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Call key data
Leveraging long-term field experiments and other datasets to develop AI-ready decision support systems for sustainable soil management
Funding Program
Horizon Europe: Missions
Call number
HORIZON-MISS-2026-05-SOIL-04
deadlines
Opening
04.02.2026
Deadline
23.09.2026 17:00
Funding rate
70% (NPO: 100%)
Call budget
€ 9,000,000.00
Estimated EU contribution per project
€ 9,000,000.00
Link to the call
Link to the submission
Call content
short description
Long-term field experiments (LTEs) can be defined as “agricultural experiments for monitoring soil and crop properties under changing climate conditions and different management with a minimum duration of 20 years”. LTEs are typically owned or managed by public research institutions.
Call objectives
Long-term field experiments provide valuable information on soil health and sustainable soil management practices and can be considered critical infrastructure for agricultural research. However, LTEs present some limitations or needs to maximize their impact.
- There is a need for standardized methods in collecting and reporting soil data to ensure consistency and comparability across different studies and regions.
- Opportunities exist to integrate soil data from long-term field experiments with other data sources (including the Mission Soil projects results, but not only) to provide a more comprehensive understanding of soil health dynamics and trend, as well as response to policies and management strategies.
- Enhancing the accessibility and interoperability of soil data across platforms and sources can facilitate collaborative research and accelerate advancements in soil health management.
- More high-resolution temporal and spatial data are needed to capture short-term soil dynamics and site-specific variations that can influence broader interpretations of soil health trends.
On the other hand, independent advisory services on soil health for land managers often face challenges such as limited access to comprehensive data, variability in expertise, and the inability to provide tailored recommendations specific to diverse local conditions. These services may struggle with integrating complex and dynamic factors that influence soil health, leading to generic advice that may not effectively address specific needs. There is an opportunity in utilizing cutting-edge technologies such as machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) to analyse vast, complex soil data sets, extract meaningful patterns, and develop predictive models that can enhance the quality of advice provided, improving decision-making, and fostering more effective, sustainable soil management practices.
Proposed activities should:
- design and implement standardised protocols and procedures for harmonised soil data collection, ensuring consistency and comparability, from different LTEs and regions across the EU and Horizon Europe Associated Countries;
- develop robust frameworks for integrating LTE data with other relevant soil health datasets, including outputs from Mission Soil projects, to create comprehensive soil health databases;
- develop open-access and user-friendly interoperable systems and platforms to improve data sharing and accessibility, allowing researchers, advisors, land managers and other stakeholders to easily access and utilize comprehensive soil health information;
- build a network of at least 50 LTEs covering most representative pedo-climatic regions in the EU and Associated Countries involving at least 7 owning institutions, to test and validate the developed infrastructure;
- promote the use of the developed infrastructure for widespread collection and integration of as many as possible soil-health relevant databases (LTEs and others) by, for example, developing intuitive interfaces and user-friendly platforms, partnering with relevant organizations managing LTEs and/or generating datasets, demonstration projects, feedback and improvement loops or training and support services;
- develop AI-driven tools to analyze integrated datasets (including publicly available such as CORDIS, SoilWise repository or repositories like Zenodo), extracting meaningful patterns, and generating predictive models that inform soil health dynamics and management strategies;
- examine potentially correlated explanatory covariates and their relative contribution to the outcome to facilitate spatial downscaling and forecasting in data poor regions and areas by using pre-trained deep learning models;
- develop and train open-source and/or modular AI components, providing comprehensive documentation and tutorials, and establish and nurture open-source communities by, for example, hosting hackathons, workshops, or online platforms to encourage the development, sharing, and integration of the developed modular AI components into commercial applications for land managers and advisors, with a focus on small-scale producers;
- mine large data from publicly available databases (e.g. CORDIS, SoilWise repository or repositories like Zenodo) to pre-train deep learning models and artificial intelligence mobile apps that will facilitate real-time soil status assessments.
The project(s) must implement the multi-actor approach and ensure an adequate involvement of the primary production sector and all relevant actors (landowners, farmers, scientists, advisors, local/regional/national public authorities) throughout the different stages of project development and implementation. Beneficiaries may provide financial support to third parties (FSTP) to incentivise and support third-party developers to create or improve innovative AI-powered applications that deliver tailored advice to farmers and advisors, enhancing soil management practices and benefiting small-scale producers.
Proposals should build on the work done by the SoilWise project and collaborate with the EU Soil Observatory.
