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Call key data
Towards research and innovation beyond farm to fork strategy targets for pesticides after 2030
Call number
HORIZON-CL6-2023-FARM2FORK-01-4
deadlines
Opening
22.12.2022
Deadline
12.04.2023 17:00
Funding rate
100%
Call budget
€ 1,000,000.00
Estimated EU contribution per project
€ 1,000,000.00
Link to the call
Link to the submission
Call content
Call objectives
The use of chemical pesticides in agriculture harm non-target organisms including humans, contaminates the soil, water and the wider environment, and cause biodiversity decline in agricultural areas. The European Green Deal has set new targets and defined a roadmap to reach its objectives through multiple strategies and action plans, including the farm to fork and the EU biodiversity strategy for 2030. Ambitious targets have been set for agriculture, namely the goal of reducing by 50% the use and risks of chemical pesticides, as well as the use of more hazardous pesticides, by 2030.
Research has shown that well-designed integrated pest management programmes can control weeds and pests in an ecologically friendly manner; however, today’s farming still relies significantly on chemical treatments to ensure farm yields and profits. A key challenge is to assess the impact on sustainability (environmental, social, economic) of going beyond these 2030 targets of pesticide reduction aiming for further reductions or even phasing out chemical pesticides in EU agriculture, starting with the most hazardous ones, while sustainably coping with the consequences of climate change, such as heat, drought and extreme precipitation, or pressure from invasive pests and diseases. In order to achieve this, a stronger R&I ecosystem should be put in place that would be able to contribute with sustainable solutions, assess the challenges of further reductions or phasing out chemical pesticides on food systems, including food security and affordability, and connect the different ongoing efforts and initiatives.
Proposals should:
- Establish a network that promotes close cooperation among relevant research and innovation actors (including social sciences) and networks across the EU and Associated Countries;
- Provide a comprehensive analysis and understanding of knowledge gaps and new research paradigms to be addressed towards a sustainable (and beyond farm to fork targets) agriculture;
- Identify, map and foster pesticide use and risk reduction related activities in the EU, Associated Countries and worldwide, including programmes and demonstration facilities, all along the agri-food chain;
- Identify the challenges and opportunities for primary producers and other actors of the agri-food chain to drive the transition towards a sustainable (and beyond farm to fork targets) agriculture;
- Provide recommendations on the future research needs in agricultural sciences, as well as in technical, social, economic and policy sciences, aiming for further reductions or phasing out chemical pesticides in agriculture taking in consideration climate change, increased pressure from pests and diseases, and other challenges.
Proposals should consider arable and perennial crops. Proposals should build and capitalise on the outcomes of other relevant EU-funded research projects and initiatives under Horizon 2020, Horizon Europe, and other programmes/initiatives (such as COST actions, PRIMA). Activities should ensure alignment and complementarity with those carried out under the future partnership ‘Accelerating farming systems transition: agroecology living labs and research infrastructures’ and the European Mission ‘A Soil Deal for Europe”. Proposals must implement the ‘multi-actor approach’ including a range of actors to ensure that knowledge and needs from various sector, researchers, farmers, advisory services, agri-food industries, consumers and NGOs are brought together.
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Expected effects and impacts
The successful proposal should support the implementation of the farm to fork strategy, the EU biodiversity strategy for 2030 and the EU climate policy under the European Green Deal. Activities will contribute to the transition to fair, healthy and environmentally friendly food systems from primary production to consumption, notably the target to reduce by 50% the overall use and risk of chemical pesticides and reduce the use by 50% of the more hazardous pesticides.
Expected results
- Improved understanding of main knowledge gaps as well as of drivers and barriers to go beyond the farm to fork targets for chemical pesticides;
- Increased networking and knowledge exchange across Europe promoting a reduction in pesticide use and risk beyond the farm to fork targets;
- Research needs for further reductions or phasing out chemical pesticides in agriculture are identified.
