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Call key data
Improving grassland management in European livestock farming systems
Funding Program
Horizon Europe: Cluster 6 - Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment
Call number
HORIZON-CL6-2025-02-FARM2FORK-06
deadlines
Opening
06.05.2025
Deadline
16.09.2025 17:00
Funding rate
100%
Call budget
€ 16,000,000.00
Estimated EU contribution per project
€ 8,000,000.00
Link to the call
Link to the submission
Call content
short description
Proposals should contribute to the objectives of the common agricultural policy (CAP), to the EU Green Deal’s goals for resilient and sustainable agri-food systems, the EU biodiversity strategy, the Nature Restoration Regulation, the climate policy, and the EU action plan for the development of organic production. Proposals will also contribute to the expected impacts of the destination by enabling farmers and relevant actors in the agricultural sector to manage sustainable, efficient, profitable, circular, low greenhouse gas-emitting farming systems contributing to climate-neutrality and climate-resilience.
Call objectives
Well managed grasslands are key for the sustainability of the EU’s and Associated Countries agriculture and for the delivery of multiple ecosystem services, including water purification, erosion and flood prevention, carbon sequestration and food production, and for preserving biodiversity. Grasslands can also play an important role as protein crop supply for feed. They constitute key elements of European socio-cultural landscapes. However, grasslands maintenance and functions in the EU are under threat for reasons that may include sub-optimal input management, intensification, farm concentration, climate change and abandonment.
Ensuring the sustainable management of grasslands and preventing their disappearance is essential for a sustainable farming sector, for healthy nature, and for human wellbeing in the EU and Associated Countries. This calls for increasing scientific evidence on grasslands across Europe, including on their performance, benefits and trade-offs (e.g., climate, environment, biodiversity, socio-economic). There is also a need to further develop and demonstrate approaches that allow assessing the climate change adaptation and mitigation potential of grazing livestock systems, along with other benefits they can deliver. Moreover, farmers need new knowledge, innovative solutions, support and advice to sustainably maintain grasslands, and to restore degraded grassland habitats.
In this context, the role of and coherence among policies is crucial. Research and Innovation have a key role to play in demonstrating that properly managed grasslands systems are viable options for farmers.
This topic focuses on grazing livestock systems and involves both permanent grasslands, as defined in Regulation (EU) 2021/2115, and temporary grasslands, understood as arable land with grasses, or grass mixtures with other species, that has been included in the crop rotation before reaching the five years that are necessary to be considered as permanent grassland.
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Expected effects and impacts
Proposals should address all the following activities and should cover various farming systems/approaches, one of which should be organic farming:
- develop and operationalise methodologies to measure, monitor, benchmark and assess the performance of grassland farming systems in different contexts in terms of the delivery of ecosystem services (e.g., productivity, carbon sequestration, nutrient cycling, resilience to climate change, soil health, forage value), biodiversity restoration, reducing emissions of greenhouse gas (GHG) and air pollutants, and social aspects such as profitability for farmers and co-benefits for other stakeholders. This should include analysis of synergies and trade-offs between the above elements in the short- to medium- and long-terms. The benchmark of the performance of grassland farming systems should also include comparison between different levels of grass-based ruminants’ farming systems in similar pedo-climatic contexts;
- develop new knowledge, innovative solutions/practices, and manageable strategies for creating, maintaining and restoring grasslands systems that are productive, cost-effective, sustainable, environmentally sound, and resilient to a changing climate. These strategies should include assessment of innovations in the social, environmental and economic domains, such as market uptake by value chain actors and consumers through, for instance, standards and labelling;
- develop farm- and landscape level decision tools and strategies to support farmers in managing grasslands sustainably, to improve forage productivity and quality and livestock production, and the delivery of other ecosystem services, based on documented cases or in-situ demonstrators;
- organise activities to mobilise the sharing of knowledge (scientific, practical and traditional), and networking among relevant actors. Proposals should develop practice-oriented dissemination materials, e.g. audiovisual materials, brochures, etc., presenting solutions, and make them publicly available;
- assess relevant public policies at various levels and provide policy recommendations to improve their impact and coherence in supporting sustainable grassland systems;
- perform economic cost-benefit analysis of applying the R&I solutions developed during the project and explore the potential of financing or incentive tools specific to the sustainable management of grassland farming systems, including lower-polluting and lower-GHG-emitting grazing livestock systems, and where relevant, restoration of degraded grasslands habitats.
Proposals must implement the 'multi-actor approach’ and ensure adequate involvement of the main stakeholders involved in grassland management in Europe, e.g., farmers (including farmers managing protected grassland habitats), shepherds and related organisations notably in the ruminants’ sectors, advisors, policy-makers, landscape and territorial planners, industry including small and medium enterprises, social economy actors, consumers, environmental Non-Governmental Organisations, etc.
Proposals should capitalise on research findings and tools, included those developed under previous research projects. Proposals should cover a variety of grasslands systems in different pedo-climatic conditions and biogeographical regions across the EU and consider marginal areas at risk of abandonment or with other constraints, and areas in intensification trends towards arable crop farming. Activities should allow for the comparison of performance and sustainability between grasslands systems presenting mixtures of plant species, including legumes, compared to mono-species grasslands. The possible contribution of the JRC could involve connecting with spatial datasets on livestock grazing density and grassland management intensity available in its portfolio. Furthermore, Eurostat related data should also be considered.
