Bioeconomy ERA-NET actions : European Research Area Networks of the 6th and 7th framework programmes.
Date: 2014-03-24
Institutions: Directorate-General for Research and Innovation
Subjects: EU action, EU programme, EU research policy, European cooperation, Framework Programme for Research and Development, biodiversity, biotechnology, cooperation on agriculture, energy research, environmental cooperation, environmental research, fishery research, organic farming, research programme, sustainable agriculture

Bioeconomy 
ERA-NET Actions
European Research Area 
Networks of the 6th and 7th 
Framework Programmes

Publication of 
PLATFORM of 
Knowledge Based 
Bioeconomy  
relevant ERA-NETs 
(FP7 grant 288422)

Research and 
Innovation

Europe Direct is a service to help you find answers  
to your questions about the European Union.

Freephone number (*):

00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11

(*) Certain mobile telephone operators do not allow access to 00 800 numbers 
or these calls may be billed. 

EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Directorate-General for Research and Innovation
Directorate F - Bioeconomy
Unit F.3 - Agri-Food Chain

Contact:   François Constantin Severini

E-mail:   Francois.Constantin@ec.europa.eu
RTD-PUBLICATIONS@ec.europa.eu

European Commission
B-1049 Brussels

FP7 project PLATFORM contact: Christine Bunthof
E-mail: christine.bunthof@wur.nl

 
EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Bioeconomy ERA-NET Actions

European Research Area Networks of the 6th and 7th
Framework Programmes

Directorate-General for Research and Innovation
Food Security, Sustainable Agriculture and Forestry, Marine, Maritime and  
Inland Water Research and the Bioeconomy

2014

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This book is produced in the frame of the PLATFORM project. It could not have been conceived without 
the involvement of DG Research & Innovation and the ERA-NET and ERA-NET Plus Actions whose 
scope is within the remit of the bioeconomy. We thank all the ERA-NET coordinators and contact 
persons for supplying information about their ERA-NET. We also thank DG Research & Innovation, 
in particular Robert-Jan Smits, Director General, François Constantin Severini, PLATFORM’s Scientific 
Officer, Emilie Tournier, Communication Officer of Directorate F and Sofia Caira. Finally we thank the 
Publications Office.

LEGAL NOTICE

Neither the European Commission nor any person acting on behalf of the Commission is responsible 
for the use which might be made of the following information.

The views expressed in this publication are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily 
reflect the views of the European Commission. 

More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (http://europa.eu). 

Cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication.

Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2014

ISBN 
doi 

978-92-79-29458-7
10.2777/98348

© European Union, 2014
Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. 

Printed in Luxembourg
Printed on elemental chlorine-free bleached paper (ECF)

Cover page: © RFSole, #50280075, 2014. Source: Fotolia
Design by Brenda van der Zee, PLATFORM Project Office, Wageningen UR, The Netherlands

Table of Contents

Foreword                                                                               6

Introduction 

The ERA-NET Scheme

The European Bioeconomy

Bioeconomy relevant ERA-NET Actions

10

10

13

14

PLATFORM         Platform of Knowledge Based Bioeconomy relevant ERA-NETs         16

FP6 ERA-NET Actions                                                           19

ACENET

BiodivERsA

CORE Organic

ERA-ARD

Coordination and Cooperation in the Field of Applied Catalysis

An ERA-NET in biodiversity research 

Coordination of European Transnational Research in Organic 
Food and Farming 

The  Agricultural  Research  for  Development  (ARD)  dimension 
of the European Research Area (ERA)

ERA-IB

Towards an ERA in Industrial Biotechnology 

ERA-NET BIOENERGY

Establish a structural cooperation between national bioenergy 
RTD programmes aiming at: cost efficiency, improved quality 
and accelerated development 

ERA-PG

ERASysBio

EUPHRESCO I

ERA-NET Plant Genomics 

Towards a European Research Area for Systems Biology 

Coordination  of  European  Phytosanitary  (Statutory  Plant 
Health) Research  

EUROTRANS-BIO

EUROpean  network    of  TRANSnational  collaborative  RTD  for 
SMEs projects in the field of BIOtechnology 

MariFish

The  Coordination  of  European  Marine  Fisheries  Research 
Programmes 

SAFEFOODERA

European excellence in food safety research programming 

SNOWMAN

Sustainable management of soil and groundwater 

WOODWISDOM-NET

Networking  and  Integration  of  National  Programmes  in  the 
Area of Wood Material Science and Engineering

20

23

26

29

32

36

42

47

51

55

61

64

68

73

FP7 ERA-NET Actions                                                           77

ANIHWA

ARIMNet

ARIMNet2 
(under negotiation)

BiodivERsA2

CAPITA

C-IPM

CIRCLE-2

COFASP

Animal Health and Welfare 

Coordination of Agricultural Research in the Mediterranean 

Coordination of Agricultural Research in the Mediterranean

Cooperation  and  shared  strategies  for  biodiversity  research 
programmes in Europe 

Catalytic Processes for Innovative Technology Applications  

Integrated Pest management (IPM) ERA-NET

Climate  Impact  Research  and  Response  Coordination  for  a 
Larger Europe

Strengthening  cooperation 
research  on 
sustainable  exploitation  of  marine  resources  in  the  seafood 
chains - ERANET 

in  European 

CORE Organic II

Coordination of European Transnational Research in Organic 
Food and Farming Systems 

EMIDA

ERA-ARD II

ERA-CAPS

ERA-IB-2

ERA-MBT

ERASynBio

ERASysAPP

ETB-PRO

Coordination  of  European  Research  on  Emerging  and  Major 
Infectious Diseases of Livestock 

The Agricultural Research for Development Dimension of the 
European Research Area 

ERA-NET for Coordinating Action in Plant Sciences

ERA-NET for Industrial Biotechnology 2 

MARINEBIOTECH

Development  and  Coordination  of  Synthetic  Biology  in  the 
European Research Area 

Systems Biology Applications 

EUROpean programme for TRANSnational R&D&I cooperations 
of BIOtech SMEs 

EUPHRESCO II

European Phytosanitary Research Coordination II 

FORESTERRA

ICT-AGRI

ICT-AGRI-2

Enhancing  FOrest  RESearch  in  the  MediTERRAnean  through 
improved coordination and integration 

Coordination  of  ICT  and  Robotics  in  Agriculture  and  Related 
Environmental Issues 

Information  and  Communication  Technologies  and  Robotics 
for Sustainable Agriculture 

PreSto GMO ERA-NET

Preparatory steps towards a GMO research ERA-NET 

RURAGRI

SEAS-ERA

Facing sustainability: New relationships between rural areas 
and agriculture in Europe 

Towards  integrated  European  marine  research  strategy  and 
programmes 

78

82

85

87

92

95

97

102

104

108

112

115

118

121

123

125

127

134

137

139

143

145

147

150

SUMFOREST 
(under negotiation)

