Deadline Date: September 22, 2026
The European Commission is seeking grant applications to help industries transition towards bio-based value chains by tackling key barriers, strengthening collaboration, and advancing sustainable industrial transformation across Europe and beyond.
The program focuses on supporting the EU Bioeconomy Strategy, Clean Industrial Deal, European Chemical Industry Action Plan, and Circular Economy Act, while addressing technical, market, and regulatory barriers to bio-based adoption, improving collaboration between bio-based and non-bio-based sectors, identifying industry challenges, validating solutions with stakeholders, sharing best practices through case studies, building cross-sector stakeholder forums, and developing roadmaps for transitioning industries to bio-based systems.
The funding available for this initiative is €1.2 million, with a broader total budget allocation of €170,760,699. Participation is open to any legal entity, including organisations from non-associated third countries or international organisations, provided they comply with Horizon Europe eligibility conditions and applicable call requirements.
This initiative seeks to support industries in shifting towards sustainable and circular bio-based products and processes. While bio-based solutions are increasingly adopted, many traditional, partially bio-based, and non-bio-based industries continue to face uncertainties that limit investment and adoption. These challenges include cost competitiveness, regulatory complexity, feedstock availability, skills gaps, and lack of market confidence, despite growing recognition of sustainability opportunities.
Proposals under this topic are required to conduct consultations with non-bio-based and partially bio-based industries across at least three industrial sectors critical to the green transition. These consultations must include organisations of different sizes, including SMEs and startups, and represent various positions within value chains and diverse regional contexts.
The findings must be analysed to identify key barriers and propose actionable solutions for transitioning towards bio-based systems. These outcomes must also be validated with end users and consumers to ensure relevance and practical applicability.
Projects are also expected to identify case studies and success stories that demonstrate effective adoption of bio-based solutions. These examples should be assessed for their potential to be replicated across other sectors facing similar challenges.
In addition, proposals must establish a stakeholder forum that brings together bio-based industries, feedstock providers, non-bio-based industries, investors, policymakers, demand-side actors, and relevant stakeholder groups. This forum is intended to facilitate dialogue and identify pathways for cooperation and transition.
Finally, projects must develop and publish sectoral and cross-sectoral roadmaps outlining strategies for transitioning at least three targeted industries towards bio-based systems, including the identification of risk-reduction opportunities to support adoption.
For more information, visit European Commission.
