How do you feel when technologies that clearly spark controversy develop over your head and hit the shelves before we know it? 

This is the starting point for B-Trust. The project is working on a governance model for biotechnology in the agri-food and bio-based sectors that does not treat trust as a communication problem at the very end, but as something that is designed into the whole innovation journey from the beginning. At the heart of this approach sits a fine-tuned co-creation methodology. 

The B-Trust co-creation playbook moves beyond one-off workshops and traditional public consultations. It provides a structured pathway for regulators and implementers to work with affected communities, not merely speak about them. 

Phase one: Mapping risks, benefits and the people who matter 

The first phase focuses on understanding the landscape. For each biotech case, partners map two core elements. On the one hand, the risks and benefits identified in the literature, including scientific aspects related to health, safety and the environment, as well as socio-economic considerations. On the other hand, they identify the stakeholders who are directly or indirectly involved in, or affected by, the implementation of the technology. 

This goes beyond those active in developing, regulating or deploying the technology, and includes people and groups whose everyday lives may be shaped by its outcomes. 

This perspective requires looking past purely technical considerations. Farmers, consumers, environmental organisations, companies, researchers and public authorities may look at the same innovation and see very different aspects, or more concretely ‘risks and benefits’. Some focus on climate resilience or food security, others on long-term environmental impacts, affordability or control over the food system. 

B-Trust, thus starts from a mapping of the risks and benefits from a scientific point of view, to plot how each stakeholder group could potentially be affected by these risks and benefits. This visual map is then used to prioritise which actors need to be involved first, what questions they bring to the table and what kind of methods will work best for each of them. 

Phase two: Involving those who will be impacted the most: 

Once the landscape is clear, the second phase focuses on engagement. Rather than inviting everyone to one big event, B-Trust designs waves of interaction. These include consumer co-creation sessions, workshops with farmers, dialogues with environmental groups and conversations with other critical voices. 

Each wave has a clear purpose. Some are about exploring everyday perceptions and language around biotechnology. Others are about understanding hands-on concerns such as how a new crop might affect farm routines, markets or local ecosystems. Throughout, facilitators pay close attention to how people talk about risks, benefits, responsibilities and how they understand the used wordings around biotechnology.