Tackling the Challenges in the Implementation of Sustainable 
and  Multifunctional  Forestry  Through  Enhanced  Research 
Coordination for Policy Decisions

SUSFOOD

Sustainable Food Production and Consumption

WOODWISDOM-NET 2 Networking  and  integration  of  national  programmes  in  the 
area of wood material science and engineering in the forest-
based value chains 

153

156

159

FP7+ ERA-NET Actions                                                       163

BESTF 1

BioEnergy Sustaining the Future

BESTF 2 
(under negotiation)

CORE Organic Plus

ERASysBio+

FACCE-ERA-NET+ 
(under negotiation)

WOODWISDOM-NET+

BioEnergy Sustaining the Future 2

Innovative  solutions  in  organic  food  and  agriculture  for  next 
generation of food systems seeking synergies between rural 
development, natural resource management and food security 
and quality ERA-NET Plus

The consolidation of systems biology research stimulating the 
widespread adoption of systems approaches in biomedicine, 
biotechnology, and agri-food 

Food security, Agriculture, Climate Change ERA-NET plus

Innovation in the forest-based sector for increasing resource 
efficiency  and  tackling  climate  change  with  competitive 
customer solutions 

164

166

168

170

173

175

Annexes                                                                            177

Annex 1

Annex 2

Annex 3

Annex 4

FP6 and FP7 ERA-NET Actions per Theme

Overview of bioeconomy ERA-NET Actions

ERA-NET country participation FP7 and FP7+

List of country codes

178

180

184

185

FOREWORD 

BIOECONOMY ERA-NET ACTIONS

Foreword

Robert-Jan Smits
General  Director  of  DG  Research  and 
Innovation, European Commission

The Europe 2020 Strategy of the European Commission calls for a bioeconomy as a key element 
for smart and green growth in Europe, especially in the context of the current economic difficulties 
facing  Europe.  The  Commission  sees  in  the  bioeconomy  a  convergence  of  opportunities  and 
objectives:  a  smart  use  of  our  biological  resources  from  land  and  seas;  a  low-carbon,  resource 
efficient  economy;  a  reindustrialisation  of  Europe,  based  on  innovation  and  the  latest  scientific 
knowledge; food security for all; and the development of new jobs and new sources of economic 
growth, not least in rural and maritime regions.

In February 2012 the Commission adopted a strategy to help Europe move towards a food-secure 
more sustainable, post-petroleum society based upon a true bioeconomy. A key component of the 
strategy is reconciling the use of renewable resources from land and sea, transforming waste into 
valuable resources, the production of food, feed, bio-based products and bioenergy, all the while 
ensuring environmental protection. The bioeconomy thus contributes significantly to the objectives 
of the Europe 2020 flagship initiatives “Innovation Union” and “A Resource Efficient Europe”. At EU 
level the European bioeconomy is already worth two trillion euros and provides 22 million jobs and 
has the potential to reinvigorate communities in some of our most peripheral and deprived areas.

Strategic  Programming  between  Member  States  in  the  form  of  Joint  Programming  activities  in 
the  areas  of  agriculture,  forestry,  fisheries,  aquaculture  and  bio-based  industries  -  the  sectors 
that make up the bioeconomy - is one of the strongest in Europe in terms of national research 
programme coordination. In this respect, a robust network of Member States coordination activities 
aimed  at  increasing  research  collaboration  between  funders  and  programme  managers  on  key-
research areas has been developed over the past ten years.

Within this cooperative landscape, ERA-NET ACTIONS (ERA-NETs) are recognised as a success story 
of the 6th and the 7th Framework Programmes for Research and Technological Development (RTD). 
They have contributed to the realisation of the European Research Area (ERA) by improving the 
networking of funding authorities and the mutual opening of research programmes conducted at 
national or regional level.

Indeed more than 30 ERA-NET projects under FP6 and FP7 have been funded. In addition, three 
Joint  Programming  Initiatives  (JPI-FACCE  “Agriculture,  Food  security  and  climate  Change”  –  JPI 
HDHL “Healthy Diet for a Healthy Life” – JPI Oceans) were launched to help countries define and 
implement  common  strategic  research  agendas  based  on  a  common  vision  of  how  to  address 
major societal challenges related to climate change, food security, food and health, and maritime 
research. In parallel, triggered by the Standing Committee on Agricultural Research (SCAR), more 

6

BIOECONOMY ERA-NET ACTIONS 

FOREWORD

than 20 collaborative/strategic working groups have been set up by European countries to jointly 
tackle priority research topics.

I  would  like  to  stress  that  ERA-NETs  are  only  the  beginning  of  our  journey  towards  a  research 
and  innovation  area  without  borders.  By  going  further  than  ERA-NETs,  which  coordinate  existing 
programmes  ‘ex-post’,  Joint  Programming  Initiatives  (JPI)  are  integrating  the  effort  of  several 
countries in previously unimagined endeavours. By working together from the start of programming 
cycles, Member States will align their national research programmes to better implement strategic 
research agendas and ideally mesh with the goals of Horizon 2020, our new seven-year research 
and innovation programme.

The  PLATFORM  project  has  brought  together  information  about  all  these  ERA-NETs  in  an  open 
learning environment to share good practices and common research activities.

This publication is very timely in that it provides a comprehensive and detailed overview of all the 
on-going bioeconomy-related ERA-NET actions. It is a useful monitoring tool for assessing the results 
of the various activities undertaken, from early mapping to final joint calls and their potential for 
further improvements. I am pleased to see such coordination of national programmes working to 
help ensure a coherent research agenda to support the EU’s European Bioeconomy Strategy.

I look forward to the final outcome of the PLATFORM project with its expected delivery in 2014 of 
a Vision Paper and a Roadmap, which will provide further guidance for the development of Horizon 
2020 and on how to maximise the leverage, synergies, efficiency gains and structural improvements 
needed to underpin the ERA in the bioeconomy.

Robert-Jan Smits

7

1

Introduction

Introduction

The ERA-NET Scheme

More than 90% of the EU publicly funded research is conducted at national or regional level. The ERA-
NET scheme has been developed by the European Commission to overcome the fragmentation and 
duplication of research efforts. Operating within the Commissions’ Framework Research Programmes 
(FP6 and FP7), ERA-NET has promoted the networking of national and regional research programmes 
with a view to stimulating the exchange of best practice, the pooling of ideas and resources, and the 
development of joint transnational research activities.

ERA-NET actions help strengthen the ERA by providing common answers to shared problems. The 
objective is to develop and strengthen the coordination of public research programmes conducted at 
national or regional level. This is done by encouraging programme owners and managers of national 
or  regional  research  programmes  in  Europe  to  explore  joint  activities,  strategy  development,  and 
joint calls for transnational research. Therefore, programme owners and managers (typically national 
ministries,  regional  authorities,  research  councils  and  funding  agencies)  are  considered  eligible 
partners in an FP6/7 ERA-NET action.

