Boosting data availability and AI solutions in food for consumers and food service professionals

The EU funding opportunity titled HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-08 focuses on "Boosting data availability and AI solutions in food for consumers and food service professionals" under the Horizon Europe Innovation Action program. The call is set to open on January 14, 2026, with a submission deadline of April 15, 2026. The total budget for this initiative is €15 million, intended to fund two projects, each receiving €7.5 million.

Eligible applicants include large enterprises, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), startups, academic institutions, technology companies, retailers, public authorities, NGOs, and civil society organizations. A multi-actor approach is mandatory, requiring collaboration among various stakeholders across the food system and data economy.

The funding is provided as lump sum grants, allowing financial flexibility for beneficiaries. Eligible entities must adhere to Horizon Europe's geographical eligibility rules, primarily focusing on EU Member States and Associated Countries, with specific restrictions on entities controlled by China.

Projects should aim to develop and implement human-centric, generative AI solutions that improve food purchasing, preservation, and preparation, enhancing dietary health and sustainability. The initiative emphasizes data sovereignty, aiming for the creation of quality datasets that meet the needs of end-users.

The application process is single-stage, and the expected outcomes include scaling AI solutions that contribute to sustainability and productivity in food systems. Success rates are not formally stated but tend to vary between 10% to 25% based on proposal competitiveness.

This funding opportunity represents a significant investment aimed at transforming food decision-making using AI, promoting collaboration among stakeholders, and ensuring the practical use of data in food systems. It encourages non-financial support through technical assistance and training for effective implementation of AI tools in food service.

This is a summary of the EU funding opportunity HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-08, titled "Boosting data availability and AI solutions in food for consumers and food service professionals," which falls under the Horizon Europe (HORIZON) program and is part of Call 03 single stage (2026) (HORIZON-CL6-2026-03). It is a HORIZON Innovation Action (HORIZON-IA) with a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant [HORIZON-AG-LS] type of Model Grant Agreement (MGA).

The call is forthcoming with a single-stage deadline model. The planned opening date is January 14, 2026, and the deadline for submission is April 15, 2026, at 17:00:00 Brussels time.

The expected outcomes of the projects funded under this topic are:

Generative AI solutions for consumers and food service professionals have significantly scaled up and improved the productivity and sustainability (including for mitigation of climate change) of food purchasing, preservation, and preparation, and enabled dietary health.
High-value and high-quality digital datasets for food products, and data-driven consumer and food service applications are developed and contribute to increasing productivity, sustainability, and dietary health.
Data sovereignty is ensured, including for consumers and farmers.

The scope of the topic is to address the impact of decisions made by consumers and food service professionals on the sustainability of food systems and dietary health, leveraging AI solutions to assist in these decisions. To maximize the impact of AI solutions, it is necessary to increase their uptake as well as the availability and quality of the data on which they rely.

Proposals should:

Develop and deploy human-centric, generative AI solutions for consumers and food service professionals to support them in the processes of food purchasing, preservation, and preparation, with a view to increase dietary health, sustainability (lower greenhouse gas emissions, energy & water footprint; lower food waste, and packaging waste) and productivity.
Support innovators working on generative AI solutions in food. The support should include:
Encourage participation of SMEs and start-ups, such as through high-impact innovation platforms (e.g., EU Digital Innovation Hubs, accelerators, incubators).
Offer innovation support packages that are tailored to innovative SMEs and start-ups and that are effective in bringing solutions to market.
Prioritize support based on end-users needs, data availability, and the likely impact potential on dietary health, sustainability, and productivity when solutions are scaled-up, including for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Engage with a broad range of stakeholders (e.g., consumers, retailers, caterers, equipment manufacturers) to ensure that the solutions developed are practical and widely adopted. Include plans for providing training and ongoing support to end users to maximize the effective and significant use of the AI solutions.
Advance the access to trustworthy digital product data in food. Improve the availability, sovereignty, and quality of data sets that are high value in view of end-users needs, and the likely impact potential on dietary health, sustainability, and productivity when solutions are scaled-up, including for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Encourage businesses and other relevant actors (e.g., public authorities, certification bodies) in the food system to enhance data capture, optimize data sharing, and promote data reuse.
Ensure that sufficient and good quality data is mobilised from different relevant data sources (e.g., in-situ data, model data, sensor data, device data, remote sensing, personal data, government data) across the computing continuum, and from different parts of the food system, from primary production, over food processing to consumption and disposal.
Where appropriate, proposals should use, federate, optimise and complete tools, capacities and infrastructures created under the Digital Europe Program (incl. European Data Spaces, EDIHs) and under Horizon Europe projects and partnerships (incl. Partnerships Agriculture of Data & FutureFoods). Proposals are encouraged to building on results from previous and relevant calls and projects. Proposals should also comply with existing EU framework and strategies and building upon the concepts and solutions developed in other Union initiatives aimed to facilitate data sharing, such as the Common European Agricultural Data Space (CEADS).
Proposals must implement the 'multi-actor approach’ and ensure adequate involvement of the main stakeholders of food systems and the data economy. This topic should involve the effective contribution of Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) disciplines.

General conditions include:

Admissibility Conditions: Proposal page limit and layout described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes and Part B of the Application Form.
Eligible Countries described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes, with specific provisions for non-EU/non-Associated Countries as detailed in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.
Other Eligible Conditions include restrictions on entities controlled by China and the application of the multi-actor approach.
Financial and operational capacity and exclusion described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes.
Evaluation and award criteria, submission and evaluation processes, and indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement are described in Annex D and Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual.
Legal and financial set-up of the grants: Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021.

