Funding Programme

Horizon Europe is the EU’s key funding programme for research and innovation.

Read more about the Horizon Europe programme here.

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Call overview

This call aims to enhance the resilience of European Union food systems in a changing world.

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Expected outcomes

In line with the recent communication on “Safeguarding food security and reinforcing the resilience of food systems”^[1] and the farm to fork strategy, the successful proposal will support the implementation of the communication “Contingency plan for ensuring food supply and food security in times of crisis”,^[2] thereby enhancing the resilience of European Union food systems in a changing world, as well as taking into account developments on the farm to fork strategy’s proposal for a legislative framework for sustainable food systems.

Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:

• Better understanding of the short- and long-term drivers of change that may affect food systems at different levels (global, national, regional, urban/rural areas level) and put food security at risk.
• Better understanding of the vulnerabilities, dependencies and critical infrastructures of the food systems in the EU and worldwide, where this may have implications for the EU and Associated Countries.
• Improved preparedness to deal with risks that may threaten the nutritionally appropriate EU and Associated Countries’ food supply and food security by making use of available data and platforms (including on weather, climate, biodiversity, socio-economic and markets data).
• Enhanced resilience of nutritionally appropriate food supply and improved food security in the EU and Associated Countries, in a changing world.
• Contribution to the farm to fork objectives and Food 2030 priorities: nutrition for sustainable healthy diets, climate, biodiversity and environment, circularity and resource efficiency, innovation and empowering communities (e.g., meeting the needs, values and expectations of society in a responsible and ethical way).

Scope

Food is necessary to sustain life. Ensuring food supply is an objective set out in Article 39 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. The food systems in the European Union have been reliable and supplied more food than demanded. They proved to be resilient to large-scale disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the surge in global commodity prices, further accelerated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, highlights again the need for EU agriculture, fisheries, aquaculture and food supply chains to become more resilient and sustainable. In an increasingly complex and uncertain world, which is already experiencing unprecedented environmental and climate changes, and in which the state of global geopolitical tensions is high, sustaining the ability of food systems to provide enough food for all that is as nutritious and meets dietary needs is likely to be a substantial challenge for Europe in the future.

Understanding what drives our food system, both externally and internally, on a short-term basis and in the long-term, and how we can measure or monitor the drivers of change and their impacts on the food supply and food security is vital if we want to give policymakers and businesses better tools for making food systems more sustainable and more resilient to diverse shocks and stresses (such as pandemics, geopolitical disruptions, conflicts and economic sanctions, extreme climatic conditions, environmental changes, natural disasters or energy price increase). The project should not only point to some serious vulnerabilities, (inter)dependencies and critical infrastructure of the food systems, but also offer indications for policymakers and businesses about where to direct efforts and investments to improve resilience.

Proposed activities should cover all of the following aspects:

• Analyse vulnerabilities, (inter)dependencies and critical infrastructure of the EU and Associated Countries’ food systems in the global context.
• Establish an observatory for the main socio-economic, political, health, technological and environmental drivers of change, including short-term shocks and long-term stresses, to which the food systems were/are/might be exposed and develop an early warning system. For long-term developments, use of foresight is encouraged.
• Advance and/or develop innovative methods/models/tools, including exploratory modelling and capacity for managing deep uncertainties, to identify/evaluate/manage potential risks and improve risk scenario building for EU and Associated Countries’ food security.
• Map and prioritize the risks that the different drivers of change pose to the food systems.
• Scan and benchmark what is already being done by government, civil society, and the private sector to reduce the risks and improve the capacity to deal with the various drivers of change.
• Develop innovative solutions and evidence-based recommendations for strategies and best practices on what policymakers, businesses, civil society, scientists, teachers, and other environmental and food system operators (can) do through policy, research, education, community action, or other means to enhance substantially the resilience of the food systems, and thereby ensure food security.
• Explore and mobilize the potential of new technologies, (integrated) information and communications technology (ICT) solutions and big data in improving preparedness for food security crises and the flow of information during crises.
• Establish a regular dialogue with the European Commission and the European Food Security Crisis preparedness and response Mechanism (EFSCM) with the goal to provide relevant contributions supporting the implementation of the communication “Contingency plan for ensuring food supply and food security in times of crisis”.

Proposals are encouraged to cooperate with actors such as the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) and its Data-Modelling platform of resource economics.

Proposals must implement the 'multi-actor approach' and ensure adequate involvement of public authorities and civil society organisations, consumers, the private sector and other relevant actors of the value chain.

This topic should build on the knowledge provided by the assessment reports established by IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), IPBES (Intergovernmental science Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services) and IRP (International Resource Panel).

Proposals should include a dedicated task, appropriate resources and a plan on how they will collaborate with other relevant projects and existing research infrastructures, and ensure synergy with relevant activities carried out under other initiatives in Horizon Europe.

Collaboration and complementarity with the European Partnership on “Sustainable Food Systems for People, Plant and Climate” is encouraged. This topic should involve the effective contribution of SSH disciplines. In order to achieve the expected outcomes, international cooperation is encouraged.

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Eligibility

To be eligible for funding, applicants must be established in one of the eligible countries, i.e.:

• the Member States of the European Union, including their outermost regions;
• the Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs) linked to the Member States;
• eligible non-EU countries including countries associated to Horizon Europe and low- and middle-income countries.

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Consortium composition

Unless otherwise provided for in the specific call conditions, legal entities forming a consortium are eligible to participate in actions provided that the consortium includes:

• at least one independent legal entity established in a Member State; and
• at least two other independent legal entities, each established in different Member States or Associated Countries.

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Budget

The total indicative budget for the topic is EUR 8.00 million.

The Commission estimates that an EU contribution of around EUR 8.00 million would allow these outcomes to be addressed appropriately.