Diversification of nutritional food ingredient sources for increased EU resilience and strategic autonomy

HORIZON-JU is a Horizon Europe Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking flagship Innovation Action funding industrial-scale biorefinery demonstrations to produce nutritional food ingredients (proteins, lipids, specialty carbohydrates, or fibres) from alternative bio-based feedstocks. The topic has an indicative contribution of approximately €20 million and requires projects to demonstrate production at TRL 8 and validate ingredient use in at least one food product at TRL 6 or higher. Proposals must be submitted in a single-stage via the EU Funding and Tenders Portal by 22 September 2026 17:00 CET, include a business plan annex, and follow Horizon Europe and CBE JU eligibility, evaluation and safety/regulatory requirements including EFSA alignment. Consortia are expected to be multi-actor and to address circularity, resource efficiency, consumer engagement and avoidance of overlaps with past or ongoing projects.

Call HORIZON-JU-CBE-2026 (IA Flagship)

What it funds

Innovation actions (flagship) to demonstrate full industrial-scale biorefineries and value chains producing nutritional food ingredients (proteins, lipids, specialty carbohydrates, fibres). Projects must deliver TRL 8 production and validate ingredient use in at least one food product (TRL 6+ for validation), address safety, resource efficiency and circularity, and include multi-actor engagement to increase consumer acceptance.

Funding available:This topic requests flagship Innovation Actions with an indicative contribution of around €20,000,000. The 2026 CBE JU call envelope is approximately €170,760,699 in total ¹.

1. 1Who can apply: legal entities from eligible Horizon Europe countries (industry, SMEs, research organisations, food companies, startups/scaleups, consortia).
2. 2Type of action: HORIZON JU Innovation Action (IA Flagship) — single-stage submission.
3. 3Scope highlights: target one main nutritional ingredient (protein, lipid, specialty carbohydrate or fibre); co-production allowed; direct primary production from conventional crops, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture is excluded as main product.
4. 4Regulatory and safety: proposals must assess safety per EU/EFSA rules and identify regulatory gaps with recommendations.
5. 5TRL requirements: demonstrate production at TRL 8; validate ingredient in at least one food product at TRL 6+.

Applicants must follow Horizon Europe admissibility, eligibility and evaluation rules; use the Submission System application form and check CBE JU call documents and guidance on the Funding & Tenders Portal and CBE JU reference pages Funding & Tenders Portal CBE JU reference documents. ¹

Footnotes

1. 1CBE JU Annual Work Programme 2026 and call documentation with topic-specific conditions are available via the CBE JU reference documents page CBE JU reference documents.

Call identifiers and administrative details

Call title:HORIZON-JU-CBE-2026. Topic identifier: HORIZON-JU. Type of action: HORIZON JU Innovation Actions, specifically an IA-Flagship variant. Programme: Horizon Europe implemented by the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU). Opening date: 23 April 2026. Deadline for submission: 22 September 2026 at 17:00 Brussels time. Submission model: single-stage. Type of Model Grant Agreement: HORIZON Action Grant Budget-Based [HORIZON-AG]. Submission route: Electronic submission through the EU Funding & Tenders Portal Submission System.

Objective, expected outcomes and scope

Objective:Support full industrial-scale biorefineries and associated value chains to produce nutritional food ingredients from diversified bio-based feedstocks, increasing the resilience and strategic autonomy of EU food sectors while improving environmental sustainability and consumer acceptance.

Expected outcomes:1) Demonstration of full industrial scale biorefinery and related value chain(s) producing nutritional food ingredients. 2) Increased resilience and strategic autonomy of EU food sectors through diversified ingredient sources. 3) Improved environmental sustainability of food sectors (reduced land and water use, energy consumption, improved nutrient cycles). 4) Enhanced consumer awareness and market acceptance of alternative-source nutritional ingredients contributing to sustainable healthy diets.

Scope highlights:Projects must scale up sustainable processes (target TRL 8 for production demonstration) for proteins, lipids, specialty carbohydrates, or fibres, with at least one of those as the main product driving the business case. Structural or functional ingredients (colourants, preservatives, stabilisers, texturisers, enzymes) are explicitly out of scope as the main product. Synergistic co-production of multiple food/feed ingredients and other bio-based products via a cascading approach is allowed. All bio-based feedstock sources are in scope excluding direct production of food from agricultural crops, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture; however industrial-grade feedstock from agricultural crops (e.g., starch, sugars, oils) used for conversion into food-grade ingredients is allowed. Projects must validate at TRL 6 or above the incorporation of the produced ingredient(s) into at least one food product, demonstrating quality, stability, nutritional and sensorial properties and, where relevant, aspects such as reduced allergenicity, improved palatability, digestibility or health benefits.