Application and evaluation forms and model grant agreement (MGA) information:

Application form templates are available in the Submission System.
Standard application form (HE RIA, IA) and evaluation form templates will be used.
Guidance is provided in the HE Programme Guide.
Model Grant Agreements (MGA) include HE MGA, HE Unit MGA, Lump Sum MGA, and Operating Grants MGA.
Call-specific instructions and a detailed budget table (HE LS) are available.

Additional documents include:

HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 1. General Introduction
HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 9. Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment
HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 15. General Annexes
EIC Work Programme 2026
ERC Work Programme 2026
HE Programme Guide
HE Framework Programme 2021/695
HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764
EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509
Decision authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme
Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment
EU Grants AGA Annotated Model Grant Agreement
Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual
Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions
Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement

The budget overview for the HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE call includes various actions with different budget allocations and indicative numbers of grants. The HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-08 topic has a budget of 15,000,000 EUR for the year 2026 and aims to award around 2 grants with a contribution of around 7,500,000 EUR each.

Partner search announcements are available for those seeking collaboration. The submission system is planned to open on the date stated on the topic header.

This funding opportunity aims to leverage AI and data to transform the food system, making it more sustainable, productive, and health-oriented. It seeks to empower consumers and food service professionals with innovative AI tools while ensuring data sovereignty and promoting collaboration among diverse stakeholders. The call encourages the development and deployment of human-centric AI solutions, the improvement of data availability and quality, and the active involvement of SMEs and start-ups in the food innovation ecosystem.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly defined in the provided text. However, based on the nature of Horizon Europe projects, eligible applicants can include universities, research institutes, SMEs, large enterprises, and other organizations capable of conducting research and innovation activities. The call encourages participation of SMEs and start-ups, suggesting they are eligible. The multi-actor approach also implies the involvement of various stakeholders in the food system and data economy, which could include public authorities, certification bodies, retailers, caterers, and equipment manufacturers.

Funding Type: The primary financial mechanism is a grant, specifically a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant. The call includes different types of actions: HORIZON Programme Cofund Actions, HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions, HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions, and HORIZON Innovation Actions.

Consortium Requirement: The call requires a multi-actor approach, implying that a consortium of multiple applicants is generally needed to ensure adequate involvement of the main stakeholders of food systems and the data economy.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility is primarily focused on EU member states and associated countries, as indicated by the reference to Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Horizon Europe Programme Guide. However, the text also mentions that a number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries have made specific provisions for funding their participants in Horizon Europe projects.

Target Sector: The program targets the following sectors: food, bioeconomy, natural resources, agriculture, environment, artificial intelligence, data economy, sustainability, and dietary health. Specifically, it focuses on boosting data availability and AI solutions in the food sector for consumers and food service professionals.

Mentioned Countries: The text mentions China as a country whose entities, if directly or indirectly controlled by it, are not eligible to participate in the action due to restrictions on control in innovation actions in critical technology areas. It also mentions non-EU and non-associated countries (third countries) in the context of National Contact Points (NCPs). The primary geographic focus is the EU and associated countries.

Project Stage: The project stage varies depending on the type of action. The call includes Research and Innovation Actions (RIA), Innovation Actions (IA), and Coordination and Support Actions (CSA), suggesting that the projects can range from research and development to demonstration and deployment. The emphasis on scaling up AI solutions indicates that projects should be at least at the validation or demonstration stage.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic and type of action. The indicative budgets for each topic are as follows:
HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-01: approximately €38,000,000
HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-02: between €5,000,000 and €6,000,000
HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-03: approximately €3,000,000
HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-04: approximately €4,500,000
HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-05: approximately €7,000,000
HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-06: approximately €6,000,000
HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-07: approximately €5,400,000
HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-08: approximately €7,500,000
HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-09: approximately €3,500,000
HORIZON-CL6-2026-03-GOVERNANCE-10: between €4,000,000 and €5,000,000

Application Type: The application type is an open call with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: The beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a lump sum grant to cover eligible costs.

Application Stages: The application process involves a single stage, as indicated by the "single-stage" deadline model.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly mentioned. However, the indicative number of grants for each topic provides some insight into the potential success rates, which would depend on the number of proposals received.

Co-funding Requirement: For the HORIZON-COFUND action, co-funding is implied as it is a co-fund action. For other actions, the need for co-funding is not explicitly stated, but applicants should refer to the specific topic descriptions in the Work Programme for any co-funding requirements.

Summary: This Horizon Europe call focuses on "Boosting data availability and AI solutions in food for consumers and food service professionals." It aims to improve the productivity, sustainability, and dietary health aspects of the food system by leveraging generative AI solutions and enhancing the availability and quality of digital datasets. The call encourages projects that develop and deploy human-centric AI solutions, support innovators in the food sector, improve access to trustworthy digital product data, and ensure data sovereignty. It targets a wide range of stakeholders, including SMEs, start-ups, consumers, retailers, caterers, equipment manufacturers, public authorities, and certification bodies. The call is structured around different types of actions, including co-fund actions, research and innovation actions, coordination and support actions, and innovation actions, each with its specific budget and expected outcomes. Eligible applicants should form consortia that implement the multi-actor approach, ensuring the involvement of diverse stakeholders in the food system and data economy. The application process is a single-stage submission, and funding is provided as a lump sum grant. The call aims to align with EU frameworks and strategies, building upon existing initiatives such as the Digital Europe Program and the Common European Agricultural Data Space (CEADS).