Lovely second annual meeting of DOMINO project in Cork, Ireland

Published: Mar 28, 2025 by FME Lab

The DOMINO project held its second annual meeting from 26 to 28 March in the picturesque city of Cork, Ireland. It was an intense and warm moment thanks to the efficient and very friendly organisation of Teagasc and its incredible team coordinated by Orla O’Sullivan and John Kenny.

The #DominoEU project continues its captivating scientific journey into the world of fermented foods, their microbiomes, and the health and sustainability impacts associated with them. The 45 scientists gathered for three consecutive days were able to assess the results accumulated over the last two years, from the data in the food microbiomes database (FMD) to the design of microbial solutions for plant-based fermented foods and phase 1 of the various living-labs on the consumer visioning session. Interaction between workpackages will intensify in the coming year, with the first results of the multi-centric nutritional study on milk kefir in prospect.

Eufic also organised a special PhD poster presentation ‘live’ show at the end of the first day. Don’t hesitate to stay connected to the project by checking our website or subscribe to our newletters.

From “synthetic” to defined microbial communities for clearer terminology

Stéphane Chaillou participated in a joint reflection with a group of international researchers, coordinated by the Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT), on the terminology used to describe certain microbial communities. The collective of experts proposes replacing the term “synthetic community” (or SynCom), sometimes perceived negatively, with “Defined Microbial Community”.

Harnessing gut microbiome diversity for next-generation fermented foods

On June 5, 2026, Julien Tap participated in the INRAE-Tokyo NODAI Joint Symposium on Fermentation and Food Bioscience. This online event brought together researchers from INRAE and the Tokyo University of Agriculture to discuss fermentation microbiology, food bioscience, taste, and microbiome-based approaches to health. More than 100 participants attended the symposium, most of them Japanese students, highlighting the strong interest of the next generation in fermentation and microbiome science.

DOMINO 3rd annual meeting in Madrid

After three years, the #DominoEU project has reached full speed, with significant results across all project objectives. The three-day meeting provided an opportunity to review the very busy year of 2025 and the many key findings that can be leveraged in the coming months.