Why the EU supports bioeconomy research and innovation
The bioeconomy means using renewable biological resources from land and sea, like crops, forests, fish, animals and micro-organisms to produce food, materials and energy.
Stronger development of the bioeconomy will help the EU accelerate progress towards a circular and low-carbon economy.
It will help modernise and strengthen the EU industrial base, creating new value chains and greener, more cost-effective industrial processes, while protecting biodiversity and the environment.
More about the EU's bioeconomy strategy and action plan
As action under the 2018 EU Bioeconomy Strategy, a study on bioeconomy education, training and skills has been launched in June 2021. The findings of this study will be published in Summer 2022.
Policy focus
Funding opportunities
Horizon Europe Cluster 6
Calls for proposal on bioeconomy-related themes in Horizon Europe and information on the work programme.
InnovFin
Loans and guarantees to innovative businesses for research and innovation activities.
European Investment Bank loans
Loans for projects in agriculture, forest-based, blue economy, waste management. Loans guaranteed by the European Fund for Strategic Investments for high-risk investment in production and processing of food, biobased materials and bioenergy.
European structural and investment funds
Bioeconomy research related calls can be found in national rural development programmes, European Maritime and Fisheries Fund, Cohesion Fund for renewable energy projects, European Regional Development Fund for smart specialisation.
European Circular Bioeconomy Fund
The ECBF is part-funded by the Commission and invests in late-stage bioeconomy start-ups.
Innovation Fund
Funding supporting the deployment of biobased solutions in carbon intensive sectors.
LIFE
The LIFE Programme is the EU’s funding instrument for the environment and climate action.
Projects and results
Research project database (CORDIS)
The Commission's primary portal for information about EU-funded research projects and their results.
Projects success stories
Stories of particularly successful EU-funded research projects
Horizon Magazine
Latest news, interviews and features about thought-provoking science and innovative research projects funded by the EU.
Horizon 2020 dashboard
Access to real-time programme data with the ability to filter by country, region, theme and more.
Horizon Results Platform
Platform where framework programme participants present their results for you to search, contact their owners, and form partnerships.
Results packs on the bioeconomy
Thematic collections of innovative EU-funded research results in the bioeconomy field.
Collaboration and jobs
Find project partners
Find partners for open EU calls for proposal.
Joint programming with EU countries
Partnerships with EU countries on bioeconomy related issues.
Global partnerships
International cooperation in bioeconomy research and innovation to help tackle global challenges.
Biobased Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI JU)
BBI JU connects key biobased sectors to ultimately create a sustainable and competitive biobased economy in Europe.
European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) Food
Innovation community of industry players, agrifood startups, research centres and universities from across Europe accelerating innovation to transform the food system.
BIOEAST
Initiative offering a shared strategic research and innovation framework for working towards sustainable bioeconomies in Central and Eastern European countries.
European Bioeconomy Network (EuroBioNet)
Alliance of EU-funded projects dealing with bioeconomy promotion and communication
ERA CoBioTech
ERA-Net Cofund Action under Horizon 2020, which aims to strengthen the European Research Area (ERA) in the field of biotechnology.
Jobs (EURAXESS)
Researcher jobs in related fields.
Scientific publications, tools and databases
Knowledge centre for bioeconomy
Platform supporting policy making by bringing together knowledge on the bioeconomy from a wide range of scientific disciplines and sources.
EU Science Hub
an overview of the research performed by the JRC in 10 science areas
EU publications portal
Online library of official EU bioeconomy publications
EU Open Data Portal
Single point of access to open data produced by the EU institutions - all data is free to use for commercial and non-commercial purposes.
OpenAIRE
You can access open scientific publications from Horizon 2020 via OpenAIRE.
EMODnet
Access to marine and maritime data in Europe.
By helping us understand how the climate system works and how it will change over time, climate science is fundamental for making informed and wise decisions about reducing emissions and adapting to a changing climate.
Achieving the objectives of the European Green Deal requires a circular and sustainable bioeconomy. Research and innovation (R&I) plays an essential role in enabling and accelerating this transition, unlocking new ways of producing and consuming that respect planetary boundaries and life on earth.
Latest
Bioeconomy community discusses the next steps in EU conference
On 6 and 7 October 2022 the conference "The Bioeconomy: Enabling the European Green Deal in Challenging Times" brought together more than 1000 participants from policy, academia, and industry in Brussels and online
Info days for Horizon Europe Cluster 6 to take place between 13 and 14 December 2022
The info-days will present the topics of the Horizon Europe Cluster 6 (Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment) work programme 2023 and will give the opportunity to prospective applicants to learn more about funding under the new programme.
EU Bioeconomy Conference 2022: post event wrap-up
The high-level conference ‘The Bioeconomy - Enabling the European Green Deal in Challenging Times’ took place on 6 and 7 October in Brussels. A wrap-up video and the recordings of all sessions are now available
EU research and innovation in the bioeconomy
EU funded projects and success stories in the bioeconomy