First Joint Transnational Co-Funded Call

"Transforming Food Systems: Reshaping Food System Interactions, Fostering Food Innovations, and Empowering Sustainable Food Choices"

Objective: To support transnational research projects that contribute to sustainable, resilient, and circular food systems across Europe.

Introduction

FutureFoodS Call 1 aims to foster innovations that transform food systems, focusing on system-level change, product development, and consumer behavior. The call encourages projects that:

  • Enhance the sustainability and resilience of food chains

  • Develop new food products and processes

  • Promote sustainable choices among consumers

Bringing together 36 funding organizations from 19 countries and the European Commission, the call jointly commits over €32 million to advance a sustainable food future. After receiving 275 pre-proposals from nearly 1,700 researchers across Europe, 23 projects have been selected to proceed to national or regional contract negotiations (the funding decision is subject to final approval by the funding organisations concerned)."

Call Objectives

  • Topic 1: The way towards sustainable and resilient food systems

  • Topic 2: New foods–Fostering innovations in food design, processing and supply via demand and supply reorientation

  • Topic 3: Empowering sustainable food choices– Enabling food environments and dietary shifts

Projects Overview

  1. MicroMar:Sustainable processing of microbial and marine resources for novel food ingredients and products

  2. FOOD-FRAMES:A system approach to reform the food information environment to support healthy, sustainable diets: mitigating harmful marketing and misinformation

  3. FoodTriggers:Triggering societal tipping points for sustainable diets 

  4. BlueGreenFood:Innovating Sustainable and Healthy Food Alternatives: Expanding Europe's Food Palette through Seaweed and Plant-Based Proteins

  5. FULCRUM: Food Systems Labs: Policy Coherence and Empowerment to Transform Food Systems within a Just Circular Bioeconomy

  6. TIPRO: Tipping the protein transition: Leveraging consumption, distribution and policy dynamics for sustainable dietary shifts

  7. TASTE: True Cost Accounting for Sustainable Food Environments

  8. HARMONI:Hybrid Alternatives for Redefining Meat with Optimal Nutrition from Integrated Cell and Plant-Based Materials

  9. TrueFoodS: Transforming European Food Systems: Sustainability, Equity, Governance and Resilience as core elements

  10. RESHAPE: Reshaping food systems: value change transformation through reconnection

  11. SpeedyFermHub: Knowledge HUB for SPEEDY characterisation, optimisation and scale-up of FERMented, plant-based new foods improving resilience of European Food Systems 

  12. CREEP: From creeping crisis to deliberate transformation: Building a resilient and sustainable food system in Nordic regions 

  13. FoodEnvironments4Future: Future-proof school-centric food environments

  14. ALGAMAT: Sustainable and Nutritious ALGAE-Based Burger Development

  15. ENRESFOOD: Ensure resilience of the food supply chain against safety and security shocks

  16. SeaPlate: From Sea to the Plate: European Brown Macroalgae as Innovative Additions to a Healthy and Sustainable Diet

  17. Fermgut:Fermented foods and gut health

  18. FAF: Future-Proof Microalgae-Based Foods

  19. RegioFoodS:From regional relevance to transnational value: how regional food systems can boost resilience and self-sufficiency in Nordic and Baltic countries

  20. BIOPOM:Biotechnological upcycling of fruit pomace into prebiotic food ingredients

  21. MIPRODESIGN:Accelerating plant-based protein emulsion design with microfluidics and intelligent software tools for sustainable foods

  22. AI-ProFood: AI-Driven Food Procurement: Shifting Paradigms for Sustainable and Inclusive School Canteens

  23. BETRUE:From Beef to bean: the potential of ‘true pricing’ as an instrument for systemic change in the transition to plant-based alternatives

Detailed Projects Overview

MicroMar

Sustainable processing of microbial and marine resources for novel food ingredients and products

    • SINTEF AS - Norway

    • Stichting Wageningen Research - The Netherlands 

    • Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV - Germany 

    • Politecnico di Torino - Italy 

    • Wunderfish GmbH - Germany 

    • Lofoten Seaweed Company - Norway

    • North Sea Farmers - The Netherlands 

  • Food production must increase by over 60% by 2050 while ensuring access to sufficient healthy food. Current food systems cannot meet this demand, as they face major sustainability challenges related to emissions, pollution, and overuse of water, land, and non-renewable resources. Over 820 million people are starving, and many more suffer from malnutrition, obesity, and diet-related issues. Innovation in food products is needed to shift consumer habits toward healthier, more sustainable diets. European strategies on food production and bioeconomy emphasize marine renewable resources and microbially produced ingredients as key for a resilient food system and the growing bioeconomy.

    The MicroMar project aims to develop novel food ingredients and prototypes for the European market using sustainably harvested or cultivated macroalgae and microbial oils. Macroalgae, common in Asian diets, are resilient and environmentally efficient but underutilized in Western markets due to limited innovation in processing and product development. Microbial fermentation is established but has high growth potential in ingredient diversity, feedstocks, and applications.

    Key research challenges include: 1) Using a wider range of seaweed biomasses, 2) Improving processing technology for better food properties and biomass use, 3) Scalable, cost-efficient microbial lipid production, 4) Understanding lipid composition-structure-function for food incorporation, and 5) Identifying market opportunities and assessing Novel Food approval pathways.

    The project will apply innovative seaweed processing to enrich nutrients, improve safety and sensory properties, extract functional fractions, and use side streams. It will also advance microbial oil production from marine protists and yeasts for novel foods. MicroMar is expected to impact European seaweed and fermentation industries, circular food chains, sustainable consumer demand, and scientific knowledge on these emerging ingredients.

    • 1.070.840€

FOOD-FRAMES

A system approach to reform the food information environment to support healthy, sustainable diets: mitigating harmful marketing and misinformation

    • Wageningen University - The Netherlands 

    • University College Cork - Ireland

    • University of Vienna - Austria

    • University of Bayreuth - Germany

    • Ghent University - Belgium

    • Norwegian Institute of Public Health - Norway

    • University of Southern Denmark - Denmark

    • University of Pisa - Italy

    • Sciensano - Belgium

    • LMU Munich - Germany

  • FOOD-FRAMES adopts a solution- and impact-driven systems approach to create a food information environment (FIE) that supports sustainable and healthy diets across Europe. The FIE includes marketing (e.g., advertisements) and information (e.g., media) that shape food consumption at individual and community levels. It encompasses all food marketing that boosts recognition, appeal, or consumption of brands, services, or products, as well as digital and physical information on food, diets, and nutrition.

