Bringing together Irish academia, government and industry, FHI aims to identify and commercialise bioactive ingredients from milk that can be used to address "the world's most pressing health issues".
Talking at the annual meeting of FHI, Bleiel said the initiative had succeeded in breaking down the ivory walls between universities and brought the four dairy firms involved (Carbery, Dairygold, Glanbia and the Kerry) into closer collaboration.
Looking forward, Bleiel said the key goals will be to deliver world class science, and translate that into commercial success and new functional ingredients.
For Bleiel, the challenges that lie ahead include the internal one of coordinating the work between the partners and the external one of the uncertain regulatory environment related to health claims in Europe.