ERA-NET now involves hundreds of national research programmes and more than 1 000 programme 
owners  and  managers.  It  is  part  of  Community  action  to  integrate,  strengthen  and  structure  the 
European Research Area (Figure 1). The scheme aims to improve coordination and effectiveness of 
national research efforts and its targeted at national ministries, regional authorities and the funding 
agencies which implement programmes on behalf of their governments. In addition to the exchange 
of ideas and good practice in programme management it enables research bodies across Europe to 
jointly undertake tasks that they would not be able to do independently.

Open labour-market
for researchers

Effectiveness in 
national research 
systems

Transnational 
cooperation and 
competition

ERA

Gender equality and 
main-streaming

Knowlegde 
circulation

Figure 1. The five priorities of the European Research Area.

10

Efficient call planning and implementation

Since 2006 the ERA-NET EUROTRANS-BIO (later ETB-PRO) launches each year one call. The call 
process is identical since the 4th call, so that SMEs are highly familiar to it, they e.g. are aware 
of the regular deadline for submission of the proposals. Calls are always launched in October, 
with a submission deadline end of January and a funding recommendation in June. The time 
between submission deadline and funding recommendation is rather short (5 months) due to a 
solely internal evaluation procedure. The whole process, from the start of the call until funding 
recommendation needs less than one year (10 months), which is, especially in the field of R&D 
funding important: SMEs need reactive funding initiatives to develop their innovative technologies 
rather quickly, e.g. before competitor have the same product idea. 

The  application  process  is  deliberately  simple,  the  sole  submission  of  a  single  proposal  is 
sufficient. The workload is therefore reduced for applicants compared to many other initiatives 
and is more attractive for SMEs.

Under the Sixth Framework Programme ERA-NETs were funded through an open call published at 
the start of FP6 with five subsequent closure dates between June 2003 and October 2005. It was a 
‘horizontal’ activity under the specific programme integrating and strengthening the foundations of 
the European Research Area. In total 71 ERA-NETs have been funded under FP6 and the total funding 
ERA-NETs have received for coordination was EUR 185 million. Many of the ERA-NETs were preceded 
by a short Specific Support Action in which the ERA-NET was prepared. In these preparation projects 
of  usually  one  year,  typical  activities  were  a  preliminary  mapping  of  the  research  landscape  and 
extending a nucleus of collaborating funding organisations to a larger group of partners from more 
countries to be engaged in the ERA-NET itself. 

An  ERA-NET  typically  addresses  four,  stepwise,  processes.    The  initiatives  usually  start  with  a 
systematic exchange of information and good practices. The work proceeds with identification and 
analysis of common strategic issues. Building on these processes, planning and development of joint 
activities  is  undertaken.  And,  finally,  joint  research  is  implemented,  usually  through  transnational 
calls,  generating  research  outputs.  The  text  boxes  in  the  introduction  highlight  in  what  way  ERA-
NETs further strengthen their impact, for example by optimizing the efficiency of organising calls, by 
building collaborations with partners beyond Europe, or by working together with another Network 
to develop a call that is interdisciplinary between the two ERA-NET themes. The instrument proved 
a huge success and exceeded expectations. Almost all FP6 ERA-NETs realized the launching of joint 
calls thereby increasing coordination and collaboration in Europe’s public funding.

Under the Seventh Framework Programme which commenced in 2007, the ERA-NET scheme was no 
longer a ‘stand-alone’ action and has been developed into an implementation tool for supporting the 
strategic areas identified through dialogue with Member States. The ERA-NET scheme continued to 
bolster its support to structuring the European Research Area and enhancing the scale of Europe’s 
research eff orts by supporting three different type of actions:

•	 Coordination Actions – for new ERA-NET actions on topics not yet coordinated between Member 

States or for existing actions wishing to broaden and deepen their scope;

•	

ERA-NET Plus actions – actions which receive additional EU financial support to facilitate joint 
calls for proposals between national and/or regional programmes;

•	 Specific  Support  actions  –  actions  which  contribute  to  the  implementation  of  FP7  and 

preparation of future Community research.

11

As before, the ERA-NETs provide a coordination framework for actors implementing public research 
programmes e.g. by developing joint activities or by mutually supporting joint calls for trans-national 
proposals.  Under  FP7  a  total  of  82  ERA-NET  actions  are  funded:  31  of  the  initial  FP6  contracts 
received further funding and 51 ERA-NETs started under FP7 on topics that were not covered formerly. 
ERA-NET Plus, brand new under FP7, provides, in a limited number of cases with high European added 
value, additional EU financial incentive to national and regional research funding programmes that 
pool financial resources in joint calls for proposals. The ERA-NET Plus follows the ‘rules of five: a 
minimum of five participants from five different Member or Associated  States; a joint call of at least 
five million euros; a maximum duration of five years. A total of 23 ERA-NET Plus actions are funded. 
The Community top-up funding of calls implemented by these Plus actions sums up to around EUR 
154 million. A similar amount of budget is used for coordination for the period 2007-2013. Annex 1 
provides a list of all ERA-NET and ERA-NET Plus actions categorised over themes. 

Specific  Support  Actions  that  contribute  to  the  implementation  of  Community  research  and  that 
specifically  address  Public-to-Public  collaboration  include  the  following  actions.  NETWATCH,  for 
development  of  a  central  information  platform  for  ERA-NETs  under  ERAWATCH;  ERA-LEARN,  the 
learning net for all ERA-NETs that gives courses and builds tools for general use, JPIs TO CO-WORK, 
a  process  of  mutual  learning  towards  a  common  adoption  of  framework  for  Joint  Programming 
Initiatives,  and  PLATFORM,  the  forum  for  networking,  mutual  learning  and  overarching  strategic 
issues for the bioeconomy relevant networks.

For further reading on ERA-NET the NETWATCH site http://netwatch.jrc.ec.europa.eu and the EC pages 
on  ERA-NETs  http://ec.europa.eu/research/era/era-net_en.htm  provide  good  starting  points.  The 
source of the statistical data in this introduction is the annual report on ERA-NET, ERA-NET Plus and 
JPIs and their joint calls which can be downloaded from the EC site. 

International collaboration

ERA-NETs provide the opportunity for easy access of international funding agencies to participate
in transnational calls thus strengthening transatlantic/international research coordination. In the
KBBE theme currently two models are explored:

1. 

2. 