Detailed eligibility and administrative conditions

Admissibility and proposal format:Page limits, layout and admissibility conditions are those described in the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes (Annex A and Annex E) and in Part B of the Application Form in the Submission System. Eligible countries: As defined in Annex B of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes; participants from EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries are eligible. Some non-associated third countries may have specific arrangements; applicants should consult the Horizon Europe Programme Guide and Annex B. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion criteria are applied as described in Annex C. Evaluation criteria, scoring and thresholds follow Annex D and the standard Horizon Europe evaluation framework; submission and evaluation processes are described in Annex F and the Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual. Legal and financial setup of grants follows Annex G and the Horizon Europe Model Grant Agreement provisions. Call-specific rules and any additional eligibility are in section 2.2.3.1 of the CBE JU Annual Work Programme 2026 ¹.

Eligible applicant types:Open to a broad range of legal entities consistent with Horizon Europe and CBE JU rules. Eligible applicant types include: startups and scaleups, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), large enterprises, universities, public and private research organisations, research and technology organisations, non-profit organisations, NGOs, public authorities, food industry companies (ingredient producers, food manufacturers), bio-based value chain actors, and joint public-private partnerships. Individual natural persons are not listed as typical beneficiaries; consortia of legal entities are expected for IA-Flagship projects.

Funding type:The primary financial mechanism is a grant. The call uses the Horizon Action Grant Budget-Based Model Grant Agreement (HORIZON-AG).

Consortium requirement:This topic is targeted at Innovation Actions - Flagship (IA-Flagship). These flagship IAs typically require multi-partner consortia capable of delivering full industrial-scale demonstrations and value-chain deployment. Single applicants are not appropriate; applicants should prepare multi-actor consortia including industrial partners, feedstock providers, technology developers, food formulators, consumer engagement actors, regulatory expertise and relevant research organisations.

Beneficiary geographic scope (eligibility):Geographic eligibility follows Horizon Europe Annex B: EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries are eligible automatically. Some non-associated third countries may participate subject to specific conditions and national arrangements. Applicants should consult Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Horizon Europe Programme Guide for country-specific details.

Target sectors and thematic focus:Primary sectors targeted: food and nutrition, bio-based industries and biomanufacturing, biotechnology, biorefining, circular bioeconomy. Cross-cutting themes include sustainability (environmental/resource efficiency), regulatory science and policy alignment (EFSA and EU regulations), consumer engagement and market acceptance, and value chain integration. Relevant technology areas: fermentation and bioprocessing, microbial and macro-/microalgal cultivation, insect and invertebrate processing, fungal biotechnology, downstream processing and purification (separation technologies), food formulation and sensory science, safety and toxicology assessment, circular feedstock utilization and waste valorisation.

Mentioned countries:No specific Member State or non-Member State is explicitly named in the topic text. The geographic scope is the EU and Horizon Europe Associated Countries as per Annex B. Therefore list: EU Member States, Horizon Europe Associated Countries, and potential third countries subject to Annex B provisions.

Project stage / Technology Readiness Level required:Expected maturity: Demonstration at TRL 8 for the production process (full industrial-scale demonstration). Validation at TRL 6 or above for application of produced ingredients into at least one food product (proving quality, stability, nutritional and sensorial properties). Projects should therefore cover late development, demonstration and pre-commercialisation activities, including scale-up, value-chain integration and market acceptance work.

Indicative funding amount and budgetary context:The overall CBE JU 2026 call budget is approximately €170,760,699 across topics. The IA-Flagship topics listed in the call each have indicative contributions; for Diversification of nutritional food ingredient sources (IA-Flagship) the indicative contribution is around €20,000,000. Indicative grant sizes across the full call topics range roughly from €1.2 million (CSA) up to €20 million for flagship IAs. Final awarded amounts depend on proposals and budgets allocated.

Application type and submission process:Application type: open competitive call for proposals published on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. Submission method: single-stage electronic submission via the Funding & Tenders Portal. Applicants must use the application form available in the Submission System. For IA-Flagship applications an additional Business Plan annex is required (business plan annex for IA-Flagships).