Proposals should include a dedicated task, appropriate resources and a plan on how they will collaborate with other projects funded under this topic. Proposals should, where relevant, consider the use of Earth Observation data. Proposals should ensure complementarities with other relevant activities carried out under other initiatives in Horizon Europe, including those funded under the topics HORIZON-CL6-2025-02-CLIMATE-04, HORIZON-CL6-2025-02-FARM2FORK-04, as well as with relevant activities of the Horizon Europe Partnership ‘Agroecology’ and other relevant future Horizon Europe Partnerships and R&I projects.
In order to enhance the societal and long-term impact of the activities beyond the life cycle of the project, proposals should apply social innovation and citizen engagement and include a strong involvement of citizens/civil society, together with academia/research, industry/SMEs/start-ups and government/public authorities.
This topic should involve the effective contribution of social sciences and humanities (SSH) disciplines. To achieve the objectives of this topic, international cooperation is encouraged.
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Expected results
Project results are expected to contribute to all the following expected outcomes:
- the availability of data, models and methodologies to measure, monitor, assess and valorise the multifunctionality of grassland farming systems is improved, benefitting all relevant actors involved in grassland management;
- the availability and accessibility for, and use by farmers of sustainable grassland management knowledge, innovative solutions/practices and strategies is increased;
- networking, participatory approaches and knowledge mobilisation among relevant stakeholders for sustainable grassland management is enhanced;
- scientific support and recommendations for the development, implementation and evaluation of EU policies relevant for grasslands, including the CAP, the EU climate policy and the Nature Restoration Regulation is provided.
Eligibility Criteria
Regions / countries for funding
Moldova (Moldova), Albania (Shqipëria), Armenia (Հայաստան), Bosnia and Herzegovina (Bosna i Hercegovina / Босна и Херцеговина), Canada, Faeroes (Føroyar / Færøerne), Georgia (საქართველო), Iceland (Ísland), Israel (ישראל / إِسْرَائِيل), Kosovo (Kosova/Kosovë / Косово), Montenegro (Црна Гора), New Zealand (Aotearoa), 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, 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
Yes
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
- countries associated to Horizon Europe - see list of particpating countries
Only legal entities forming a consortium are eligible to participate in actions provided that the consortium includes, as beneficiaries, three legal entities independent from each other and each established in a different country as follows:
- at least one independent legal entity established in a Member State; and
- at least two other independent legal entities, each established in different Member States or Associated Countries.
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.
other eligibility criteria
Specific cases:
- 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 (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 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.
- Legal entities created under EU law (EU bodies) including decentralised agencies may be part of the consortium, unless provided for otherwise in their basic act.
- International European research organisations are eligible to receive funding. International organisations with headquarters in a Member State or Associated Country are eligible to receive funding for ‘Training and mobility’ actions or when provided for in the specific call/topic conditions. Other international organisations are not eligible to receive funding, unless provided for in the specific call/topic conditions, or if their participation is considered essential for implementing the action by the granting authority.
- 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.
- EU restrictive measures — Entities subject to EU restrictive measures under Article 29 of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU) and Article 215 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU) as well as Article 75 TFEU, are not eligible to participate in any capacity, including as beneficiaries, affiliated entities, associated partners, third parties giving in-kind contributions, subcontractors or recipients of financial support to third parties (if any).
- Legal entities established in Russia, Belarus, or in non-government controlled territories of Ukraine — Given the illegal invasion of Ukraine by Russia and the involvement of Belarus, there is currently no appropriate context allowing the implementation of the actions foreseen in this programme with legal entities established in Russia, Belarus, or in non-government controlled territories of Ukraine. Therefore, even where such entities are not subject to EU restrictive measures, such legal entities are not eligible to participate in any capacity. This includes participation as beneficiaries, affiliated entities, associated partners, third parties giving in-kind contributions, subcontractors or recipients of financial support to third parties (if any). Exceptions may be granted on a case-by-case basis for justified reasons.
With specific regard to measures addressed to Russia, following the adoption of the Council Regulation (EU) 2024/1745 of 24 June 2024 (amending Council Regulation (EU) No 833/2014 of 31 July 2014) concerning restrictive measures in view of Russia’s actions destabilising the situation in Ukraine, legal entities established outside Russia but whose proprietary rights are directly or indirectly owned for more than 50% by a legal person, entity or body established in Russia are also not eligible to participate in any capacity. - Measures for the protection of the Union budget against breaches of the principles of the rule of law in Hungary — Following the Council Implementing Decision (EU) 2022/2506, as of 16 December 2022, no legal commitments can be entered into with Hungarian public interest trusts established under the Hungarian Act IX of 2021 or any entity they maintain. Affected entities may continue to apply to calls for proposals and can participate without receiving EU funding, as associated partners, if allowed by the call conditions. However, as long as the Council measures are not lifted, such entities are not eligible to participate in any funded role (beneficiaries, affiliated entities, subcontractors, recipients of financial support to third parties, etc.).In case of multi-beneficiary grant calls, applicants will be invited to remove or replace that entity in any funded role and/or to change its status into associated partner. Tasks and budget may be redistributed accordingly.
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
Applications 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.
Applications must be submitted using the forms provided inside the electronic submission system (not the templates available on the topic page, which are only for information). The structure and presentation must correspond to the instructions given in the forms.
Applications must be complete and contain all parts and mandatory annexes and supporting documents.
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 45 pages.
Call documents
Horizon Europe Work Programme 2025 Cluster 6 - Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and EnvironmentHorizon Europe Work Programme 2025 Cluster 6 - Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment(kB)
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