In July 2013, the National Science Foundation (USA) and the ERA-CAPS Consortium signed 
a  Memorandum  of  Understanding  to  coordinate  funding  activities  in  the  field  of  plant 
science. The NSF organised a Program Solicitation in parallel with the ERA-CAPS joint call 
for  proposals.  Hence,  US  partners  were  enabled  to  set  up  or  join  transnational  research 
consortia applying to the first ERA-CAPS call. More information at: http://www.eracaps.org

In ERASynBio the National Science Foundation (USA) is a full partner of the call group of 
the 1st joint call, possessing identical rights and obligations as the European partners. This 
means  in  detail  that  only  one  common  call  was  launched  and  all  partners  agreed  on  a 
common set of call documents, submission and evaluation process. Further details can be 
found at: http://www.erasynbio.eu/

12

The European Bioeconomy

The bioeconomy encompasses the production of renewable biological resources and their conversion 
into  food,  feed,  bio-based  products  and  bioenergy.  It  includes  agriculture,  forestry,  fisheries,  food 
and pulp and paper production, as well as part of chemical, biotechnological, and energy industries. 
The importance of the bioeconomy in Europe cannot be underestimated. With an annual turnover 
of around two trillion euros and employing around 22 million people, it is already one of the Union’s 
biggest and most important sectors.

The  bioeconomy  provides  mankind  with  the  means  to  maintain  our  current  lifestyle  while  using 
renewable and environmental friendly resources. It offers Europe a unique opportunity to address 
complex inter-connected challenges, while achieving economic growth. The bioeconomy can assist 
Europe  in  making  the  transition  to  a  more  resource-efficient  society  that  relies  more  strongly  on 
renewable  biological  resources  to  satisfy  consumers’  needs,  industry  demand  and  tackle  climate 
change.

The bioeconomy realm has many different areas in which reducing fragmentation and increasing 
synergies will contribute to spending the scarce research funds more effectively. Various ERA-NETs 
(Figure  2),  each  in  a  specific  field  or  discipline,  work  to  enhance  the  impact  of  research  through 
coordination and collaboration among national and regional programmes. 

SNOWMAN

SEAS-ERA

C-IPM

SAFEFOODERA

SUSFOOD

PreSto GMO ERA-NET

ERA-NET BIOENERGY

BESTF1 / BESTF2

CORE ORGANIC / II / PLUS

ICT-AGRI / 2
RURAGRI
COFASP
MariFish

ERA-PG / ERA-CAPS

CIRCLE-2

BiodivERsA / 2

ERASysBio / + / ERASysAPP

ERASynBio

ERA-MBT

ACENET/
CAPITA

ERA-IB / 2

FACCE-ERA-NET+

WOODWISDOM-NET / 2 / +

EMIDA / ANIHWA

EUPHRESCO I / II

ERA ARD / II

ARIMNet / 2

SUMFOREST

EUROTRANS-BIO / ETB-PRO

FORESTERRA

Figure 2. ERA-NETs mapped on the Bioeconomy globe.  
Main areas of the bioeconomy and drivers (Source: The European Bioeconomy in 2030. Delivering 
Sustainable Growth by Addressing the Grand Societal Challenges) with ERA-NETs mapped in the area 
of their focus. 

13

Bioeconomy Relevant ERA-NET Actions

Within FP7, the KBBE (Knowledge Based BioEconomy) Theme supported a broad area including food,
agriculture, fisheries and the bioeconomies. This theme is home to most of the bioeconomy-relevant
ERA-NETs. All FP7 KBBE ERA-NETs and the FP6 ERA-NETs in the same research areas are featured 
in this book. Furthermore, some of the other FP7 Themes address topics that can be considered as 
part of the bioeconomy area, including some ERA-NETs. This book also includes information about 
these ‘neighbouring’ ERA-NETs in order to provide a full overview of bioeconomy-relevant ERA-NETs. 
In  total  24  FP7  ERA-NETs  actions  are  described  in  the  book.  For  a  quick  reference  overviews  see 
Figure 3, Annex 2 and Annex 3.

The format for the descriptions was inspired by the FP6 ERA-NET Synopsis series (available on the 
Commissions’ website).  As first sources of the information the CORDIS website, NETWATCH, and the 
websites of the individual ERA-NETs were used. ERA-NET coordinators or managers completed and 
updated the information compiled by the PLATFORM Office. Each contribution includes the acronym 
and  title,  project  duration,  coordinator,  consortium,  and  a  summary  of  the  topic  and  objectives. 
On top of these facts about the network of funders, the ERA-NET descriptions in this book give a 
wealth of information about the joint calls that they launched. Call scope, budget and response are 
usually included, together with lists of all funded projects. A web version of this book will be made in 
2014 including updates on new calls and new projects funded. It is through the joint calls that fund 
transnational research projects, and through other coordination activities, that the ERA-NET actions 
make a large contribution to underpinning the transitions towards a more sustainable, resilient, and 
prosperous European Bioeconomy. You are invited to browse through the pages, look through the lists 
of funded projects and read about the achievements of the networks.

Common calls

Amongst  others  ERA-IB  implemented  a  common  call  with  ETB-PRO  in  2013  (17  funding 
organisations out of 13 countries) and BIOENERGY with WOODWISDOM-NET in 2011 (total public 
funding EUR 18.5 million, 19 funding organisations out of 13 countries). The main benefit for 
the  participating  ERA-NETs  was  the  higher  flexibility  due  to  the  participation  of  more  funding 
agencies. The projects benefit from the broader coverage of themes and countries thus making it
easier to form consortia. In general this measure increased the overall impact of the specific call.

14

FRAMEWORK PROGRAMME 6

FRAMEWORK PROGRAMME 7

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

WOODWISDOM-NET

WOODWISDOM-NET 2

WOODWISDOM-NET +

HORIZON 2020

SNOWMAN

ERA-PG

SAFEFOODERA

ACENET

ERA-CAPS

CAPITA

CORE ORGANIC

CORE ORGANIC II

CORE ORGANIC +*

EUROTRANS-BIO

ETB-PRO

ERA-NET BIOENERGY

BESTF 1+

BESTF2+*

ERA-ARD

BiodivERsA

MariFish

ERASysBio

ERA-ARD II

BiodivERsA2

ERASysBio+

ERASysAPP

EUPHRESCO 1

EUPHRESCO 2

ERA-IB

ERA-IB-2

EMIDA

ARIMNet

ICT-AGRI

RURAGRI

CIRCLE-2

SEAS-ERA

ARIMNet 2*

ICT-AGRI 2

SUSFOOD

ERASYNBIO

FORESTERRA

ANIHWA

COFASP

ERA-MBT

SUMFOREST*

C-IPM*

FACCE-ERA-NET+*

Figure 3. Overview of ERA-NET and ERA-NET Plus actions featured in this book.
FP6  ERA-NET  actions  in  blue,  FP7  ERA-NET  actions  in  green  and  ERA-NET  Plus  actions  in  orange. 
Continuations are placed after their predecessor.

