the project. The small and medium-sized companies have a key role to play in the TRADEIT Project, and are supported in determining the important themes for the future in the strategic development of the nutrition industry in Europe.