Multi-Country project in Agri-Food

The EU grant opportunity titled "Multi-Country Project in Agri-Food" falls under the Digital Europe Programme and aims to support a Multi-Country Project (MCP) focused on enhancing efficiency, sustainability, and competitiveness within the agri-food sector across Europe. The initiative encourages the sharing and reuse of data to improve decision-making and reduce administrative burdens.

Eligible applicants include research institutions, agriculture data intermediaries, industry associations, SMEs, startups, and public-private partnerships, emphasizing collaborative efforts among multiple EU countries. The financial mechanism for this grant is structured as a non-repayable grant, with a total funding amount allocated to this call being €15 million.

A consortium is required for participation, involving partners from at least three EU Member States or associated countries. Geographic eligibility is primarily focused on EU Member States and countries associated with the Digital Europe Programme.

The targeted sectors encompass agriculture, agri-food, sustainability, and digital transformation, with a specific strategy for leveraging AI and enhancing digital and data infrastructures. Specific countries are not named; the scope targets EU-wide collaboration aiming at comprehensive infrastructure development.

The project is currently in the deployment phase, building on previous preparatory actions, and seeks to roll out digital infrastructures and cross-border use cases. The anticipated budget is part of a broader allocation for data spaces and cloud infrastructure.

The application process is a single-stage open call with submissions due by September 2, 2025. All funding aims to support infrastructure development, technical assistance, and financial backing for third-party initiatives. The grant covers 100% of the eligible costs with no mandatory co-funding required.

While explicit success rates are not provided, the competitive nature of the grant suggests a moderate level. Expected outcomes include capacity building through stakeholder collaboration, the establishment of an information exchange platform, and the formulation of a technical specification for digital infrastructure tailored to the agri-food ecosystem. The project aims to align with EU initiatives, ensuring compliance with regulations like GDPR.

In summary, this grant is designed to pioneer the large-scale deployment of a decentralized data infrastructure for the agriculture sector. It aims to create a resilient system by fostering cross-border collaboration and integrating advanced technologies, ultimately contributing to a more efficient, sustainable, and competitive European agri-food industry.

This EU grant opportunity, titled "Multi-Country Project in Agri-Food" with call identifier DIGITAL-2025-AI-08-AGRIFOOD, falls under the Digital Europe Programme (DIGITAL) and the AI Continent (DIGITAL-2025-AI-08) call. It aims to support a Multi-Country Project (MCP) in the agri-food sector by leveraging digital infrastructure, particularly data infrastructure, to enhance efficiency, sustainability, and competitiveness across Europe. The project fosters access, sharing, and reuse of data to support decision-making, reduce administrative burdens, and enable innovative solutions.

The grant type is DIGITAL-JU-GFS DIGITAL JU Grants for Financial Support, utilizing a DIGITAL Action Grant Budget-Based [DIGITAL-AG] model. The submission process is single-stage, with the opening date on 15 April 2025 and a deadline of 02 September 2025 at 17:00:00 Brussels time. The total budget allocated to this topic is 15,000,000 EUR, and it is anticipated that one grant will be awarded.

Expected outcomes include:

Capacity building through proactive collaboration with stakeholders.

An information exchange platform for sharing insights and data about infrastructure, tools, standards, and agreements, complementing related initiatives.

A coordination roadmap detailing the alignment of various initiatives and actors across different sectors and member states.

Recommendations for the development, operation, and maintenance of the project, facilitating its rollout to new countries and agri-food segments.

An assessment of ongoing initiatives at national and EU levels, documenting lessons learned.

A concept, technical specification, and setup of digital infrastructure for the agri-food ecosystem.

A portfolio of cross-border use cases implemented by third parties, demonstrating cooperation and interoperability, with guidelines and standards for broader implementation.

Use case evaluation reports detailing performance, lessons learned, and recommendations.

Deployment action involving the implementation of the project at multi-country/EU level with sustainable structures.

Policy recommendations on creating favorable conditions for achieving MCP objectives and furthering digital transformation.

The scope of the awarded proposal should address the following activities:

Provide operational support to create a sustainable collaboration framework among Member States and other stakeholders aimed at facilitating large-scale investments in digital and data infrastructure for agri-food projects with a multi-country focus.