15

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To

2012-01-01
2014-12-31

Project reference

288422

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2011.4-01

Title

Networking of KBBE relevant ERA-NETS

Contract type 

Coordination (or networking) action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  599 355
€  499 424

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

13

Wageningen UR (University & Research 
centre) WUR, The Netherlands

Christine Bunthof
T +31 317 480996
E christine.bunthof@wur.nl

www.era-platform.eu

AT
DE
DE
DK

DK
FI
FR
NL
NL
NO
UK
UK

Federal Ministry of Economy, Family and Youth BMWFJ
Agency for Renewable Resources FNR
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH
Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish 
Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation DASTI
Aarhus University AU-ICROFS
Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation TEKES
Foundation for Research on Biodiversity FRB
Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ
Wageningen UR (University & Research centre) WUR
Nordic Innovation Centre NICe
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council BBSRC
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs DEFRA

PLATFORM

Platform of Knowledge Based 
Bioeconomy Relevant ERA-NETs

Objective

fisheries,  aquaculture, 

The FP7 project ‘Platform of Knowledge Based 
Bioeconomy relevant ERA-NETs’ brings together 
the coordination initiatives in the area of food, 
forestry, 
agriculture, 
climate,  biodiversity,  and  biotechnologies,  with 
the  aim  to  improve  exchange  and  cooperation 
and to strengthen their impact on the ERA and 
the  European  bioeconomy.  Workshops  are  key 
facilitating events towards these aims and the 
outcomes feed into a roadmap that PLATFORM 
will deliver in 2014.

Consortium

The  PLATFORM  project  consortium  consists 
of  experienced  coordinators  of  those  ERA-
NET  actions  that  are  funded  under  FP6  or 
FP7  by  the  food,  agriculture  and  fisheries  and 
biotechnologies  Theme.  The  partners  are 
committed to fuel networking, mutual learning, 
and  exchange  for  a  wider  set  of  initiatives, 
including  neighbouring  ERA-NETs,  JPIs,  and 
working  groups  of  SCAR.  The  concept  is  that 
network  coordinators  and  other  delegates  that 
contribute 
to 
workshops  of  the  PLATFORM  project  act  as  
linking  pins.    Thus  outreach  and  impact  of  the 
platform benefits a broad community.

to  surveys  and  participate 

Networking and mutual learning 

A  lot  of  experience  has  been  built  since  the 

16

ERA-NET  scheme  started,  so  new  coordination 
networks do not need to reinvent the wheel and 
new colleagues do not have to start from zero. 
Through  PLATFORM  the  actors  are  networked 
interactive  dialogues  facilitate  mutual 
and 
learning,  for  example  on  effective  and  cost-
efficient call management. After an inventory of 
practices and of learning demands, a customized 
workshop  was  organised  for  call  secretariat 
officers.  Another  matter  that  the  ERA-NETs 
tackle  best  together  is  the  analysis  of  costs 
and  benefits  of  joint  calls  and  assessments 
of  other  impact  indicators  for  evaluating  the 
success  of  their  work  in  coordination  and 
collaboration  between  national  programmes. 
Positioning  of  an  ERA-NET  action  in  relation 
to  other  coordination  initiatives  and  to  other 
type  of  networks  is  another  commonality  for 
overarching  discussions.  Existing  and  potential 
coordination  among  Member  State  public-to-
public initiatives (ERA-NET, ERA-NET Plus, JPI, Art 
185,  SCAR  WGs)  is  mapped  and  matchmaking 
organised.  PLATFORM  also  looks  into  linkages 
with private sector driven technology platforms, 
scientists driven research alliances, and the EIP 
on agriculture to bridge science, innovation and 
practice. 

Inspiration and Impact 

PLATFORM  organises  inspiring  and    animated 
workshops.  Briefing  documents  and  expert 
and  case  introductions  facilitate  well-informed 
discussions of which outcomes are reported. The 
legacy of this process is a set of recommendation 
documents  for  the  ERA-NET  community  and 
environment, for example on call management, 
cost/benefit indicators and collaboration of ERA-
NETs  and  other  stakeholders.  Some  activities 
are  co-organised  with  ERA-LEARN  and  JPIs  TO 
CO-WORK, to make the most of the synergies.

impact 

includes 

The  potential 
fast-track 
progress of new ERA-NETs, more collaborations 
between coordination networks, more coherence 
of strategies and practices, a higher visibility and 
appreciation of collaboration between Member 
States,  and  stronger  links  between  national 
programming  and  European-scale  coordinated 
programming. 

Meetings

2012

•	 1-2 February. Kick-off Project Meeting, The 

Hague.

•	 16 May.  Theme workshop  “Cost –  benefit 
of  ERA-NETs”,  organised  for  by  WP3  and 
ERA-LEARN for KBBE ERA-NETs, Berlin.

•	 26 

June. 

Interim  Project  Meeting, 

Copenhagen.

•	 26-27  June.  PLATFORM  First  Annual 

Workshop, Copenhagen.

2013

•	 14 March. Interim Project Meeting, Dublin.

•	 18-19  April.  PLATFORM  Second  Annual 
in  Actions  and 

Workshop:  ERA-NETs 
Interaction, Paris.

•	 17-18 

  June.  Master  Class  on  Call 

Management, Brussels.

2014

•	 15  January. 
Brussels.

Interim  Project  Meeting, 

•	 13-14  February.  PLATFORM  Third  Annual 
Workshop: ERA-NETs for the Future,  Leiden.

•	 Date to be decided. Workshop co-organised 
with  the  European  Innovation  Partnership 
‘Agricultural Productivity and Sustainability’ 

•	 October. Closing Project Meeting, Turin.

17

1

FP6 ERA-NET Actions

European Research Area Networks
of the 6th Framework Programme

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

Follow-on  
ERA-NET

From
To

2004-09-01
2010-08-31

CAPITA

Project reference

11784

Programme 
acronym

FP6 COORDINATION

Call identifier

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-B

Title

Coordination and cooperation in the field 
of applied catalysis – ERA-NET for applied 
catalysis in Europe

Contract type 

Coordination Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 710 000
€  2 706 403

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

12

Netherlands Organisation for Scientific 
research NWO, The Netherlands

Nico Kos
T +31 70 344 06 96
E capita@nwo.nl 

www.acenet.net; www.era-capita.eu

DE
DE
ES
FR
GR
IE

IT
NL
PL
PL

PT
UK

Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH
Ministry of Science and Innovation MICINN
National Centre for Scientific Research CNRS
General Secretariat for Research and Technology GSRT
Research Council for Science, Engineering and Technology 
IRCSET
Ministry of Education, Universities and Research MIUR-CIRCC
Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research NWO
Ministry of Science and Higher Education MSHE
Institute of Catalysis and Surface Chemistry of the Polish 
Academy of Sciences ICSC
Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council EPSRC

ACENET

Coordination and Cooperation in 
the Field of Applied Catalysis

Objective

Applied  catalysis  is  one  of  the  fundamental 
pillars  of  green  chemistry:  the  design  of 
chemical products and processes that reduce or 
eliminate the use and generation of hazardous 
substances. 