    The project addresses the problem that the current FIE disempowers consumers due to harmful marketing and mis/disinformation, limiting the shift toward sustainable and healthy diets. Efforts focusing only on individual behavior have proven insufficient; systemic food environments are crucial. FOOD-FRAMES takes a food systems approach, considering the interactions between stakeholders and feedback loops across the FIE.

    The main aim is to co-create systemic, multi-level policy recommendations and legal frameworks to foster a sustainable and healthy FIE, empowering consumers and driving population-level dietary change. Supported by an international consortium across eight European countries, FOOD-FRAMES integrates transdisciplinary perspectives, mixed-method research, and digital solutions, aligning with FutureFoodS ambitions for healthy and sustainable European food systems.

    Activities include FIE content analyses, studies on exposure to harmful marketing and mis/disinformation, and system dynamics engagement with stakeholders to identify leverage points and co-create sector-specific policy actions. Legal frameworks will be analysed to find barriers and opportunities for harmonisation. Living-lab evaluations will assess context-specific impacts and scalability.

    Overall, FOOD-FRAMES delivers a food systems approach with actionable solutions, including policy letters and toolkits to guide the design and implementation of FIE policies across Europe.

    • 2.401.330€

FoodTriggers

Triggering societal tipping points for sustainable diets 

    • Finnish Environment Insitute - Finland

    • Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences  - Sweden

    • University of Copenhagen - Denmark

    • Centro de Investigación y Tecnología Agroalimentaria de Aragón (CITA) - Spain

    • University of Pisa - Italy

    • Catholic University of Portugal - Portugal

    • Umweltbundesamt - Germany

    • Pro Vege - Finland

    • Slow Food Lazio - Italy

    • Coop (Östra) Sweden - Sweden

    • Directorate-General of Health - Portugal

  • Triggering societal tipping points for sustainable diets

    • 1.497.040€

BlueGreenFood

Innovating Sustainable and Healthy Food Alternatives: Expanding Europe's Food Palette through Seaweed and Plant-Based Proteins

    • SINTEF Ocean AS - Norway

    • Kaunas university of technology - Lithuania ​​

    • VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd​ - Finland

    • University of Aveiro - Portugal

    • University of Iceland - Iceland

    • The Technical University of Denmark - Denmark

    • Norwegian Seaweed Association - Norway

    • SPILA, UAB - Lithuania

    • UAB SALDOGA - Lithuania

    • ALGAplus - Produção e Comercialização de Algas e seus Derivados, SA - Portugal

    • Norwegian Seafood Council - Norway

  • Seaweeds play a key role in circular value chains: they recycle nutrients, capture CO₂, support ocean health, and offer a sustainable, resource-efficient biomass. BlueGreenFood strengthens Europe’s blue food supply by developing innovative preservation technologies and processes that ensure a stable, high-quality seaweed biomass for healthy food products with strong market acceptance. The project also explores the use of plant-based proteins and microalgae to meet the rising demand for sustainable proteins.

    BlueGreenFood focuses on cost- and energy-efficient preservation methods, including new microorganisms for low-temperature fermentation. Using the VTT Culture Collection and advanced omics tools (metabolomics, lipidomics, glycomics), the project evaluates the nutritional, functional, and health-promoting properties of preserved seaweed. Preserved marine plants will be used directly in food products or fractionated to extract valuable components such as fucoidan, alginate, and proteins, ensuring full use of the biomass.

    Understanding consumer expectations and applying proven marketing strategies from partner countries will help create safe, nutritious, appealing foods with low environmental impact and high market acceptance. By boosting consumption and acceptance of seaweed, the project supports a resilient European algal industry that enhances self-sufficiency, contributes to the green transition, and reduces pressure on fisheries, aquaculture, and agriculture.

    Sustainability is assessed throughout the project via environmental, economic, and social impact studies. The transnational team brings together research and industry partners from Nordic, Baltic, and Southern European countries, enabling strong knowledge transfer and driving the development of innovative, sustainable blue and green foods in Europe.

    • 1.371.210€

FULCRUM

Food Systems Labs: Policy Coherence and Empowerment to Transform Food Systems within a Just Circular Bioeconomy  (FULCRUM)

    • Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research - Norway

    • Universidad Pontificia Comillas - Spain

    • Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin - Germany

    • Transnational Institute - The Netherlands

    • University of Palermo - Italy

    • RISE Research Institutes of Sweden - Sweden

    • Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (ILVO) - Belgium

    • University of Leuven (KU Leuven) - Belgium

    • Stichting Wageningen Research - The Netherlands

  • Achieving sustainable, resilient and fair European food systems requires a true systems approach. Despite major EU initiatives such as the Green Deal and Farm-to-Fork Strategy, food systems still operate in silos. Structural barriers in markets, innovation, and policy continue to block circular solutions and fail to address food insecurity, biodiversity loss, climate change and social inequality—especially for smallholders, fishers, and other marginalised groups.

    FULCRUM tackles these challenges through a Food Systems Approach that sees food systems as interconnected socio-economic, political and ecological networks, spanning both land-based (green) and aquatic (blue) sectors. Using co-design and equity-focused governance, FULCRUM engages policymakers, farmers, fishers, industry, civil society, and consumers to jointly shape transformative, circular strategies supported by robust systemic analysis.

    The project introduces inclusive mechanisms such as co-design steering groups, capacity-building grants, participatory monitoring, and fair-income and market-access tools. These help address structural lock-ins—like policy misalignment and fragmented governance—and integrate equity safeguards into commercial incentives, ultimately strengthening the resilience, sustainability and fairness of Europe’s food systems.

    FULCRUM establishes five regional Living Labs (Belgium, Germany, Italy, Norway, Netherlands), co-governed by multi-actor forums and tailored to local contexts. Alongside real-world testing, the project delivers a policy innovation toolkit: guidelines for co-design, an interactive data and modelling dashboard, training modules, business model templates, and monitoring frameworks with co-created KPIs.

    Initial efforts focus on nutrient loops, waste valorisation and equity—areas with high scientific urgency and low policy attention—while also delivering biodiversity and climate benefits. By mid-term, the project expects at least five co-designed measures to be adopted in regional or EU guidance frameworks, alongside measurable reductions in food waste and increases in circular inputs.

