The interplay between nutrition, gut microbiota, and its large numberof metabolic and immune mediators plays an essential role in the development of gut immune homeostasis in early life. This interaction needs to be better understood because a disturbed immune function in the neonatal period is harmful for neonatal survival and enhances the risk of chronic inflammatory disease later in life. In particular, preterm infants have an immature gut and an associated intestinal state of dysbiosis, which limits the efficacy of nutritional interventions to 1) support early life nutrition, 2) prevent sepsis and conditions such as necrotizing enterocolitis and intestinal failure, and 3) reduce the risk of chronic inflammatory diseases mediated by the gut. A major barrier to elucidating the critical nutritional-host-microbiome interactions and reducing neonatal mortality is the lack of expertise in this rapidly emerging area of metabolomics. We therefore proposes a multidisciplinary approach making use of a large-scale pre-existing clinical cohort of neonates, and state of the art analytical and bio-informatics tools. GROWTH is an Innovative Training Network focused on European Industrial Doctorates that aims to train young business-oriented researchers in developing pathological insights, biomarker diagnostics and personalized nutritional interventions for intestinal failure in neonates and preterm infants. As a multidisciplinary consortium that will involve the participation of 7 non-academic and 5 academic partners in the life sciences field and will attempt shortening the path from basic research to clinical applications.