Nature of support to beneficiaries:Beneficiaries will receive financial support in the form of Horizon grants (direct monetary contribution to project costs). Non-financial support includes access to EU policy networks, guidance documents, standard evaluation templates, and potential visibility through CBE JU dissemination channels. Projects will also be expected to engage multi-actor stakeholders and may receive regulatory guidance interactions with EFSA-related processes through the requirements to assess safety and identify regulatory gaps.

Application stages and evaluation process:The call uses a single-stage submission. Evaluation follows Horizon Europe standard procedures: admissibility and eligibility checks, evaluation by independent experts against excellence, impact and quality and efficiency of implementation criteria (see Annex D), scoring against thresholds and ranking. Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement is described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes. Applicants should consult the Online Manual and the Funding & Tenders Portal for precise steps. The process therefore comprises a single submission stage with evaluation and then grant preparation (effectively two administrative stages: submission and grant preparation/award).

Success rates:No topic-specific success rate is provided in the topic text. Success rates depend on number and quality of proposals and available budget. Historically, flagship and large IA topics under Horizon/CBE JU are highly competitive with success rates varying widely; applicants should assume a selective process and prepare high-quality consortia and proposals.

Co-funding requirement:Horizon grants normally require co-financing of project costs: the EU contribution covers a percentage of eligible costs depending on the action type (typically up to 70% for Innovation Actions for non-profit entities and up to 100% for certain categories, but specific percentages should be confirmed in the Model Grant Agreement and call-specific rules). For large-scale Innovation Action Flagships, applicants must prepare detailed budgets and identify co-funding sources including industry contributions, in-kind contributions, private investment or other public funds. The call documents and the Horizon Europe MGA/Work Programme Annexes describe exact reimbursement rates and eligible cost rules.

Required supporting documents and templates:Mandatory templates and documents include: the Application Form (Part A and Part B accessible in the Submission System), Business Plan annex (for IA-Flagship applications), standard budget tables as part of the application form, Ethics self-assessment and data management plan where applicable. Applicants must use the application form version in the Submission System. Evaluation form templates (standard evaluation form for HE RIA/IA) will be used by evaluators. Model Grant Agreement (HE MGA) and the Horizon annotated MGA provide contractual terms. Additional call-specific guidance is in the CBE JU Annual Work Programme 2026 and the HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 General Annexes.

1. 1Application form structure: Part A (administrative forms, budget, participants, ethics, call/topic selection) and Part B (technical description: Excellence, Impact, Implementation).
2. 2For IA-Flagship: Business Plan annex detailing market deployment, financing plan, scaling strategy and demonstration commitments.
3. 3Ethics and security sections: complete ethics self-assessment and any required approvals.
4. 4Attachments: Letters of support, consortium agreements (recommended at submission for consortia governance clarity), partner descriptions and CVs of key personnel.
5. 5Legal Entity Validation: LEAR appointment and legal entity validation per Funding & Tenders Portal rules.

Key scientific, technical and non-technical requirements applicants must address:Demonstrate industrial-scale production at TRL 8 of at least one primary nutritional ingredient (protein, lipid, specialty carbohydrate, or fibre) from alternative bio-based feedstocks while ensuring product safety, nutritional quality, sensory acceptability and cost competitiveness. Validate incorporation into at least one food product at TRL 6+ demonstrating quality, stability and sensory/nutritional performance. Address circularity and resource efficiency across the value chain, preventing re-introduction of pathogens/contaminants in circular models. Perform safety assessment in line with EU regulatory requirements and EFSA guidance, identify regulatory gaps and provide recommendations to EU policymakers to support ingredient companies in EFSA risk assessment processes. Implement a multi-actor approach to involve end-users and consumers from early stages for market acceptance and co-creation. Ensure complementarities and avoid overlap with past/ongoing CBE JU and Horizon Europe projects.

Recommended consortium composition and expertise (detailed):industrial bioprocess developers and operators with scale-up and demonstration experience; feedstock providers (including operators of novel feedstock value chains: algae farms, insect farms, microbial fermentation units, agro/forest waste collectors, industrial residual stream managers); downstream processing and separation technology providers; food ingredient developers and formulation companies; food manufacturers for product validation; sensory science and consumer behaviour experts; safety and toxicology experts familiar with EFSA processes; regulatory and policy specialists with EU food law experience; environmental life-cycle assessment and circularity specialists; business development and commercialization experts; communications and stakeholder engagement partners to run consumer awareness and multi-actor activities; academic and research organisations with domain expertise.

