The Interreg Aurora funded small-scale project HERBS will unite northern agricultural areas which are dealing with similar environmental, social, and economic challenges and opportunities. Cross-border cooperation helps to find to best practices concerning herb farming and further production through knowledge sharing and strengthens and builds new markets, business opportunities, cross-sectoral networks and integrates value chains in northern areas. Cross-border cooperation is needed for developing and implementing new applicable methods for growing and further production, as well as advancing cooperation in the industry. Even though herb and spice plant growing has been considered in different projects recently there is still a need for broad cross-border cooperation past projects have been implemented mainly at national level.
HERBS brings together northern regional development organizations and research institutes as well as local entrepreneurs and will build cross-border cooperation concerning vocational expertise of herb growing in the Interreg Aurora Programme area. The small-scale project also considers innovations of utilizing wild herbs, contributes strategy of bioeconomy and thus calls and supports also new entrepreneurship ideas (such as herb use in nature-based or green care services).
