The transformation of the agro-food sector has played a pivotal role in advancing agronomic sciences and food sciences within the National Autonomous University of Honduras (UNAH), fostering their development across three historical milestones. These are marked by the establishment of regional university centers and the specialization in agro-productive domains. This trajectory of academic growth has gained renewed momentum in recent years, driven by collaborative efforts among faculty from diverse disciplines, leading to the formation of curricular teams focused on creating academic structures aligned with current legislation and institutional academic regulations.

The aim of this study is to identify the expansion process of multiple academic structures—such as departments and undergraduate programs—developed simultaneously and in alignment with reforms to the academic regulatory framework. This process has required the involvement of academic actors from various disciplines and has warranted a systematic documentation of the experience to serve as a guide for other academic developments within Honduras’ still-emerging higher education landscape in the agro-food sector and other underexplored fields.

The analytical method applied in this systematization focuses on the organization of work dimensions that engage academic actors at different levels of decision-making. Their internal interactions have generated a synergistic process, further enriched by field consultations with stakeholders in the regional agro-food productive sector. These consultations have highlighted the urgency of opening a new field of knowledge in agro-industrial studies, with a particular emphasis on the food industry of the Honduran Caribbean. Furthermore, the process has revealed the critical role of national faculty exchanges, which have accelerated the learning curve by drawing on the experiences of other territories and agro-productive contexts.

The main outcomes of the systematization include compliance with academic legislation and regulations, and the emergence of synergy resulting from the interaction among diverse academic actors from both central and regional levels, as well as from varied disciplinary backgrounds. These outcomes have translated into improvements in the implementation of new academic structures, the departmentalization process, the expansion of undergraduate programs, and the opening of specialized postgraduate degrees in the sector. Such developments have stemmed from reflective dialogue with academics across the country and from a recognition of the demands of the labor market and the need to enhance value addition and the production of safe and healthy food.

This systematization process documents the contributions of a team of over thirty faculty members at the national level and the central efforts of an academic commission supported by both regional and central university authorities. As a result, both formal and informal requirements for the establishment of new academic structures were fulfilled. However, the most valuable added outcome has been the formation of a new academic learning community composed of specialists from diverse disciplines. Their collaboration has been instrumental in achieving academically sound and relevant proposals. This entire process is in accordance with, regional higher education networks, the Institutional Strategic Plan 2004–2027, and the National Plan and Country Vision Law toward 2038.

Keywords: Caribbean university, entrepreneur, food safety, food technology, laboratories.