    Ultimately, FULCRUM will deliver a fully operational, co-designed policy toolkit that accelerates equitable circular-bioeconomy transitions and supports resilient, resource-efficient and climate-smart food systems across Europe.

    • 1.820.490€

TIPRO

Tipping the protein transition: Leveraging consumption, distribution and policy dynamics for sustainable dietary shifts

    • KU Leuven - Belgium

    • Wageningen University - The Netherlands

    • Copenhagen Business School - Denmark

    • Plantebranchen - Denmark

    • Danish Vegetarian Society - Denmark

    • ProVeg vzw - Belgium

  • Affluent societies consume too many animal-based foods, causing major environmental and health impacts. A protein transition—shifting from animal proteins to more sustainable alternatives—is underway, but progress remains too slow. Current efforts by governments, businesses and international organisations are fragmented. This project aims to identify key leverage points across consumption, distribution and policy to accelerate the transition in Denmark, Belgium and the Netherlands, focusing on meat and alternatives such as pulses, hybrids, meat analogues and cultivated meat.

    TIPRO expands current knowledge on strategies, barriers, enablers and system-wide reconfigurations within protein transitions. Using a comprehensive whole-system approach, it integrates insights from three interconnected subsystems:

    Consumption: An empirical analysis of interventions and how they interact across food environments. A consumer-journey approach uncovers behavioural barriers, spill-over effects and compensation mechanisms (e.g., moral licensing) to better understand how to encourage lasting behaviour change.

    Distribution: An assessment of competitive and resilient strategies for supermarkets and other distribution actors. The project identifies key drivers, barriers and operational insights needed to reshape commercial environments in favour of alternative protein options.

    Policy: A co-designed set of effective policy mixes at local, national and EU level to support shifts in both consumption and distribution. This includes analysing political and institutional complexities that influence protein system reform.

    These subsystem insights are integrated into a cohesive, system-wide protein strategy that explores how different leverage points can reinforce each other and create tipping points for large-scale change.

    Through collaboration with associated partners and a strong science-policy interface, the project uses participatory, co-creation methods to ensure broad stakeholder engagement. Its ultimate aim is to provide practical, evidence-based tools for policymakers and stakeholders to drive an accelerated, effective and just protein transition in Europe.

    • 1.049.150€

TASTE

True Cost Accounting for Sustainable Food Environments

    • ISS - Italy

    • TMG Research gGmbH - Germany

    • Nordregio - Sweden

    • Vegetarian Society of Denmark - Denmark

  • TASTE aims to drive transformative change in European food environments by applying True Cost Accounting (TCA) to reveal the real health, environmental, social and economic impacts of food systems. By addressing root causes of unhealthy and unsustainable diets, the project focuses especially on vulnerable groups such as blue-collar workers and underserved communities.

    Unlike interventions that target individual behaviour, TASTE prioritises structural transformation across three interconnected levels:

    1. Macro level:
    Inspired by Denmark’s plant-based food policies, TASTE will support the development of EU-wide strategies and funding mechanisms. Policy labs will facilitate cross-national learning, showing how TCA can inform dietary guidelines (e.g., Italy, Germany) and sustainable public procurement (e.g., Sweden, Denmark).

    2. Meso level:
    Two Living Labs will pilot TCA-driven solutions. In Italy, a sustainable meal calculator will guide menu planning in workplace canteens. In Sweden, GIS tools and community engagement will help redesign neighbourhood food environments and explore TCA-based procurement practices at the local level.

    3. Micro level:
    Awareness campaigns, workshops and educational activities in workplace canteens will help employees understand the true costs of food and support healthier, more sustainable choices. Surveys will monitor changes in attitudes and behaviour.

    Building on insights from the Horizon Europe PLAN’EAT project, TASTE will demonstrate how TCA can guide healthier, fairer and more sustainable food systems.

    Expected impacts include:

    • Policy: Actionable recommendations aligning dietary guidelines with sustainability and public health.

    • Social: Improved access to healthy foods and reduced health inequalities.

    • Environmental: Lower emissions and resource use through more sustainable diets.

    • Economic: Tools that make hidden costs visible and support sustainable business models.

    The consortium brings together the Italian National Institute of Health (ISS), TMG (a leading TCA think tank), Nordregio (regional development research centre) and the Vegetarian Society of Denmark. Together, they combine the expertise needed to shape food environments that support healthier behaviour, reduce societal costs, and promote long-term sustainability and equity.

    • 1.097.440€

HARMONI

Hybrid Alternatives for Redefining Meat with Optimal Nutrition from Integrated Cell and Plant-Based Materials

    • Technical University of Munich (TUM) - Germany

    • Aarhus University - Denmark

    • KU Leuven - Belgium

    • University of Helsinki - Finland

    • Norwegian University of Science and Technology - Norway

    • Wacker Chemie AG - Germany

    • Aleph Farms - Israel

  • Europe’s food culture is strongly meat-centric, with up to 58% of daily protein intake coming from animal sources. Global demand for animal protein is still rising, placing increasing pressure on the environment and animal welfare. Project HARMONI responds to this challenge by generating the scientific foundation for hybrid meat alternatives—products that combine the strengths of plant-based meat alternatives (PBMA) and cultivated meat (CM) to overcome current limitations in processing, nutrition and consumer acceptance. The long-term goal is to expand the food palette with appealing options for meat eaters and flexitarians.


    HARMONI develops hybrid products by integrating cultivated fat and muscle cells into plant- or meat-based matrices. Understanding how these elements interact is essential to mimic real meat properties. The project optimises each hybrid component and studies their combined effects on texture, functionality and nutritional value. A combinatorial system will improve integration, while consumer studies guide product development. A life cycle assessment ensures environmental sustainability. Collaboration with industry partners supports iterative design and future commercialization.


    HARMONI contributes to more sustainable, healthier and resilient food systems. Hybrid products can reduce environmental impacts, support food security (SDGs 2 and 15), improve animal welfare by limiting intensive livestock production, and close nutritional gaps (SDG 3). By combining consumer insights with ecological assessments, HARMONI develops meat alternatives that match consumer expectations while aligning with global sustainability targets and the European Green Deal.


