Empowering local urban food systems entrepreneurship and innovation

The Horizon Europe grant opportunity titled "HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-COMMUNITIES-02: Empowering local urban food systems entrepreneurship and innovation" is designed to enhance innovative approaches within urban food systems. This initiative includes a total funding allocation of €12 million, aimed at supporting two projects, each potentially receiving €6 million.

This funding will open for applications on April 20, 2027, with a submission deadline of September 23, 2027. The application process will be a single-stage submission through the electronic Funding & Tenders Portal, meaning that applicants must provide complete proposals upfront without a preliminary round.

Eligible participants for this call include small and medium enterprises (SMEs), research organizations, universities, local authorities, civil society organizations, educational institutions, and food entrepreneurs. A multi-actor consortium is mandatory, with proposals needing to demonstrate inclusive collaboration among various stakeholders, effectively bringing together diverse expertise and resources.

The funding type is classified as a lump sum grant, simplifying financial management for beneficiaries compared to traditional reimbursement models. Geographic eligibility covers EU Member States and Associated Countries, emphasizing a transnational approach.

The goal of the call is to drive transformative innovations in urban food systems, focusing on areas such as local production, entrepreneurship, governance, and sustainability transitions. Key expected outcomes include accelerated growth of urban food start-ups, empowered food entrepreneurs, and the establishment of interconnected European innovation ecosystems.

Projects are particularly encouraged to integrate mentorship programs, pilot local capacities, and leverage connections with existing research and innovation initiatives. The initiative also emphasizes the importance of incorporating Social Sciences and Humanities, gender dimensions, and a multi-actor approach to ensure diverse perspectives and community engagement are part of the project design.

Given the competitive nature of Horizon Europe funding, the expected success rate for proposals in this call is estimated to be under 10%. Proposals should focus on market viability, scalability, and replication potential across various contexts to increase their chances of success.

Overall, this grant opportunity presents a significant chance for organizations to contribute to the transformation of urban food systems in alignment with EU strategies aimed at enhancing sustainability, resilience, and social equity in communities across Europe.

This is a summary of the EU's Horizon Europe program, specifically focusing on the Call 02 - single stage (2027) (HORIZON-CL6-2027-02) related to empowering local urban food systems entrepreneurship and innovation. The call includes several topics related to climate, communities, and farm to fork initiatives. The general conditions for admissibility, eligibility, financial and operational capacity, exclusion, evaluation, award, and legal/financial setup are outlined, referencing annexes and guides within the Horizon Europe framework. Specific conditions are described within the work program.

 General conditions include:
 1. Admissibility Conditions:
 Proposal page limit and layout are described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes and Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System.
 2. Eligible Countries:
 Described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes. Specific provisions may apply to non-EU/non-Associated Countries; refer to the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.
 3. Other Eligible Conditions:
 Proposals must apply the multi-actor approach, as defined in the work program.
 4. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion:
 Described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes.
 5a. Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds:
 Described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes.
 5b. Evaluation and award: Submission and evaluation processes:
 Described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual.
 5c. Evaluation and award: Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement:
 Described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.
 6. 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 authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme – the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2021-2027) – and in actions under the Research and Training Programme of the European Atomic Energy Community (2021-2025). Described in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes.

 Specific conditions are described in the specific topic of the Work Programme.

 Application and evaluation forms and model grant agreement (MGA):
 Application form templates are available in the Submission System, including a standard application form (HE RIA, IA).
 Evaluation form templates will be used with necessary adaptations, including a standard evaluation form (HE RIA, IA).
 Guidance is provided in the HE Programme Guide.
 Model Grant Agreements (MGA) include the Lump Sum MGA.
 Call-specific instructions and a detailed budget table (HE LS) are available, along with guidance on lump sums.

 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
 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 call aims to drive transformative and inclusive innovation in local urban food systems, boost decentralised competitiveness, and create positive social and environmental spillovers. It aligns with the European Green Deal, the EU’s climate ambition for 2030 and 2050, and the Food 2030 R&I initiative. Proposals should involve Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) disciplines, integrate the gender dimension, and implement the multi-actor approach.

 The expected outcomes of the projects include:
 Accelerated growth and success of innovation-led local urban food start-ups.
 Empowered urban food entrepreneurs through inclusive, multi-actor governance models.
 Established and interconnected European-wide competitive urban food systems innovation ecosystems.

 Proposals should:
 Develop and pilot decentralised local capacities and ecosystems.
 Integrate tailored mentorship programs.
 Leverage pilot implementations to accelerate urban food system transformation and scalability.
 Connect with already established R&I initiatives.

 The budget overview for the call in 2027 includes various topics under Climate and Farm2Fork, with opening dates planned for 20 April 2027 and deadlines on 23 September 2027. The indicative number of grants and budget allocations vary by topic.