Risk areas applicants should proactively cover:feedstock supply chain stability and sustainability; contamination and pathogen control in circular streams; meeting EFSA and EU safety and novel food requirements; achieving cost competitiveness vs incumbent ingredients; consumer acceptance and labeling/communication challenges; scalability of downstream purification to food-grade standards; intellectual property strategy and freedom-to-operate; market uptake pathways and investor engagement for post-grant scaling.

Where to find full reference documents and guidance:Applicants must consult the CBE JU Annual Work Programme 2026 and the Horizon Europe Main Work Programme 2026-2027 General Annexes for detailed rules, eligibility lists, admissibility conditions and templates. Key reference documents are available in the CBE JU reference documents and on the Funding & Tenders Portal CBE JU Reference Documents and the topic page on the Funding & Tenders Portal Topic page ¹.

Concise summary and explanation

This funding opportunity is an IA-Flagship under the CBE JU 2026 call within Horizon Europe, designed to support large multi-partner projects that will demonstrate full industrial-scale biorefineries producing nutritional food ingredients from a wide range of alternative bio-based feedstocks. Projects must reach TRL 8 for production and validate ingredient use in at least one food product at TRL 6+ while addressing safety, regulatory alignment with EFSA and EU rules, circularity, resource efficiency, cost competitiveness and consumer acceptance. The topic provides an indicative EU contribution of around €20 million for this flagship, is submitted as a single-stage competitive proposal via the Funding & Tenders Portal, and requires a multi-actor consortium covering industrial scale-up, feedstock supply, downstream processing, food formulation, regulatory expertise and market deployment capabilities. Applicants must follow Horizon Europe and CBE JU rules, use provided templates and annexes (including Business Plan annex for IA-Flagships), and consult the CBE JU Annual Work Programme 2026 and the Funding & Tenders Portal for full legal and procedural details ¹.

Footnotes

1. 1Full calls, legal annexes, application templates and the CBE JU Annual Work Programme 2026 are available on the CBE JU reference documents page and on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. See CBE JU reference documents page at cbe.europa.eu and the Funding & Tenders Portal topic page at ec.europa.eu.

Opportunity Overview

This is a flagship Innovation Action call under the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU), part of the Horizon Europe programme. The opportunity focuses on demonstrating industrial-scale biorefinery solutions for producing nutritional food ingredients from alternative, non-conventional sources. The call aims to strengthen EU food security, reduce import dependency, and advance sustainable protein diversification as part of the EU Bioeconomy Strategy and EU Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Initiative ¹.

Call Identifier:HORIZON-JU

Programme:Horizon Europe, administered through the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU), a €2 billioneuro public-private partnership between the European Union and the Bio-based Industries Consortium

Type of Action:Innovation Action - Flagship (IA-Flagship). Flagships are a specific type of Innovation Action designed to deploy first-of-its-kind innovations on the European market, scaling up from prototype to product validation and market replication

Timeline and Submission Details

Opening Date:23 April 2026

Submission Deadline:22 September 2026 at 17:00 CET (Brussels time). This is a single-stage submission process with no preliminary stage

Submission Model:Single-stage. Proposals must be submitted through the EU Funding and Tenders Portal electronic submission system

Funding Information

Total Budget Allocation:Approximately €20 millioneuros for this specific topic. This is part of a total 2026 CBE JU call budget of €170.7 millioneuros distributed across 13 thematic areas

Expected Number of Grants:Indicative number of grants to be awarded is not explicitly specified in available documentation, but the €20 millioneuro budget suggests funding for approximately one to two large-scale projects

Grant Type:HORIZON Action Grant Budget-Based (HORIZON-AG). Grants are provided as direct financial contributions to eligible beneficiaries

Funding Rate:Standard Horizon Europe funding rates apply. Specific rates depend on the type of beneficiary and activity, typically ranging from 70 percent for research organisations to 100 percent for non-profit entities, with variations for industrial partners

Scope and Objectives

This call addresses the critical challenge of scaling sustainable production of nutritional food ingredients from alternative biomass sources. The initiative responds to increasing global population pressures, finite natural resources, and the need to reduce Europe's reliance on imported proteins and other nutritional ingredients. Many alternative ingredient sources have been successfully piloted across the EU, but significant efforts are needed to achieve industrial-scale production while ensuring nutritional adequacy, safety, cost competitiveness, and consumer acceptance ².