    The consortium unites leading European experts in cellular agriculture, bioprocess engineering, meat science, cultivated muscle cells, nutrition, material science, sustainable food systems, and consumer psychology. Industrial partners Wacker Chemie AG and Aleph Farms bring essential biotechnology and cultivated meat expertise. Together, they create a platform for hybrid product development with broad applications in the food and meat industries. Open-access tools and a characterization toolbox will support global knowledge sharing and help advance sustainable, secure food systems.

    • 1.408.440€

TrueFoodS

Transforming European Food Systems: Sustainability, Equity, Governance and Resilience as core elements

    • Vrije Universiteit Brussel - Belgium

    • Asociatia Institutul Pentru Rezilienta Climatica, Economica Si Sociala - Romania

    • Municipality of Alba Iulia - Romania

    • Scuola Superiore Di Studi Universitari E Di Perfezionamento St. Anna - Italy

    • Ecologic Institute - Germany

    • Hållbar Utveckling Skåne - Sweden

    • Institute of Natural Products and Agrobiology - Spain

    • Universidade do Porto Portugal University of Food Technologies- Plovdiv - Bulgaria

    • Region Skåne - Sweden

    • Finca Marañuela - Spain

    • Association of cities and regions for sustainable resource management - Belgium

    • Food & Bio Cluster Denmark - Denmark

  • TrueFoodS aims to revolutionise European food systems by focusing on the post-harvest phase—a key lever for sustainability, equity, and resilience. The project tackles resource inefficiencies, fragmented policies, and social disparities to ensure that all stakeholders, regardless of socio-economic background or gender, can actively contribute to sustainable food systems.

    Using a Food Systems Approach, TrueFoodS recognises the interconnections between production, processing, distribution, consumption, and waste management. By integrating cultural practices and traditional foodways into circular models, it enhances acceptance and scalability of sustainable practices. SMEs and marginalised communities are empowered through capacity-building, co-creation workshops, inclusive business models, and culturally-informed educational tools, fostering societal engagement and behavioural change.

    At the policy level, TrueFoodS proposes harmonised and adaptive governance frameworks to align regional, national, and EU policies, ensuring coherence and collaboration across the food system.

    Operating across eight European countries—Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Romania, Germany, Sweden, Italy, and Bulgaria—the project leverages local knowledge and transnational cooperation. Regional and territorial partners, including Region Skåne (SE), Alba Iulia (RO), Commune of Viroinval (BE), Food & Bio Cluster Denmark, and ACR+, help integrate project outcomes into local strategies for long-term adoption.

    Expected impacts include:

    • Environmental: Reduced food waste and greenhouse gas emissions through circular innovations and biodiversity-friendly practices.

    • Social: Greater equity and resilience via empowerment of marginalised groups and inclusive governance.

    • Economic: Enhanced efficiency and profitability for SMEs through innovative business models.

    • Policy: Development of a unified EU legal framework for post-harvest systems, promoting regulatory coherence and resilience.

    • 1.771.510€

RESHAPE

Reshaping food systems: value change transformation through reconnection

    • Centro Superior de Investigaciones Científicas - Estación Biológica de Doñana - Spain

    • Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam - The Netherlands

    • WU Vienna University of Economics and Business - Austria

    • University of Córdoba - Instituto de Sociología y Estudios Campesinos - Spain

    • University of Southern Denmark - Denmark

    • Bogazici University - Türkiye

    • Eskelyst - Denmark

  • Urbanization, industrialization, and globalized food systems have disconnected people from the origins of their food, weakening society’s connection to nature and social-ecological values. RESHAPE addresses this by analysing the value chains of five European food products—berries and wild greens (Spain), Gouda cheese (Netherlands), grass-fed meat (Denmark), and artisanal fish (Turkey)—to co-design and test strategies that reconnect people with food and promote sustainable, resilient food systems.

    The project uses mixed-method, inter- and transdisciplinary approaches, covering all stages from production to consumption, including processing, distribution, marketing, and preparation. Five Living Labs provide real-world contexts to test innovations and engage stakeholders such as farmers, processors, chefs, transporters, consumers, policymakers, media, and academia.

    Key activities include:

    • Value chain analysis: Combining ethnography, life cycle assessment, and environmentally-extended input-output analysis.

    • Socio-cultural studies: Identifying how societal values shape food systems and ways to foster reconnection.

    • Governance evaluation: Comparing top-down, bottom-up, and mixed strategies to understand their role in transformational change.

    • Participatory strategies: Co-creating future scenarios, citizen science initiatives, and arts-based approaches to encourage behavioural change.

    By project end, RESHAPE will deliver actionable insights and tools for decision-makers, helping reconnect people with food while supporting equitable, sustainable, and resilient European food systems.

    • 1.736.430€

SpeedyFermHub

Knowledge HUB for SPEEDY characterisation, optimisation and scale-up of FERMented, plant-based new foods improving resilience of European Food Systems

    • FONDAZIONE EDMUND MACH - Italy

    • National Research Council of Italy (CNR) - Italy

    • University of Verona - Italy

    • CSIC - Institiuto de Ciencia y Technologia de Alimentos y Nutricion (ICTAN) - Spain

    • Universidade de Évora - Portugal

    • VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland - Finland

    • Tarsus University - Türkiye

    • Aarhus University - Denmark

    • INRAE - France

    • Universidad del País Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibertsiatea (UPV/EHU) - Spain

    • CONICET - Argentina

  • Europe remains heavily reliant on meat and dairy, which are expected to account for 60% of protein intake by 2035. This poses sustainability challenges, as continued climate pressures deplete natural resources. A shift to plant-based, protein-rich foods can reduce greenhouse gas emissions, water use, and land consumption, but consumer acceptance remains limited, with plant-based alternatives currently making up only 0.7–2.5% of the meat and dairy markets.

    SpeedyFermHub addresses this challenge by leveraging fermentation to improve the aroma, texture, and nutritional value of plant-based foods in a healthy, safe, and sustainable way. Starting from a diverse bioresource repository, the project screens hundreds of ingredient-strain combinations at small scale, progressively refining fermentation and processing to produce three new foods: a non-dairy cheese, a sausage, and a meat analogue. A scale-up phase will demonstrate technical feasibility in operational environments, with continuous optimization across texture, stability, nutrition, and sensory attributes.

    Consumer acceptance is central: market analysis, AI-driven predictive models, and gender-specific nutritional and behavioral insights will guide product development. The project follows FAIR data practices, generating open-access multi-omics datasets and two AI-driven “Digital Twin” tools for predicting outcomes.