 The topics include:
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-CLIMATE-01: EUR 16,000,000, around 2 grants
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-CLIMATE-02: EUR 12,000,000, around 2 grants
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-CLIMATE-03: EUR 12,000,000, around 2 grants
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-CLIMATE-04: EUR 22,000,000, around 2 grants
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-COMMUNITIES-01: EUR 15,000,000, around 3 grants
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-COMMUNITIES-02: EUR 12,000,000, around 2 grants
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-FARM2FORK-01: EUR 12,000,000, around 2 grants
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-FARM2FORK-02: EUR 12,000,000, around 2 grants
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-FARM2FORK-03: EUR 11,800,000, around 2 grants
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-FARM2FORK-04: EUR 6,000,000, around 1 grant
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-FARM2FORK-05: EUR 12,000,000, around 2 grants
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-FARM2FORK-06: EUR 10,000,000, around 2 grants
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-FARM2FORK-07: EUR 15,500,000, around 2 grants
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-FARM2FORK-08: EUR 7,800,000, around 1 grant
 HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-FARM2FORK-09: EUR 6,750,000, around 1 grant

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

 For support, applicants are encouraged to read the online manual, Horizon Europe Programme Guide, and Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ. They can also contact the Research Enquiry Service, National Contact Points (NCPs), Enterprise Europe Network, IT Helpdesk, European IPR Helpdesk, and CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk and ETSI Research Helpdesk.

 In summary, this Horizon Europe call aims to foster innovation and entrepreneurship in urban food systems, aligning with the Green Deal and promoting sustainable, inclusive, and resilient communities. It seeks to transform local food systems through research, innovation, and multi-actor collaboration, with a focus on climate ambition, circularity, and community empowerment. The funding is provided as a lump sum, and applicants should carefully review the guidelines and annexes for detailed requirements and eligibility criteria.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types for this opportunity include local and regional authorities, urban planners, SMEs and start-ups, food entrepreneurs, research and innovation actors, educational institutions, civil society organisations, and citizens. The multi-actor approach is mandatory, meaning a consortium including several of these types is expected.

Funding Type: The funding type is primarily a grant, specifically a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant, under the HORIZON Innovation Actions (HORIZON-IA) funding scheme. There are also Research and Innovation Actions (RIA) and Coordination and Support Actions (CSA) available.

Consortium Requirement: A consortium is required. The proposals must implement the multi-actor approach, involving a diverse range of stakeholders.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes EU Member States and Associated Countries. A number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects.

Target Sector: The target sector is urban food systems, entrepreneurship, and innovation, with a focus on nutrition, circularity, resource efficiency, climate-smart approaches, and empowering communities. It also involves Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) disciplines.

Mentioned Countries: The opportunity is open to EU Member States and Associated Countries. The text also mentions non-EU/non-Associated Countries that may have specific provisions for funding participants in Horizon Europe projects.

Project Stage: The project stage targets development and piloting of decentralised local capacities and ecosystems, market uptake, scaling and replication across diverse EU contexts, and accelerating the uptake of research outcomes. This suggests a focus on demonstration and commercialization stages.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic and type of action (RIA, IA, CSA). The budget overview lists topics with total budgets ranging from EUR 6,000,000 to EUR 22,000,000. The indicative number of grants per topic ranges from 1 to 3. The contributions are around 5,000,000 EUR to 11,000,000 EUR.

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

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a lump sum grant.

Application Stages: The application process involves a single stage.

Success Rates: The success rates cannot be determined from the provided text.

Co-funding Requirement: The text does not explicitly state whether co-funding is required.

Summary: This Horizon Europe call, HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-COMMUNITIES-02, focuses on "Empowering local urban food systems entrepreneurship and innovation." It aims to foster transformative and inclusive innovation within urban food systems, driving decentralised competitiveness and creating positive social and environmental impacts. The call encourages projects that develop and pilot local food innovation ecosystems, integrate mentorship programs, and leverage existing R&I initiatives. A multi-actor approach is mandatory, requiring the involvement of diverse stakeholders such as local authorities, urban planners, SMEs, start-ups, food entrepreneurs, research institutions, educational bodies, civil society organisations, and citizens. Funding is provided as a lump sum grant under the HORIZON Innovation Actions scheme, with a single-stage application process. The call is open to entities from EU Member States and Associated Countries, with potential eligibility for participants from certain non-EU/non-Associated Countries. The overall goal is to accelerate the growth of urban food start-ups, empower food entrepreneurs, and establish interconnected European-wide competitive urban food systems that enhance the resilience, inclusiveness, and well-being of urban communities. The planned opening date is 20 April 2027, and the deadline for submissions is 23 September 2027.