More than 80% of the processes in the chemical 
industry  depend  on  catalytic  technologies.  The 
design  and  application  of  new  catalysts  and 
catalytic systems are simultaneously achieving 
the dual goals of environmental protection and 
economic benefit. 

They have been ubiquitous enabling technologies 
behind  significant  economic  growth  in  recent 
years and are involved in products ranging from 
the  hydrogenisation  of  oils  and  fats,  catalytic 
cracking, plastics and polymers, petrochemicals 
to  low  temperature  laundry  products  etc.  The 
technology  markets 
catalytic  process  and 
amount to some EUR 15 billion.

Applied catalysis and new catalytic technologies 
will be very important for the sustainability and 
cost-efficiency of products and processes. They 
offer benefits such as clean, low hazard, waste 
free manufacturing of chemicals, polymers and 
pharmaceuticals,  the  utilization  of  biomass 
and  recycled  materials,  low  energy  household 
products, food manufacturing etc.

The ACENET ERA-NET brought together the most 
important  European  national  programmes  and 
funding schemes in this field. The objective was 

20

to  jointly  bring  a  transnational  dimension  and 
greater coherence between the various national 
research programmes and policies.

Consortium

The consortium consist of 12 partners from 10 
countries.

Mapping and scoping activities

The four year ERA-NET project was launched in 
2004 to develop a coherent vision and strategy 
for  applied  catalysis  focused  on 
industrial 
innovation.

It seeks to identify the gaps and requirements in 
knowledge and technology, develop a strategy to 
effectively address these challenges and, finally, 
to  promote  pan-European  implementation  of 
potential solutions.

As part of its work programme the ACENET ERA-
NET has set out to:

•	

•	

integrate  processes  between  the  national 
research funding organisations, as a result 
of sharing good practice and infrastructure;

increase efficiency in research by promoting 
interdisciplinary knowledge-sharing;

•	 provide a framework for the education and 
qualification  of  young  scientists  following 
an  inventory  of  real  and  genuine  training 
needs.

It aims to achieve this through:

•	

•	

•	

•	

the  systematic  exchange  of  information 
and good practices;

common  agreement  on,  and 
joint 
implementation of, efficient and effective 
joint management processes, mechanisms 
and procedures;

coordination  and  cooperation  between 
existing research programmes;

the formulation and establishment of new 
transnational  research  programmes  and 
initiatives;

•	

the  development  of  the  necessary  tools 

and  activities  for  communication  and 
information exchange;

•	

the  development  of  a  framework  for 
training 
a  European  education  and 
programme.

The  important  next  phase  for  ACENET  was 
to  analyse  available  roadmaps  and  define 
possible  technology  and  scientific  gaps,  and 
identify approaches to solutions. The consortium 
submitted a new ERA-NET project under the NMP 
work-programme  of  the  European  Commission 
Framework Programme 7 (FP7). The overall aim 
of  the  new  project  was  to  enhance  and  better 
structure coordination and cooperation between 
innovation-driven  research  programmes  in  the 
area of applied catalysis and related sustainable 
chemical research. This project was successfully 
evaluated and initiated under the name CAPITA 
ERA-NET  and  can  be  seen  as  the  continuation 
of ACENET.

Joint calls

First call 2007
Pilot call

The  pilot  ACENET  call  for  research  proposals, 
indicating  the  outcome  of  the  integration  for 
more than three years between eight European 
National  Funding  Agencies  in  this  area  was 
launched  in  May  2007  focusing  on  applied 
catalysis  and, 
‘Innovative, 
Sustainable  Catalytic  Processes  with  Improved 
Energy and Carbon Efficiency’.

in  particular,  on 

Six  research  projects  were  selected.  More 
than  EUR  4.5  million  of  national  funding  has 
been  made  available  to  these  projects  during 
their  three-year  duration.  Moreover,  ACENET 
handed over to CAPITA ERA-NET a well defined 
framework  of  calls  for  proposals,  already 
benchmarked  and  agreed  by  12  of  the  most 
important European stakeholders of the field. 

Projects funded:

1.  AL2OL  -  Alkanes  to  Light  Olefins  via 
Novel  Catalysts  and  Process  Schemes. 
Universität 
Technische 
Coordinator: 
München, Departement Chemie, Germany. 

2121

Participating  countries:  Germany,  Greece, 
Spain.

2.  HECA  BIO  -  Heterogeneous  Catalysis 
for  the  Conversion  of  Solid  Biomass 
into  Renewable  Fuels  and  Chemicals. 
Coordinator:  Laboratory  of  Environmental 
Fuels and Hydrocarbons, Chemical Process 
Engineering  Research  Institute,  centre  for 
Research  and  Technology  Hellas,  Greece. 
Participating  countries:  Greece,  Spain, 
France, The Netherlands.

3.  METACOOR  -  Methane  Activation  as  a 
Route to CO2 Remediation: The Integration 
of Dry Reforming into Fischer-Tropsch Fuel 
Production  Plants.  Coordinator:  ESCPE 
Lyon, CNRS, France. Participating countries: 
France, Germany, Spain.

4.  NUCAT 4HYDROGEN - Hydrogen from Bio-
Alcohols:  An  Efficient  Route  for  Hydrogen 
Production via Novel Reforming Catalysts. 
Coordinator:  Foundation  for  Research  & 
Technology-Hellas,  institute  of  Chemical 
Engineering & High Temperature Chemical 
Processes.  Participating  countries:  Greece, 
Poland, Spain.

5.  SIPROHY M - SImultaneous PROduction of 
HYdrogen  and  C2  Hydrocarbons  in  Solid 
Oxide  Membrane  Reactors.  Coordinator: 
Chemical  Process  Engineering  Research 
Institute, Centre for Research & technology 
Hellas,  Greece.  Participating  countries: 
Greece, The Netherlands, Spain, Portugal.

6.  SUBACA - Catalysis by Regenerable Super 
Bases.  Coordinator:  Institut  de  recherches 
sur  la  catalyse  et  lénvironnement  de 
Lyon,  Villeurbanne,  France.  Participating 
countries: France, The Netherlands, Spain.