    Through an integrated, multi-actor approach—including webinars, workshops, and a public conference—SpeedyFermHub aims to deliver scientifically optimized, appealing plant-based foods with high real-world impact, supporting a shift towards more sustainable and resilient European food systems.

    • 1.783.340€

CREEP

From creeping crisis to deliberate transformation: Building a resilient and sustainable food system in Nordic regions

    • University of Turku - Finland

    • University of Jyväskylä - Finland

    • Karlstad University - Sweden

    • Norwegian University of Science and Technology - Norway

    • Uppsala University - Sweden

    • Swedish Defence University - Sweden

    • Ruralis - Institute for Rural and Regional Research - Norway

  • This project conceptualises the food system as a complex adaptive system (CAS), marked by long periods of stability (lock-ins) interrupted by abrupt transformations, often triggered by crises. The project has two main goals: to explore how deliberate, rather than crisis-driven, transformations can be facilitated, and to understand potential crises to design effective management strategies. The focus is on Northern Europe, where centralised trade, harsh climates, and declining farm numbers increase food system vulnerabilities.

    The project is structured into five work packages (WPs):

    • WP1: Holistic assessment of creeping crises, identifying their origins, drivers, escalation processes, and prevention strategies.

    • WP2: Analysis of internal lock-ins that resist transformation, using media and document analyses to model the system and reveal leverage points.

    • WP3: Examination of turbulent periods, emerging crises, and foreshadowing events across climate, environment, demographics, markets, economy, and geopolitics, using expert interviews, surveys, climate models, and causal loop diagrams.

    • WP4: Design of deliberate transformation pathways by relaxing constraints, scaling up novel practices, and engaging change agents through workshops and outputs from WPs 1–3.

    • WP5: Project coordination and stakeholder engagement, fostering collaboration and strengthening stakeholders’ capacity for transformative action.

    The project is a collaborative effort of seven academic institutions across three Nordic countries.

    • 865.980€

FoodEnvironments4Future

Future-proof school-centric food environments

    • Världsnaturfonden WWF Sweden - Sweden

    • Nordregio - Sweden

    • Organic Sweden - Sweden

    • Vejle Kommune / Culinary Institute by Vejle Erhvery - Denmark

    • Media, Information and Persuasion Lab / Leuven University - Belgium

    • Rikolto Belgie - Belgium

    • Erasmus  University Medical Center Rotterdam - The Netherlands

    • Speiseräume – Büro für angewandte Ernährungspolitik gGmbH - Germany

    • Zorgtraiteur Claessens André - Belgium

    • Foodatelier César - Belgium

    • University of Alcalá - Spain

    • Senatsverwaltung für Bildung, Jugend und Familie des Land Berlin - Germany

    • Senatsverwaltung für Justiz und Verbraucherschutz des Land Berlin - Germany

    • Södertälje kommun - Sweden

    • Stad Leuven - Belgium

    • Lidl Belgium GmbH & Co KG - Belgium

    • City of Rotterdam - The Netherlands

    • GREENs unlimited Berlin GmbH - Germany

  • FoodEnvironments4Future envisions school and youth-centered food environments that make healthy and sustainable diets the default choice, fostering long-term health, environmental benefits, and empowering youth to drive sustainable food system transitions.

    The project aims to redesign food environments in and around schools by addressing systemic barriers such as limited stakeholder participation, weak public-private collaboration, and unethical marketing to youth. Rather than focusing on individual responsibility, it promotes structural change, engaging students, teachers, school staff, caterers, retailers, urban planners, and policymakers in co-creation processes.

    Using participatory methods like mapping, local innovation labs, and national accelerator groups, the project develops policy frameworks, governance models, and sustainable business solutions that are healthy, equitable, culturally appealing, and economically viable. It builds on the EU Whole School Food Approach from the SchoolFood4Change project.

    Spanning six European countries—Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Spain, Sweden, and the Netherlands—FoodEnvironments4Future tailors interventions to local contexts (e.g., Leuven, Vejle, Berlin, Madrid, Södertälje, Rotterdam) while ensuring replicability and transnational relevance. Key initiatives include combating unethical marketing, improving availability and affordability of nutritious and sustainable food, strengthening food literacy, shifting cultural food preferences, and exploring social tipping points.

    By addressing public health, environmental sustainability, and economic resilience simultaneously, the project provides evidence-based policy recommendations, actionable insights for commercial actors, and innovative, replicable school food environment interventions that align profitability with sustainability.

    • 2.366.196€

ALGAMAT

Sustainable and Nutritious ALGAE-Based Burger Development

    • Nord University - Norway

    • Hanze University of Applied Sciences - The Netherlands

    • TU Bergakademie Freiberg - Germany

    • University of Eastern Finland - Finland

    • Salten Algae AS (Nordic Blu Seaweed) - Norway

    • Matís ohf - Iceland

    • Vetik OÜ - Estonia

    • Norwegian Seaweed Cluster - Norway

    • Kaunas University of Technology - Lithuania

  • ALGAMAT tackles the challenge of sustainably using Europe’s 100+ Megatons of seaweed from the Atlantic, Baltic, North Sea, and Wadden Sea regions, less than 0.25% of which is currently utilized. Seaweed offers nutritional benefits, healthy fish supplements, and environmental protection, but European producers face inefficient production cycles, complex standards, and supply chain challenges.

    The project focuses on circular utilization of seaweed to produce high-value ingredients for plant-based burger patties, minimizing waste and optimizing biorefinery cycles while protecting water basins and coastal regions. ALGAMAT will convert over five types of invasive micro- and macroalgae—including Arctic species from Svalbard and Lofoten—into nutrient-rich biomolecules without overexploitation. Products are manufactured using energy-efficient, water-recirculating processes, combining a novel seaweed blanching method with plant-based ingredients and residual algae binders.

    A key innovation is a taste and sensitivity dashboard to guide product formulation and consumer acceptance. The project ensures broad impact through workshops, symposiums, conferences, and open-access publications, promoting knowledge transfer and replicable sustainable practices. By combining circular bioproduction, zero-waste technology, and ecosystem conservation, ALGAMAT advances Europe’s alternative healthy, nutrient-rich, and environmentally friendly seaweed products.