Support the exchange of information and take stock of available infrastructures, solutions, tools, agreements, and standards related to the scope of the action among participants, and coordinate across initiatives and projects in different countries and domains.

Analyse gaps in existing agri-food data infrastructures and services, and propose measures to support the deployment, operation, and maintenance of data and service infrastructures.

Develop and set-up digital infrastructure enabling agri-food data exchange, access, and analysis at the European level.

Provide assistance, including financial support to third parties, for the development of cross-border use cases focusing on real-life applications based on agri-food data sharing and promote the sharing and reuse of best practices. These use cases should be implemented across several Member States; they should foster advanced technologies, including AI, and should follow a coherent approach, that ensures interoperability; indicative areas for use cases include the preparation of scaling of the multi-country project and/ or subsequent actions that support the objectives of the MCP.

Support the implementation and deployment of a large-scale data-infrastructure with a multi-country or EU-level dimension to roll out data services in agri-food relevant for the public and private domains.

All activities must align with existing EU initiatives, including the Common European Agricultural Data Space (CEADS), Testing and Experimentation Facilities (TEF) for AI in agri-food, Horizon Europe Partnership Agriculture of Data, European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs) and EDICs, and the EU Digital Identity Wallet/eID. Duplication of existing initiatives should be avoided, and compliance with GDPR and the Directive on open data and the re-use of public sector information is required.

The awarded proposal is expected to achieve financial sustainability beyond the project's duration. The outcomes and deliverables of the project should be owned or usable by a lasting structure supporting the implementation of the MCP in the agri-food sector. Active involvement of data providers and users in the public and private domains is highly recommended.

Conditions for application include:

Admissibility conditions related to proposal page limits and layout, as described in section 5 of the call document and Part B of the Application Form.

Eligibility of countries, as described in section 6 of the call document.

Other eligible conditions, as described in section 6 of the call document.

Financial and operational capacity and exclusion criteria, as described in section 7 of the call document.

Evaluation and award processes, as described in section 8 of the call document and the Online Manual.

Award criteria, scoring, and thresholds, as described in section 9 of the call document.

Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement, as described in section 4 of the call document.

Legal and financial setup of the grants, as described in section 10 of the call document.

Relevant documents include the call document, standard application form (DEP), detailed budget table, Digital Europe Programme General MGA v1 Guidance, Guidelines on How to Complete your Ethics Self-Assessment, Digital Europe Work Programme 2025-2027, Digital Europe Programme Regulation 2021/694, and EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509.

There are 73 partner search announcements available for collaboration on this topic. LEARs, Account Administrators, or self-registrants can publish partner requests.

To submit a proposal, applicants must access the Electronic Submission Service and select the appropriate type of submission (DIGITAL JU Grants for Financial Support [DIGITAL-JU-GFS] or DIGITAL Action Grant Budget-Based [DIGITAL-AG]).

This grant opportunity is designed to foster the digital transformation of the agri-food sector in Europe by supporting multi-country projects that leverage data infrastructure. It aims to create a more efficient, sustainable, and competitive agri-food sector by promoting data sharing, reducing administrative burdens, and enabling innovative solutions. The project should align with the European Data Strategy and complement existing initiatives like the Common European Agricultural Data Space (CEADS). Successful proposals will demonstrate a clear plan for achieving financial sustainability and engaging a wide range of stakeholders, including data providers and users from both public and private sectors. The call encourages the use of financial support to third parties to develop cross-border use cases and integrate digital infrastructure, ultimately contributing to a resilient and productive agriculture and food system.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly mentioned in the provided text. However, given the nature of the Digital Europe Programme and the focus on multi-country projects, it can be inferred that eligible applicants could include a variety of entities such as SMEs, large enterprises, research institutions, universities, public sector organizations, and other relevant stakeholders involved in the agri-food sector and digital infrastructure. The emphasis on collaboration suggests that consortia are likely to be favored.

Funding Type: The primary financial mechanism is a grant, specifically "DIGITAL JU Grants for Financial Support" and "DIGITAL Simple Grants" and "DIGITAL Grants for Procurement" and "DIGITAL Coordination and Support Actions" under the Digital Europe Programme.