Expected Outcomes

Successful projects will contribute to four primary outcomes:

• Full industrial-scale biorefinery and related value chain(s) for production of nutritional food ingredients
• Resilience and strategic autonomy of EU food sectors through diversification of nutritional food ingredient sources
• Increased environmental sustainability of food sectors, addressing land use, water consumption, energy efficiency, and nutrient cycling
• Improved consumer awareness and acceptance of nutritional food ingredients from alternative sources, contributing to sustainable healthy diets

Eligible Ingredient Types

Proposals must target at least one of the following as the main product driving the business case:

• Proteins from alternative sources
• Lipids and oils/fats
• Specialty carbohydrates
• Fibres

Structural or functional ingredients such as colourants, preservatives, stabilisers, texturisers, and enzymes are not eligible as main products. However, synergistic co-production of multiple food and feed ingredients and other bio-based products is permitted following a cascading approach ³.

Eligible Feedstock Sources

All sources of bio-based feedstock are in scope, including:

• Plants and plant residues
• Invertebrates and microorganisms
• Fungi
• Aquatic biomass including micro and macro algae, seagrass, aquaculture and fishery residues
• Fermentation of bio-based feedstock including biogenic gaseous carbon
• Residues from agriculture, farming including livestock, and forestry
• Urban and industrial waste streams including food industry residues

Direct production of food from food crops, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture is not in scope. However, conversion of industrial-grade feedstock such as starch, sugars, and oils from agricultural crops into food-grade ingredients is permitted.

Technology Readiness Level Requirements

Proposals must demonstrate efficient production of nutritional ingredients at TRL 8 (Technology Readiness Level 8), representing full industrial-scale demonstration. Additionally, projects must validate the use of developed nutritional food ingredients in at least one food product formulation at TRL 6 and above, proving quality, stability, nutritional and sensorial properties.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligible Countries

Eligibility is determined by Annex B of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes. EU Member States and Associated Countries are automatically eligible. Non-EU and non-Associated Countries may be eligible if they have made specific provisions for funding availability in Horizon Europe projects. Applicants should consult the Horizon Europe Programme Guide for detailed country eligibility information.

Eligible Beneficiaries

Horizon Europe grants are awarded to third-party beneficiaries including research organisations, public entities, non-governmental organisations, and private companies. For this flagship Innovation Action, consortia are expected to include multiple actors across the value chain. The call emphasises a multi-actor approach (MAA) requiring involvement of end-users, consumers, and other relevant stakeholders from early project stages.

Financial and Operational Capacity

Beneficiaries must demonstrate adequate financial and operational capacity to implement the project. Detailed requirements are described in Annex C of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes. Applicants must provide evidence of financial stability, management capacity, and relevant experience in similar projects or activities.

Exclusion Criteria

Standard Horizon Europe exclusion criteria apply, as detailed in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes. These include grounds related to criminal convictions, professional misconduct, conflicts of interest, and financial irregularities.

Specific Project Requirements

Resource Efficiency and Circularity

Projects must address resource efficiency and circularity aspects to increase economic and socio-environmental added value. When pursuing circular models, applicants must ensure that neither pathogens nor contaminants are injected back into the loop to avoid negative toxicological effects.

Safety Assessment and Regulatory Compliance

Proposals must assess the safety of developed nutritional food ingredients in line with EU regulatory requirements and European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) guidance documents. Projects should identify potential EU regulatory gaps and propose recommendations to relevant EU policymakers on how to better support food ingredient companies, including startups and scaleups, in addressing EFSA risk assessment processes ⁴.

Multi-Actor Approach and Consumer Engagement

As part of the mandatory multi-actor approach, projects must involve end-users including consumers and other relevant actors starting from early project stages. This engagement should gather input, raise awareness, and foster market acceptance of targeted end-products. Consumer insights must be incorporated into product development processes.

Complementarity and Avoidance of Overlap

Applicants must ensure complementarities and avoid overlaps with past and ongoing research and innovation projects addressing similar challenges funded under CBE JU and other Horizon Europe topics.

Business Plan Requirement

As a flagship Innovation Action, proposals must include a business plan annex demonstrating market viability, commercialisation strategy, and pathway to market deployment.

Evaluation and Award Criteria

Proposals are evaluated according to standard Horizon Europe award criteria as described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes. The evaluation form used is the Standard Evaluation Form for Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Actions and Innovation Actions, with necessary adaptations for this specific call.

Evaluation Process

The submission and evaluation process follows Annex F of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual. Proposals undergo independent evaluation by expert panels. An indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement conclusion is provided in Annex F, though specific dates for this 2026 call are not detailed in available documentation.

Application Process and Documentation

Submission System

Proposals must be submitted through the EU Funding and Tenders Portal electronic submission system. Applicants must select the submission type as HORIZON JU Innovation Actions (HORIZON-JU-IA) with HORIZON Action Grant Budget-Based (HORIZON-AG) as the grant model. This selection cannot be changed after confirmation.