    • 1.587.750€

ENRESFOOD

Ensure resilience of the food supply chain against safety and security shocks

    • Wageningen Food Safety Research - The Netherlands

    • University of the Bundeswehr Munich - Germany

    • AIT Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH -Austria

    • National Research Council of Italy - Italy

  • ENRESFOOD develops a user-friendly dashboard to strengthen the resilience of European food systems against both intentional and unintentional safety and security threats. The dashboard allows users to early-identify potential risks, evaluate response measures, and understand trade-offs through clear visualizations such as charts and alerts.

    Built on a flexible platform, the dashboard links models, tools, and data, enabling interaction among risk managers, assessors, and private actors. ENRESFOOD applies a 5-step resilience framework: early identification, impact reduction, recovery, learning, and adaptation. Drivers of change across the food system are monitored using data from sources like EFSA, Eurostat, and AI-driven models.

    Two use cases demonstrate the approach: mycotoxin contamination in wheat and intentional contamination in dairy/baby powder, chosen for their societal and economic relevance. Monte Carlo simulations and multi-criteria analyses help evaluate potential resilience measures in terms of cost, effectiveness, and societal acceptance.

    A multi-actor co-creation approach ensures stakeholders are engaged in designing, testing, and refining the dashboard. This participatory process guarantees practical adoption, providing fit-for-purpose tools for enhancing food system resilience and preparing for future safety and security challenges.

    • 1.034.750€

SeaPlate

From Sea to the Plate: European Brown Macroalgae as Innovative Additions to a Healthy and Sustainable Diet

    • Erasmus University Medical Center (Erasmus MC) - The Netherlands

    • University Hospital Bonn (UB) - Germany

    • Nord University (NORD) - Norway

    • University of Foggia (UF) - Italy

    • lsbi | life science-based innovations - The Netherlands

    • Oceana Organic Products Ltd (OOP) - Ireland

  • Europe faces rising healthcare challenges linked to aging and unhealthy diets. Brown algae offer a promising, sustainable solution. They are abundant along Europe’s coasts and contain valuable bioactive nutrients that may help prevent chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disorders, obesity, and Alzheimer’s.

    Brown algae provide unique sterols, polysaccharides, and proteins with anti-inflammatory and health-promoting effects. They are also an affordable, ecofriendly food source that requires minimal land, water, and fertilizers.

    This project aims to develop safe, high-quality algal extracts using sustainable extraction techniques and to validate their benefits for healthy aging. The goal is to support healthier diets while strengthening a resilient, environmentally friendly European food system.

    Key objectives:

    1. Identify the most health-promoting edible brown algae across Europe.

    2. Develop green extraction methods for safe, food-grade extracts.

    3. Increase bioactive compound levels through optimized pre-processing.

    4. Test health effects in cell systems and pre-clinical models of obesity, cardiovascular disease, and Alzheimer’s.

    5. Evaluate tolerability in human volunteers.

    6. Study consumer preferences and ways to increase acceptance of algae-based foods.

    7. Examine regulatory and market opportunities.

    The project will deliver nutrient-rich, safe algal extracts suitable for future algae-based foods aligned with EU dietary guidelines and consumer expectations. These foods can support healthy aging and reduce pressure on healthcare systems.

    By advancing algae as a sustainable food source, the project contributes to the EU Farm to Fork strategy and opens new commercial opportunities for ecofriendly marine-based products, helping make healthier and more sustainable diets accessible across Europe.

    • 1.049.710€

Fermgut

Fermented foods and gut health

    • Teagasc-Agriculture and Food Development Authority - Ireland

    • University College Cork - Ireland

    • INRAE - France

    • Intestinal Biotech Development SAS - France

    • Universidad Autonoma de Madrid - Spain

  • FERMGUT develops innovative fermented foods with proven health-promoting properties. The project builds on research from Ireland, France, and Spain to create postbiotic products using Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) and Propionic Acid Bacteria (PAB), known for their beneficial effects on gut health and immune function.

    French partners at INRAE STLO are developing foods fermented with Propionibacterium freudenreichii, a strain shown to reduce colitis and mucositis in mouse models. Surface-layer proteins and extracellular vesicles appear to play a key role in strengthening the gut barrier and reducing inflammation and allergy. Postbiotic versions of these fermented foods also show strong immunomodulatory activity. The project will additionally screen other S-layer-forming bacteria, including Lactobacillus helveticus and Levilactobacillus brevis.

    The project consists of six work packages. INRAE and Teagasc will produce postbiotic fermentates using dairy and plant-based substrates with optimized bacterial consortia. Their impact on the gut microbiome and metabolome will be evaluated using ex vivo human colon models (Teagasc; UCC). Anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects will be tested in in vitro leaky gut models (UAM).

    The most promising fermented products will then be assessed in in vivo models of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) (IBD Biotech) in the third project year.

    Although interest in postbiotics is growing, solid scientific evidence is often lacking. FERMGUT addresses this gap through high-quality interdisciplinary research, strong international collaboration, and dedicated training for PhD students and early-career scientists. The project will deliver novel fermented functional foods with real health benefits and commercial potential, enabling new postbiotic products to reach the market in the short to medium term.

    • 757.430€

FAF

Future-proof microAlgae-based Foods

    • Wageningen University (WUR) - The Netherlands

    • Associação Oceano Verde – Laboratório Colaborativo para o Desenvolvimento de Tecnologias e Produtos Verdes do Oceano (GreenCoLab) - Portugal

    • WIISE S.R.L. SOCIETA' BENEFIT - Italy

    • Tetis Biyoteknoloji - Türkiye

    • Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn - Italy

    • University College Dublin - Ireland

    • UiT - The Arctic University of Norway - Norway

    • ETİ Gıda San. - Türkiye

  • Feeding the world cannot be solved by simply producing more food. FAF aims to develop future-proof ingredients for the 21st century: microalgae. They are nutrient-rich, highly sustainable, and require no arable land or drinking water. Despite their potential, microalgae remain a new food source, with limited scale-up knowledge and a complex regulatory landscape.

    FAF was co-designed to overcome these barriers and accelerate the use of microalgae as a food ingredient. Instead of focusing solely on production, the project will apply existing knowledge to create seven product types: chocolates, cakes, fish analogues, algae caviar, functional beverages, freeze-dried snacks, and functional powders. A dedicated exploitation plan will include market analysis, business cases, and a roadmap to support market uptake of microalgae-based ingredients.

