The Hellenic Agricultural Organization ELGO - DIMITRA is supervised by the Greek Ministry of Rural Development and Food. Its headquarters are in Athens and has facilities in every region of the country. Main objectives of ELGO-DIMITRA are the implementation of:
- Agricultural Research
- Agricultural Vocational Education and Training
- Quality Assurance for Agricultural Products and Foodstuffs
Agricultural Research in ELGO – DIMITRA operates in 11 Institutes that cover all aspects of the contemporary primary sector.
The main mission of the Agricultural Research Institutes is to:
- Promote the implementation of sustainable and competitive agricultural practices.
- Support the developmental projects and initiatives of the Greek Ministry of Rural Development and Food
- Design and implementation of research projects funded by national and international resources.
- Create/develop innovative scientific knowledge and technologies.
ELGO-DIMTRA participates to InSusAgri with the Veterinary Research Institute (VRI) VRI is the principal organization for animal health and welfare R&D and advice in Greece and aims to reduce environmental impacts and improve food quality. The Institute has long-term experience in collaboration based on interstate agreements and in the frame of EU Programs and sufficient technical and personnel capabilities to conduct research and provide training for the young researchers. The team has many years of experience in managing research projects, dealing with all sorts of human/animal health protection and to improve product quality/safety addressing EU Policy priorities.
Researchers involved in the project:
Dr Smaragda Sotiraki, is a Research Director in VRI and holds a Degree in Veterinary Medicine and a Doctorate in Veterinary Parasitology, both from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece and conducted post-doctoral research at the Veterinary School in Denmark. She is also a de facto member of the European College for Veterinary Parasitology serving as Vice President from 2021 onwards. Her R&D activities focus on epidemiology of parasitic infections, integrated disease management (including antiparasitic treatments and alternatives solutions) and spread of parasitic zoonoses. Those activities involve production animals companion animals and often humans fully serving the one-health principle.
Dr. Irini Theodorakopoulou, Agronomist expert on rural innovation management and supply chain economics and organization. She is a research associate at the Agricultural Economics Research Institute of ELGO-DIMITRA . Dr Theodorakopoulou received her BA and MS in Agricultural Economics from the Agricultural University of Athens, Greece, and her Ph.D.in Agribusiness Economics from the University of Missouri at Columbia, USA. Her research focuses on innovation management and implementation tailored to agribusiness firms. Her research interests are directed towards bringing together core competencies of policy development, research, extension, strategic appraisal and business planning, socio-economic and environmental impact analysis to create an integrated framework that can be used by rural stakeholders. She has participated in several projects funded by the European Union as well as local and regional government authorities.