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Diversification of Nutritional Food Ingredient Sources for Increased EU Resilience and Strategic Autonomy

Description

This flagship Innovation Action supports the industrial-scale diversification of sustainable nutritional food ingredient sources to strengthen Europe's food system resilience and strategic autonomy. The topic aims to establish first-of-a-kind biorefinery value chains that convert underutilised and sustainable biological feedstocks into high-value nutritional food ingredients while reducing dependence on imported protein and other food ingredient sources. Projects should demonstrate commercially viable industrial production processes that contribute to a more sustainable, circular and resilient European food system.

Funding Amount

  • Expected EU contribution per project: €20 million (indicative)
  • Total topic budget: €20 million
  • Expected number of funded projects: 1 flagship project
  • Funding rate
    • 60% of eligible costs for for-profit entities.
    • 100% of eligible costs for non-profit legal entities.

Submission Deadlines

  • Call opening: 23 April 2026
  • Submission deadline: 22 September 2026, 17:00 Brussels time (CET)
  • Submission model: Single-stage.

Submission Conditions

  • Horizon Europe Innovation Action (IA Flagship).
  • Single-stage application.
  • Projects must demonstrate industrial deployment reaching TRL 8 by project completion.
  • Mandatory Business Plan annex demonstrating commercial viability and replication potential.
  • Mandatory Multi-Actor Approach (MAA) involving relevant food value chain stakeholders.
  • Proposal must include sustainability, environmental and techno-economic assessments.
  • Proposal must satisfy the CBE JU IKOP threshold of at least 20% of total eligible project costs.
  • Proposal Part B limited to 70 pages.
  • Standard Horizon Europe and CBE JU eligibility and evaluation rules apply.

Eligible Businesses

Eligible applicants under Horizon Europe include:

  • SMEs
  • Large enterprises
  • Start-ups and scale-ups
  • Universities
  • Research organisations
  • Research and Technology Organisations (RTOs)
  • Non-profit organisations
  • Food ingredient manufacturers
  • Food and beverage companies
  • Biotechnology and fermentation companies
  • Biorefinery operators
  • Agricultural and aquaculture producers
  • Algae and microbial biomass producers
  • Food technology providers
  • Consumer organisations and other relevant food value-chain stakeholders participating in project consortia.

Eligible Countries

Eligible participants are legal entities established in:

  • EU Member States.
  • Horizon Europe Associated Countries.
  • Other countries eligible under the Horizon Europe Rules for Participation, where applicable.

Standard Horizon Europe eligibility rules apply.

Target TRL

  • Target TRL: TRL 8 for efficient production of nutritional food ingredients.
  • Food application validation: TRL 6 or higher.
  • Where cascading biorefinery approaches are used, only the nutritional food ingredient production is required to reach TRL 8; co-produced food/feed ingredients or other bio-based products do not need to achieve TRL 8.

Expected Outcome

Projects are expected to deliver:

  • Industrial-scale production of sustainable nutritional food ingredients from diversified biological resources.
  • Increased European production capacity for nutritional ingredients, reducing dependence on imports.
  • Greater resilience and strategic autonomy of European food supply chains.
  • Commercially competitive, sustainable and safe nutritional ingredients with proven industrial scalability.
  • Improved resource efficiency through cascading use of biomass and valorisation of side streams.
  • Increased competitiveness of Europe's bioeconomy and food ingredient industries.
  • Contributions to:
    • EU Bioeconomy Strategy.
    • European Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Initiative.
    • EU Food System sustainability objectives.
    • Clean Industrial Deal.
    • Circular Economy objectives.

Scope

Projects should:

  • Demonstrate TRL 8 industrial production of nutritional food ingredients from sustainable bio-based feedstocks.
  • Develop efficient, resource-efficient biorefinery processes capable of producing one or more nutritional food ingredients, such as:
    • Proteins
    • Lipids
    • Carbohydrates
    • Fibres
    • Functional food ingredients
    • Other innovative nutritional ingredients for food applications.
  • Use sustainable biomass sources, which may include:
    • Plants
    • Microorganisms
    • Fungi
    • Aquatic biomass (including micro- and macroalgae)
    • Agricultural, forestry and food-processing side streams
    • Other sustainable bio-based feedstocks.
  • Demonstrate industrial production together with downstream processing required to obtain food-grade ingredients.
  • Validate at least one food application at TRL 6 or above, demonstrating:
    • Nutritional functionality.
    • Food safety.
    • Technical performance.
    • Market relevance.
  • Apply cascading biomass utilisation wherever feasible by valorising side streams into additional bio-based products.
  • Apply a Multi-Actor Approach (MAA) involving the complete food value chain, including ingredient manufacturers, food producers, retailers and consumers where appropriate.
  • Address food safety legislation and other relevant EU regulatory requirements.
  • Include comprehensive sustainability, environmental and techno-economic assessments.
  • Develop a quantified business model and business plan demonstrating commercial deployment and replication potential.
  • Build on relevant Horizon Europe, Horizon 2020, BBI JU and CBE JU project results where appropriate.

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