    The project will develop sustainable, continuous production of key ingredients such as proteins and omega-3s, using novel biorefinery approaches. Tetraselmis chuii, already approved for human consumption, will be the main strain, while additional strains will be explored to broaden future options. Extracted ingredients will be used to develop food prototypes backed by scientific evidence on bioactivity, digestibility, and sensory properties.

    A multistakeholder approach will guide the exploitation strategy and consumer outreach. Evidence-based materials will be shared with community health programs and policymakers. Social media and local events will target health-conscious consumers, vegans, and vegetarians, raising awareness of microalgae as nutritious, affordable foods.

    The project will also work toward integrating microalgae into dietary guidelines, supported by scientific and sustainability data. A simplified regulatory overview and roadmap will help guide companies introducing microalgae-based ingredients. Environmental (LCA, S-LCA, LCC) and economic (TEA) assessments will evaluate selected business cases and provide recommendations for expanding microalgae use across the EU food innovation landscape.

    • 1.646.630€

RegioFoodS

From regional relevance to transnational value: how regional food systems can boost resilience and self-sufficiency in Nordic and Baltic countries

    • University of Helsinki Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry - Finland

    • Roskilde University - Denmark

    • Kost Studio - Denmark

    • Lund University - Sweden

    • University of Iceland - Iceland

    • Ruralis - Institute for Rural and Regional Research - Norway

    • Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) - Finland

    • Estonian Business School - Estonia

    • Vytautas Magnus University (VMU) - Lithuania

    • Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry - Lithuania

    • Sustainable Gastro (Turn Sustainable) - Lithuania

    • Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences - Sweden

    • SFIN (Livsmedelsakademin) - Sweden

    • Nordic Joint Committee for Agricultural and Food Research (NKJ) - Sweden

    • Region Skåne - Sweden

  • Food systems evolve within complex spatial environments where actors, production methods, and cultural practices interact to create foodscapes. Although this complexity is widely acknowledged, most studies focus on isolated scales or components, often overlooking vulnerabilities and the interdependencies that create systemic lock-ins.

    RegioFoodS addresses this gap over 36 months through collaboration among researchers, public and private organisations, and practitioners from Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Lithuania, Norway, and Sweden. The project will:
    • define and compare the main components of seven regional food systems (RFS) in the Nordic–Baltic region and assess their vulnerabilities (WP1);
    • map RFS stakeholders, establish seven Regional Task Forces, and trace the flow of three selected foods from production to disposal in each region (WP2);
    • evaluate long-term resilience and identify leverage points for action (WP3);
    • develop scenarios to 2050 and create seven cross-sectoral regional strategic plans based on the project’s data (WP4);
    • launch a Transnational Nordic–Baltic Observatory on Food System Resilience, supported by the Task Forces (WP5);
    • carry out communication activities and build synergies with other initiatives (WP6).

    RegioFoodS integrates innovative methodologies, including food systems analysis, problem-solving frameworks, and the Theory of Change, to design effective interventions that strengthen the sustainability and resilience of regional food systems.

    The project will deliver a robust methodology for mapping and assessing long-term food system resilience in the Nordic–Baltic region, applicable at national and transnational scales. It will identify leverage points, support coordinated governance, and provide policy recommendations. A key focus is the role of food businesses in strengthening resilience.

    By engaging stakeholders and building regional expertise, RegioFoodS enhances the capacity of regions to address food system challenges with solutions that are relevant, sustainable, and future-proof. Cross-border collaboration will help drive a just transition. The project aligns with national Food System Pathways, the SDGs, the European Green Deal, the Nordic Vision, Generation 2030, and the Karlstad Declaration.

    • 1.880.590€

BIOPOM

Biotechnological upcycling of fruit pomace into prebiotic food ingredients

    • Universidad de Valladolid - Spain

    • Instituto Politécnico de Bragança - Portugal

    • Aarhus University - Denmark

    • BRAINAPPLE SL - Spain

    • La Tahona de Sahagun - Spain

    • Chalmers tekniska högskola AB - Sweden

  • BIOPOM tackles a major sustainability challenge: reducing food waste while creating high-value, health-promoting ingredients. Apple pomace (AP)—a by-product of juice and cider production—represents about 20% of the apple’s wet mass and generates 4 million tonnes of waste annually in Europe. Although AP is rich in polysaccharides and polyphenols, it is underused due to rapid spoilage, the presence of toxic cyanogenic glycosides and bitter compounds, poor colloidal properties, and strict regulatory limits.

    BIOPOM addresses these barriers through precision fermentation, metabolomics, and colloidal science. The project uses targeted microbial activity to neutralize or transform antinutritional and bitter compounds, improve safety, and introduce a biopreservation effect. Colloidal science is applied to optimize how AP interacts with starch and proteins, enabling its integration into semisolid foods without compromising texture or sensory quality.

    AP’s nutritional value is a core focus: its bioactive components may exceed conventional dietary fibers in supporting gut health. By controlling the release of bioactive compounds and selectively stimulating beneficial gut bacteria, AP-derived ingredients offer untapped prebiotic potential. The project will also analyze the chemical profile of AP, ensure safety throughout the entire life cycle, and align outputs with EU regulations and the EU Green Deal.

    BIOPOM’s multidisciplinary consortium includes experts in biochemistry, biotechnology, metabolomics, lifecycle assessment, food safety, and novel food regulations. Activities include screening local apple varieties for low antinutrient levels, stabilizing AP, optimizing microbial systems, and validating sustainability. Industry partners supply AP, support stabilization technologies, and help integrate AP into food products at pre-industrial scale.

    The project will create new revenue streams for cider producers, add value for bakeries, and support specialized job creation. BIOPOM is expected to generate up to €800 per tonne of AP while significantly reducing waste and environmental impact. Its scalable solutions offer a model for valorizing other plant-based side streams, advancing circular and sustainable food systems.

    • 1.099.390€

MIPRODESIGN

Accelerating plant-based protein emulsion design with microfluidics and intelligent software tools for sustainable foods

    • Norwegian University of Science and Technology - Norway

    • Wageningen University and Research - The Netherlands

    • Technical University of Munich - Germany

    • Universitat Rovira i Virgili - Spain

  • Most food emulsions—such as drinks, sauces, and yogurts—depend on animal-based proteins to meet requirements for stability, digestibility, and taste. This reliance is unsustainable due to the high environmental footprint of animal proteins. A rapid protein transition is needed, yet little is known about how alternative plant proteins function in emulsions, and current testing methods are slow, costly, and resource-intensive.