Application Forms and Templates

Applicants must use the application form available in the submission system. For flagship Innovation Actions, a business plan annex is required. All forms and templates are provided within the electronic submission system.

Proposal Page Limits and Layout

Proposal page limits and layout requirements are described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes, with specific formatting guidance provided in Part B of the Application Form.

Key Documentation Required

• Completed application form with all required sections
• Business plan annex demonstrating commercial viability
• Detailed project description addressing all scope requirements
• Work package descriptions with timelines and deliverables
• Budget justification and financial planning
• Letters of commitment from consortium partners
• Evidence of financial and operational capacity
• Conflict of interest declarations

Grant Agreement and Legal Framework

Successful projects will be governed by the Horizon Europe Model Grant Agreement (MGA) for Action Grants. The legal and financial set-up of grants is described in Annex G of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes. The EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509 and the Horizon Europe Framework Programme Regulation 2021/695 provide the overarching legal framework.

Strategic Context and Policy Alignment

This call directly supports multiple EU strategic initiatives including the European Green Deal, the updated EU Bioeconomy Strategy, the EU Life Sciences Strategy, the upcoming EU Biotechnology Act, and the EU Circular Economy Act. The CBE JU Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA) for 2022-2030 identifies this topic as addressing critical challenges in accelerating innovation and market deployment of bio-based solutions ⁵.

The opportunity aligns with the EU Protein Strategy, which aims to strengthen sustainable food systems and improve food security by reducing Europe's reliance on imports while advancing climate, biodiversity, and nutrition goals through uptake of alternative proteins. The call supports the transition to sustainable food systems and a resilient blue economy as central to Europe's long-term food security and economic resilience.

Support and Guidance Resources

Multiple support mechanisms are available to applicants:

• Horizon Europe Programme Guide - comprehensive guidance on programme structure, budget, and political priorities
• CBE JU Annual Work Programme 2026 - detailed topic descriptions and specific requirements
• CBE JU Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda - strategic priorities and innovation challenges
• National Contact Points (NCPs) - country-specific guidance and practical assistance
• Research Enquiry Service - general questions about European research and framework programmes
• Enterprise Europe Network - support for businesses with focus on SMEs
• IT Helpdesk - technical support for submission system access and functionality
• European IPR Helpdesk - intellectual property guidance
• Partner Search function - tool to identify and connect with potential consortium partners
• Proposal pre-check service - offered by NCP_WIDERA.NET project for eligible countries

The Funding and Tenders Portal Online Manual provides detailed procedures from proposal submission through grant management. CBE JU contact information is available at info@cbe.europa.eu for call-specific questions.

Key Considerations for Applicants

Applicants should note that this is a highly competitive flagship call with substantial funding per project. Success requires demonstrating clear pathways to industrial-scale deployment, strong commercial viability, and genuine innovation in alternative protein and ingredient production. The emphasis on multi-actor engagement and consumer acceptance reflects market realities for novel food ingredients. Regulatory compliance and EFSA alignment are critical given the food safety implications. Consortia should include complementary expertise spanning biorefinery technology, food science, regulatory affairs, and market commercialisation.

The call opens today, 23 April 2026, providing approximately five months for proposal development and submission. Early engagement with National Contact Points and partner identification through the portal's partner search function is recommended to strengthen proposal quality and consortium composition.

Footnotes

1. 1CBE JU is a €2 billioneuro public-private partnership between the European Union and the Bio-based Industries Consortium, established as the legal successor to the Bio-Based Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI JU). The partnership funds projects under Horizon Europe addressing the circular bio-based economy.
2. 2Alternative ingredient sources successfully piloted include proteins from fungi, bacteria, micro and macroalgae, insects, and aquacultural by-products, as well as lipids, specialty carbohydrates, and fibres from diverse biomass sources and waste streams.
3. 3The cascading approach permits synergistic co-production of multiple food and feed ingredients alongside other bio-based products, maximising resource efficiency and value extraction from feedstock.
4. 4EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) guidance documents and EU regulatory requirements for novel foods and food ingredients are evolving. Projects identifying regulatory gaps and proposing recommendations contribute to policy development supporting innovation in this sector, particularly for startups and scaleups.
5. 5The CBE JU Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda identifies two primary objectives: accelerating innovation in bio-based solutions and accelerating market deployment of mature and innovative bio-based solutions, with emphasis on environmental performance and industrial competitiveness.