Training and education

Another  main  target  of  ACENET  ERANET  has 
been  to  set  up  a  framework  and  describe  the 
content of a Training and Education Programme 
which would cover the educational needs of the 
European Research Area in the field of Applied 
Catalysis. The main concept was to base Applied 
Catalysis  Training  and  Education  Programme 
on  the  existing  training  possibilities  and  to 
develop  new  modules  as  well.  This  approach 
resulted in establishing a high level Programme 
researchers 
needs 
which  addresses 
aiming 
in  developing  academic  career  as 
well  as  researchers  interested  in  industrial  or 
entrepreneurial career.

of 

implementation  of 

The  pilot 
the  Applied 
Catalysis  Training  and  Education  Programme 
has taken place in four important events:

•	

•	

Integrated  Course  on  Catalysis  in  Poland, 
organised by the Institute of Catalysis and 
Surface  Chemistry,  Krakow,  26th  –  30th  
March 2007.

course 
Industrial  Catalytic  Processes 
organised by the University of Bath on April 
2007.

•	 School  on  Applied  Catalysis  entitled 
“Characterization  of  catalysts:  a  key  step 
in  the  development  and  utilisation  of 
innovative  catalytic  systems”  that  has 
been in Bari on June 3rd – 9th, 2007

•	 CLEAR summer school in Catalysis, held by 
EFCATS and ACENET under the auspices of 
CERTH, IDECAT and ERIC has been held on 
May 24 - 29, 2009, in Chalkidiki, Greece.

22

BiodivERsA 

An ERA-NET in biodiversity research

Objective

At  the  time  when  BiodivERsA  was  planned, 
many  scientists  and  international  bodies,  such 
as  the  Convention  on  Biological  Diversity,  the 
International  Union  for  Conservation  of  Nature 
or 
the  Millenium  ecosystem  assessment, 
considered  that  the  rate  of  species  extinctions 
was  accelerating.  There  is  now  clear  evidence 
that the rates of extinction of biological species 
are  dozens  to  hundreds  of  times  the  normal 
background rates. 

The  potential  impacts  of  biodiversity  loss  on 
ecosystem functioning are likely to have indirect 
impacts on the capacity of natural and managed 
ecosystems  to  deliver  ecological  goods  and 
services, such as food and fibre, carbon storage, 
soil  fertility,  nutrient  cycles  and  resistance  to 
environmental  change  as,  for  instance,  climate 
change.  Several  reviews  published  in  the  last 
years  support  this  likeliness,  stressing  that 
such losses, often incurred by human activities 
(habitat  loss  or  disturbance,  shifts  in  land-use, 
introduction of invasive species, etc.) will reduce 
nature’s  ability  to  maintain  ecological  status 
and  ecosystem  services.  Furthermore,  there  is 
growing  evidence  that  in  addition  to  cultural 
and  ethical  values,  the  biological  diversity 
and  abundance  of  species  is  a  major  factor 
impacting  processes  and  services  that  directly 
affect  humanity.  The  loss  of  biodiversity  and 
ecosystem  degradation  therefore  constitutes  a 
major  scientific  and  societal  challenge  of  our 
times. 

23

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To      

2005-05-01
2010-04-30

Follow-on ERA-NET BiodivERsA2

Project reference

517836

Programme 
acronym

FP6-COORDINATION

Call identifier

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-C

Title

An ERA-NET in biodiversity research

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 837 440
€  2 837 440

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

19

French National Institute for Agricultural 
Research INRA, France

Xavier Le Roux
T +33 631803820, 
E xavier.leroux@fondationbiodiversite.fr

www.biodiversa.org

AT
BE
DE

EE
FR
FR
FR
FR

Austrian Science Fund FWF
Federal Public Planning Service Science Policy BELSPO
Project Management Agency – part of the German Aerospace 
Centre PT-DLR
Estonian Science Foundation ETF
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA 
Foundation for Research on Biodiversity FRB
National Agency for Research ANR
Department of Ecology, Energy, Sustainable Development and 
Spatial Planning MEEDDAT

Environmental Protection Agency EPA until October 2006
Ministry of Education, University and Research MIUR
The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research NWO

HU Ministry of Environment and Water MEW
IE
IT
NL
NO Research Council of Norway RCN
NO European Science Foundation ESF
PT
ES
SE

Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
Ministry of Science and Innovation MICINN
Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural 
Sciences and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Swedish Environmental Protection Agency SEPA
Swedish Research Council VR
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs DEFRA
Natural Environment Research Council NERC

SE
SE
UK
UK

 
In order to address these challenges, adequate 
financial resources must be allocated to national 
and European biodiversity research programmes. 
In addition to the volume of investment, efficient 
transnational  cooperation  and  joint  actions 
are  needed  to  integrate  biodiversity  science 
at  national  and  international  levels,  which  are 
often the relevant scales at which these issues 
need to be addressed. 

BiodivERsA  contributes  to  creating  synergies 
between  teams  working  on  similar  topics,  thus 
avoiding  any  duplication  of  effort.  This  is  a 
gradual and continuous process, through which 
competitive research consortia can emerge and 
succeed better in the international context. 

Consortium

All  partners  in  BiodivERsA  have  a  national  or 
regional  responsibility  for  funding  biodiversity 
research. In  the consortium 15 European Union 
member  states  and  associated  countries  are 
represented through 21 partner organisations.

Mapping and scoping activities

The identification of priority thematic areas for 
collaboration  in  research  on  biodiversity  was 
a  strategic  step  in  the  development  of  this 
ERA-net.  This  activity  laid  the  groundwork  for 
defining  the  topic  of  a  joint  call  agreed  within 
the  BiodivERsA  consortium.  Priority  areas  for 
research  on  biodiversity  carried  out  in  the 
developing countries were also identified.

In  addition,  the  BiodivERsA  partners  have 
established  a 
internet-based 
searchable, 
database  giving  access  to  information  on  the 
majority  of  EU,  national  and  regional  funding 
programmes and funded projects for biodiversity 
research.  The  database  is  freely  accessible  by 
the public. The development of this tool implied 
work for gathering information in the appropriate 
format, as well as significant work on biodiversity 
science classification, in order to enable analysis 
of  the  data.  This  database  allows  scientists 
and  managers  to  search  funding  sources  and 
provides a fair view of the biodiversity research 

landscape in Europe.

This  ERA-net  created  synergies,  collaborative 
working  and  achieved  fruitful  convergence 
through building trust and developing a mutual 
culture between partners. It also allowed funding 
agencies  to  collate  existing  activities,  compare 
future  strategies  and  systematically  explore 
areas  of  opportunity  for  future  collaboration. 
This  effort  contributes  to  implementing  the  EU 
Biodiversity  Strategy  and  to  addressing  crucial 
scientific 
issues  to  manage  and  conserve 
biodiversity. 

Joint calls

First call 2008

call 

Pan-European 

The  BiodivERsA 
for 
international  research  projects  on  “Biodiversity: 
linking  scientific  advancement  to  policy  and 
practice” addressed the three following themes 
(across all ecosystems and organisms):

•	 Global change and biodiversity dynamics

•	

•	

Ecosystem functioning

Ecosystem services 

The budget was EUR 14.2 million.