    MIPRODESIGN addresses this gap by introducing an automated microfluidic technology combined with intelligent software tools to accelerate the development of sustainable, plant-based emulsions. Microfluidics drastically reduces material use, time, and costs compared to conventional techniques but is rarely applied in food science. Machine learning and physics-based models will guide the optimal design of microfluidic systems and enable real-time analysis of oil-in-water droplets.

    Proteins and oils will be selected and ranked based on consumer preferences, nutritional value, environmental impact, and stakeholder input. Microfluidic emulsions will then be tested for physicochemical stability and digestibility under key food-relevant conditions (protein concentration, pH, salinity, temperature), identifying optimal formulations. These insights will support food producers in designing new sustainable products tailored to specific constraints.

    To validate scalability, the best microfluidic formulations will be transferred to a membrane emulsification process, which uses far less energy than conventional industrial methods. This will not only demonstrate the feasibility of the new design framework but also improve the sustainability of emulsion production.

    MIPRODESIGN will strengthen the link between plant protein producers and end users, enabling faster development of sustainable plant-based foods. The project contributes to environmental, economic, and social goals: reducing environmental impact, improving production efficiency, and supporting healthier diets. Once validated, the methodology can extend to other food systems, including nutrient-fortified functional foods. Microfluidics combined with intelligent software could become a powerful catalyst for screening, optimizing, and ensuring the safety of future food ingredients.

    • 1.035.850€

AI-ProFood

AI-Driven Food Procurement: Shifting Paradigms for Sustainable and Inclusive School Canteens

    • University of Turin - Italy

    • Food4Sustainability CoLAB - Portugal

    • EUC INOVACÃO PORTUGAL, UNIPESSOAL, LDA - Portugal

    • Municipality of Copenhagen - Denmark

    • Univeristy of Copenhagen - Denmark

    • Università Politecnica delle Marche - Italy

  • AI-ProFood aims to transform EU food systems through Sustainable Public Food Procurement (SPFP) by integrating AI and blockchain technologies into a modular web platform. The platform embeds sustainability criteria throughout the procurement process, influencing entire food chains and ensuring that each ingredient, recipe, and meal reflects health, sustainability, and transparency. The project also explores alignment with EU initiatives such as EBSI to support future scalability.

    The system is designed for policymakers, procurement officers, SMEs, and other food system stakeholders. SMEs receive capacity-building support, improved market access, and tools to strengthen competitiveness.

    AI-driven optimization
    The AI engine forecasts canteen attendance to optimize purchasing and reduce food, packaging, and logistics waste. It evaluates local ingredients based on nutritional and environmental metrics to generate balanced, seasonal menus. Recipe selection is informed by food mapping and tested in chef–student workshops for acceptability. Waste data from kitchens and consumption are fed back into the AI model, continually improving menu planning and minimizing waste.

    Blockchain-enabled transparency
    Blockchain records the origin and sustainability certifications of ingredients, ensuring full traceability. Real-time dashboards display the nutritional and environmental impacts of meals, strengthening trust among stakeholders.

    Continuous improvement
    Feedback loops enable the system to adapt to evolving nutritional and sustainability goals, maintaining long-term effectiveness.

    Shifting food habits
    Engagement with canteen users and community groups builds food literacy and encourages more sustainable eating habits. Participation fosters shared responsibility and ownership of local food systems.

    Scaling innovation
    Food mapping, pilot trials, advanced machine learning, and digital twin simulations enhance system efficiency and prepare it for broader rollout.

    Stakeholder dialogue
    Workshops and training support procurement officers and SMEs in adopting the tools. Expert sessions clarify how sustainable procurement aligns with institutional priorities and delivers societal and economic benefits.

    Associate cities
    Two associate cities (Portugal, Italy) join in year 2, followed by ten replication cities in year 3. Selection through WP8 leverages networks such as School Food 4 Change (SF4C). Local workshops introduce the system, collect feedback, and validate outputs, ensuring broad applicability and long-term impact.

    • 873.990€

BETRUE

From Beef to bean: the potential of ‘true pricing’ as an instrument for systemic change in the transition to plant-based alternatives

    • University of Amsterdam - The Netherlands

    • LMU Munich - Germany

    • Free University Bolzano - Italy

    • University of Copenhagen - Denmark

    • Amsterdam UMC - The Netherlands

  • Beef consumption highlights some of the most critical environmental, health, and social challenges in today’s pressured global food system. Rising demand, driven by population growth, makes beef a major source of greenhouse gas emissions and land degradation. Consumption of red and processed meat also exceeds recommended limits, increasing risks of coronary heart disease and diabetes. Yet beef prices remain artificially low due to subsidies and trade policies, masking the true environmental and health costs and encouraging overconsumption.

    True cost pricing—incorporating hidden environmental and societal impacts into market prices—is increasingly seen as a powerful lever for systemic change. International bodies such as the FAO and World Bank recommend such pricing mechanisms. However, little is known about how true cost pricing would affect the food system in practice. Existing price-based interventions (subsidies, taxes) can be effective but depend on supportive conditions such as marketing regulations and public awareness, and they often act only at the consumer end of the value chain. Power imbalances and resistance to changing consumption patterns further complicate reform. Empirical evidence on how true pricing works, when it is effective, and how it interacts with food system dynamics is limited.

    This project addresses these gaps by examining how true cost pricing for beef can be embedded in broader systemic, policy, and regulatory changes that reduce consumption and support shifts toward plant-based diets. Guided by systems change theory, the project investigates how targeted interventions can trigger self-reinforcing feedback loops and enable transformation.

    BETRUE will map existing true pricing approaches and use participatory methods, including group model building, to understand how enabling conditions, system drivers, and interventions interact. These insights will inform a framework for choice experiments in four EU countries, assessing public preferences for reforms involving true pricing and identifying conditions that could reduce consumption. Field experiments in supermarkets, canteens, and restaurants will complement this, testing real-world behavioural responses.

    Findings from the experiments will feed into scenario-based tools to provide policymakers with actionable guidance tailored to national contexts. While beef is the focal case, the project’s qualitative insights will support understanding of how food pricing reforms can encourage broader dietary shifts toward plant-based foods.

    • 1.291.760€