Consortium Requirement: The opportunity is designed to support a Multi-Country Project (MCP), implying that a consortium of multiple applicants is required. The text emphasizes collaboration among Member States and stakeholders, suggesting that single applicants would not be suitable.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility is primarily focused on the EU, as the project aims to support the digital transformation of the agri-food sector across Europe and involves collaboration among Member States. The call aims to complement and accelerate the development and implementation of the Common European Agricultural Data Space (CEADS).

Target Sector: The program targets the agri-food sector, with a specific focus on leveraging digital infrastructure and data infrastructure to enhance efficiency, sustainability, and competitiveness. It also targets the ICT sector, particularly in the context of AI and data sharing.

Mentioned Countries: No specific countries are explicitly mentioned, but the focus is on collaboration among Member States, implying that the opportunity is open to entities within the European Union.

Project Stage: The project stage appears to be focused on development, validation, demonstration, and deployment. The call aims to support the implementation and deployment of a large-scale data infrastructure, the development of cross-border use cases, and the setup of digital infrastructure. It also includes elements of assessment, stocktaking, and recommendations, suggesting a move from research to practical application and scaling.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary by topic:
DIGITAL-2025-AI-08-AGRIFOOD: EUR 15,000,000
DIGITAL-2025-AI-08-COMPLIANCE: EUR 8,000,000
DIGITAL-2025-AI-08-DS-SUPPORT: EUR 10,000,000
DIGITAL-2025-AI-08-PROCESSOR: EUR 1,000,000
DIGITAL-2025-AI-08-SUPPLY-AI: EUR 21,000,000

Application Type: The application type is an open call, as the submission session is now available, and the deadline is specified. The process involves electronic submission through the Funding & Tenders Portal.

Nature of Support: The beneficiaries will receive money in the form of grants to support their projects. Additionally, the call encourages the use of financial support to third parties for the development, customization, and integration of digital infrastructure.

Application Stages: The application process appears to be a single-stage process, as indicated by the "single-stage" designation in the budget overview.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly mentioned. However, the indicative number of grants for each topic provides some insight into the potential competitiveness:
DIGITAL-2025-AI-08-AGRIFOOD: 1 grant
DIGITAL-2025-AI-08-COMPLIANCE: 3 grants
DIGITAL-2025-AI-08-DS-SUPPORT: 1 grant
DIGITAL-2025-AI-08-PROCESSOR: 1 grant
DIGITAL-2025-AI-08-SUPPLY-AI: 4 grants

Co-funding Requirement: The text does not explicitly mention a co-funding requirement.

Summary:

This opportunity, under the Digital Europe Programme (DIGITAL) and the AI Continent (DIGITAL-2025-AI-08) call, aims to support a Multi-Country Project (MCP) in the agri-food sector. The primary goal is to leverage digital and data infrastructure to enhance the efficiency, sustainability, and competitiveness of the agri-food sector across Europe. The initiative seeks to foster the access, sharing, and reuse of data to improve decision-making, reduce administrative burdens, and enable innovative solutions.

The call encourages consortia of applicants from various backgrounds, including SMEs, large enterprises, research institutions, and public sector organizations, to collaborate on projects that align with the European Data Strategy and the digital transformation of the agri-food sector. The projects should contribute to building a competitive and resilient agriculture and food system, supporting sustainability and productivity.

The scope of the call includes providing operational support for a sustainable collaboration framework, exchanging information, analyzing gaps in existing infrastructure, developing and setting up digital infrastructure, and providing assistance for cross-border use cases. The projects should align with existing EU initiatives such as the Common European Agricultural Data Space (CEADS), Testing and Experimentation Facilities (TEF) for AI in agri-food, and European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs).

The funding is provided through DIGITAL JU Grants for Financial Support, DIGITAL Simple Grants, DIGITAL Grants for Procurement and DIGITAL Coordination and Support Actions, with varying budget allocations for different topics. The application process is a single-stage electronic submission, with the deadline for submission on September 2, 2025.

Overall, this opportunity is geared towards fostering collaboration and innovation in the agri-food sector through the use of digital technologies and data sharing, with the aim of creating a more efficient, sustainable, and competitive European agri-food industry.