Eligibility Criteria
Regions / countries for funding
Moldova (Moldova), Albania (Shqipëria), Armenia (Հայաստան), Bosnia and Herzegovina (Bosna i Hercegovina / Босна и Херцеговина), Faeroes (Føroyar / Færøerne), Georgia (საქართველო), Iceland (Ísland), Israel (ישראל / إِسْرَائِيل), Kosovo (Kosova/Kosovë / Косово), Montenegro (Црна Гора), Morocco (المغرب), North Macedonia (Северна Македонија), Norway (Norge), Serbia (Srbija/Сpбија), Tunisia (تونس /Tūnis), Türkiye, Ukraine (Україна), United Kingdom
eligible entities
EU Body, Education and training institution, International organization, Natural Person, Non-Profit Organisation (NPO) / Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), Other, Private institution, incl. private company (private for profit), Public Body (national, regional and local; incl. EGTCs), Research Institution incl. University, Small and medium-sized enterprise (SME)
Mandatory partnership
No
Project Partnership
To be eligible for funding, applicants must be established in one of the following countries:
- the Member States of the European Union, including their outermost regions
- the Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs) linked to the Member States
- third countries associated to Horizon Europe - see list of particpating countries
Applications may be submitted by one or more legal entities, which may be established in a Member State, Associated Country or, in exceptional cases and if provided for in the specific call conditions, in another third country.
Any legal entity, regardless of its place of establishment, including legal entities from non-associated third countries or international organisations (including international European research organisations) is eligible to participate (whether it is eligible for funding or not), provided that the conditions laid down in the Horizon Europe Regulation have been met, along with any other conditions laid down in the specific call topic.
A ‘legal entity’ means any natural or legal person created and recognised as such under national law, EU law or international law, which has legal personality and which may, acting in its own name, exercise rights and be subject to obligations, or an entity without legal personality.
Specific cases:
- Affiliated entities — Affiliated entities (i.e. entities with a legal or capital link to a beneficiary which participate in the action with similar rights and obligations to the beneficiaries, but which do not sign the grant agreement and therefore do not become beneficiaries themselves) are allowed, if they are eligible for participation and funding.
- Associated partners — Associated partners (i.e. entities which participate in the action without signing the grant agreement, and without the right to charge costs or claim contributions) are allowed, subject to any conditions regarding associated partners set out in the specific call conditions.
- Entities without legal personality — Entities which do not have legal personality under their national law may exceptionally participate, provided that their representatives have the capacity to undertake legal obligations on their behalf, and offer guarantees to protect the EU’s financial interests equivalent to those offered by legal persons.
- EU bodies — Legal entities created under EU law including decentralised agencies may be part of the consortium, unless provided for otherwise in their basic act.
- Joint Research Centre (‘JRC’)— Where provided for in the specific call conditions, applicants may include in their proposals the possible contribution of the JRC but the JRC will not participate in the preparation and submission of the proposal. Applicants will indicate the contribution that the JRC could bring to the project based on the scope of the topic text. After the evaluation process, the JRC and the consortium selected for funding may come to an agreement on the specific terms of the participation of the JRC. If an agreement is found, the JRC may accede to the grant agreement as beneficiary requesting zero funding or participate as an associated partner, and would accede to the consortium as a member.
- Associations and interest groupings — Entities composed of members (e.g. European research infrastructure consortia (ERICs)) may participate as ‘sole beneficiaries’ or ‘beneficiaries without legal personality’. However, if the action is in practice implemented by the individual members, those members should also participate (either as beneficiaries or as affiliated entities, otherwise their costs will NOT be eligible.
other eligibility criteria
Proposals must apply the multi-actor approach. See definition of the multi-actor approach on pages 21-23 of the work programme.
Additional information
Topics
Relevance for EU Macro-Region
EUSAIR - EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region, EUSALP - EU Strategy for the Alpine Space, EUSBSR - EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region, EUSDR - EU Strategy for the Danube Region
UN Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs)
Additional Information
All proposals must be submitted electronically via the Funders & Tenders Portal electronic submission system (accessible via the topic page in the Search Funding & Tenders section). Paper submissions are NOT possible.
Proposals must be complete and contain all parts and mandatory annexes and supporting documents, e.g. plan for the exploitation and dissemination of the results including communication activities, etc.
The application form will have two parts:
- Part A (to be filled in directly online) contains administrative information about the applicant organisations (future coordinator and beneficiaries and affiliated entities), the summarised budget for the proposal and call-specific questions;
- Part B (to be downloaded from the Portal submission system, completed and then assembled and re-uploaded as a PDF in the system) contains the technical description of the project.
Annexes and supporting documents will be directly available in the submission system and must be uploaded as PDF files (or other formats allowed by the system).
The limit for a full application (Part B) is 33 pages.
Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum.
Call documents
HE-Work Programme 2023-2024, Cluster 6, Destination 2HE-Work Programme 2023-2024, Cluster 6, Destination 2(646kB)
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