Proposals should include a dedicated task and appropriate resources to collaborate with other Mission Soil relevant projects developing soil information systems, in particular project African Union Soil Observatory (AUSO), and other projects that are being funded by other entities in the EU, Horizon Europe Associated Countries and in Africa, including philanthropic organisations. Participation of African organizations is encouraged.
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Expected results
Activities under this topic will help progress towards the objectives and targets of the Mission Soil and the EU Soil Strategy for 2030. Activities should also contribute to the implementation of the Soil Monitoring and Resilience Directive after its adoption.
Project results are expected to contribute to all the following expected outcomes:
- enhanced adoption of impactful sustainable soil management solutions and strategies supported by AI-powered decision support systems by land managers;
- harmonised, standard, robust, interoperable and accessible methods, protocols and logical architecture for long-term field experiments (LTEs) data collection and integration (including with other datasets) are in place;
- scientists, policymakers, and land managers gain enhanced access to comprehensive, high-quality soil data, enabling better research, informed decision-making, and effective land management practices.
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Eligibility Criteria
Regions / countries for funding
Faeroes (Føroyar / Færøerne), Iceland (Ísland), Israel (ישראל / إِسْرَائِيل), Kosovo (Kosova/Kosovë / Косово), Liechtenstein, Morocco (المغرب), Norway (Norge), Switzerland (Schweiz/Suisse/Svizzera), Tunisia (تونس /Tūnis), 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: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden.
- the Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs) linked to the Member States: Aruba (NL), Bonaire (NL), Curação (NL), French Polynesia (FR), French Southern and Antarctic Territories (FR), Greenland (DK), New Caledonia (FR), Saba (NL), Saint Barthélemy (FR), Sint Eustatius (NL), Sint Maarten (NL), St. Pierre and Miquelon (FR), Wallis and Futuna Islands (FR).
- countries associated to Horizon Europe; Albania, Arab Republic of Egypt, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Faroe Islands, Georgia, Iceland, Israel, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Republic of Korea, Serbia, Switzerland, Tunisia, Türkiye, Ukraine, United Kingdom. Other third countries may become associated to Horizon Europe during the programme. For the purposes of the eligibility conditions, applicants established in other third countries negotiating association to Horizon Europe will be treated as entities established in an Associated Country, if the Horizon Europe association agreement with the third country concerned applies at the time of signature of the grant agreement.
- the following low- and middle-income countries: Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Colombia, Comoros, Congo (Democratic Republic), Congo (Republic), Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Cuba, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt (Arab Republic), El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Indonesia, Iran (Islamic Republic), Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, Korea (Democratic People's Republic), Kyrgyz Republic, Lao (People’s Democratic Republic), Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mauritius, Micronesia (Federated States), Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Niue, Pakistan, Palau, Palestine, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Rwanda, Samoa, São Tomé and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Sudan, Suriname, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic), Vietnam, Yemen Republic, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
Legal entities which are established in countries not listed above will be eligible for funding if provided for in the specific call/topic conditions, or if their participation is considered essential for implementing the action by the granting authority.
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.
Unless otherwise provided for in the specific call/topic conditions, 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.
As affiliated entities do not sign the grant agreement, they do not count towards the minimum eligibility criteria for consortium composition (if any).
other eligibility criteria
Specific cases
Affiliated entities — 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 — 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 specific call/topic conditions.
Entities without legal personality — 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.
EU bodies — Legal entities created under EU law including decentralised agencies may be part of the consortium, unless provided for otherwise in their basic act.
International organisations — 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/topic 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 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 the 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.
Applications must include a plan for the exploitation and dissemination of results including communication activities, unless provided otherwise in the specific call/topic conditions. The plan is not required for applications at the first stage of two-stage procedures. If the expected exploitation of the results entails developing, creating, manufacturing and marketing a product or process, or in creating and providing a service, the plan must include a strategy for such exploitation. If the plan provides for exploitation of the results primarily in non-associated third countries, the applicants must explain how that exploitation is to be considered in the EU’s interest.
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.
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).
Beneficiaries may provide financial support to third parties to involve developers in creating or improving AI-powered applications that provide tailored advice to farmers and advisors, enhancing soil management and benefiting small-scale producers. The maximum amount to be granted to each third party is EUR 60 000.
Call documents
Horizon Europe Work Programme 2026-2027 - MissionsHorizon Europe Work Programme 2026-2027 - Missions(2075kB)
Contact
RTD-HORIZON-EUROPE-MISSIONS@ec.europa.eu
Website
National Contact Points for Horizon Europe
Website
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