Projects funded:

1.  BeFoFu  -  European  Beech  Forests  for  the 
Future  Ecological,  economical,  and  policy 
analysis  of  beech  forest  conservation 
the  Natura  2000  Network. 
under 
Coordinator: 
Albert-Ludwigs-Universität 
Freiburg (Germany). Participating countries: 
Germany,  United  Kingdom,  France,  The 
Netherlands, Austria

2.  BioMarks 

-  Biodiversity  of  Marine 
Eukaryotes.  Coordinator:  National  Centre 
for  Scientific  Research,  Station  Biologique 
de Roscoff (France). Participating countries: 
France, United Kingdom, Spain, Norway

to  Quantify 

3.  Climigrate  -  Integrating  Ancient  DNA  and 
Ecological  Modelling 
the 
Impact of Climate Change on Biodiversity. 
Coordinator: School of Biological Sciences, 
Royall  Holloway  University  of  London 
(United  Kingdom).  Participating  countries: 

24

United Kingdom, Sweden, Norway

4.  CLIMIT  -  CLimate  change  impacts  on 
Insects  and  their  MITigation.  Coordinator: 
for  Environmental 
Helmholtz  Centre 
Research  –  UFZ  (Germany).  Participating 
countries:  Germany,  United  Kingdom, 
France, Sweden

5.  CoForChange  -  How,  why  and  where  will 
tree  species  survive  increasing  pressure: 
providing  diagnosis  and  decision-making 
criteria  to  attenuate  the  effect  of  global 
change on biodiversity in the Congo basin 
forests. Coordinator: Centre for International 
Cooperation  in  Agronomic  Research  for 
Development CIRAD (France). Participating 
countries: France, United Kingdom

6.  Ecocycles  -  Interacting  impacts  of  land 
use  and  climate  changes  on  ecosystem 
to 
processes: 
concern. 
predators 
Coordinator:  University  of  Aberdeen. 
Participating  countries:  United  Kingdom, 
France, Spain, Norway

from  cyclic  herbivores 
conservation 
of 

7.  FIREMAN  -  Fire  management  to  maintain 
biodiversity  and  mitigate  economic  loss. 
Coordinator: University of Liverpool (United 
Kingdom).  Participating  countries:  United 
Kingdom, France, Spain, Sweden

8.  LinkTree  -  Linking  genetic  variability  with 

ecological  responses  to  environmental 
changes:  forest  trees  as  model  systems. 
Coordinator: 
(Spain). 
Participating  countries:  Spain,  France, 
Germany, Sweden

CIFOR-INIA 

on 

9.  PEATBOG  -  Pollution,  Precipitation  and 
Impacts 
Peatland 
Temperature 
Biogeochemistry. 
and 
Biodiversity 
Coordinator:  Manchester  Metropolitan 
University  (United  Kingdom).  Participating 
countries:  United  Kingdom,  Germany, 
Sweden, The Netherlands

10. RACE - Risk Assessment of Chytridiomycosis 
to  European  amphibian  biodiversity. 
Coordinator:  Imperial  College  of  London 
(United  Kingdom).  Participating  countries: 
United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain

and 

different 

11. TenLamas  -  The  value  of  Ecological 
Networks 
LAndscape 
Management  ApproacheS.  Coordinator: 
Museum  National  d’Histoire  Naturelle 
(France).  Participating  countries:  France, 
United Kingdom, Germany

in  managed 

12. VITAL  -  Ecosystem  service  provision  from 
coupled  plant  and  microbial  functional 
diversity 
grasslands. 
Coordinator:  National  Centre  for  Scientific 
Research,  Laboratory  of  Alpine  Ecology 
(France).  Participating  countries:  France, 
United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, Austria

25

CORE Organic 

Coordination of European 
Transnational Research in Organic 
Food and Farming

PROJECT DETAILS

Objective

Period

From
To       

2004-10-01
2007-09-30

Follow-on ERA-NET

CORE Organic II and CORE Organic Plus 
(under negotiation)

Project reference

11716

Programme 
acronym

FP6-COORDINATION

Call identifier

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-B

Title

Coordination of European Transnational 
Research in
Organic Food and Farming

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  1 200 060
€  1 200 060

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

13

Danish Research Centre for Organic Food 
and Farming, University of Aarhus DARCOF, 
Denmark

Niels Halberg (coordination)
Ulla Sonne Bertelsen (project management), 
T  +45 87 15 77 16
E Ulla.Bertelsen@icrofs.org

www.coreorganic.org

AT

CH
DE

DE
DK

Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water 
Management BMLFUW
Federal Office for Agriculture FOAG
Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection 
BMELV
Federal Agency of Agriculture and Food BLE
Danish Research Centre for Organic Food and Farming, 
University of Aarhus DARCOF
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 
Ministry of Agriculture MAAPAR
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA
Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF

FI
FR
FR
IT
NL Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ
NO Research Council of Norway RCN
SE

Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural 
Sciences and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs DEFRA

UK

The  overall  objective  of  CORE  Organic  is  to 
enhance the quality, relevance and utilisation of 
resources in European research in organic food 
and  farming  by  gathering  a  critical  mass  and 
establishing a joint research programme. 

The four specific objectives are:

1. 

Increased  exchange  of  information  and 
establishment  of  common,  open  web-
based archive. Initially, the project will carry 
out  mapping  and  analysing  of  existing 
research  programmes,  activities  and 
facilities in partner states. The information 
will  partly  be  used  for  establishing  web-
based  project  databases,  and  partly 
to  develop  the  open  access  archive  for 
research  documents  on  organic  food  and 
farming 
Besides 
(www.orgprints.org). 
databases and archives, an Internet portal 
with links to national and regional research 
programmes  and  other  issues  relevant  to 
research  in  organic  food  and  farming  will 
be established.

2.  Coordination  of  existing  research  and 
integration  of  knowledge.  A  thorough 
description  of  the  current  situation  in 
member  states  and 
institutions 
participating  in  organic  farming  research 
will  be  produced.  The  data  will  be  used 
for  identification  of  barriers,  gaps  and 
possibilities  for  increased  cooperation  as 
well as for identifying new research areas 
suitable for cooperation.

the 

26

3.  Sharing  and  developing  best  practice  for 
evaluating  organic 
research.  Objective 
three  will  focus  on  the  joint  development 
of best practice of evaluation and quality 
assurance  in  new  research  areas  within 
organic food and farming. For evaluation of 
projects and programmes, a set of criteria, 
as well as a list of excellent experts, will be 
developed.  Training  schemes  for  research 
personnel and experts will be developed.

4. 

Identification  and  coordination  of  future 
research.  A  list  of  prioritised  research 
topics and plans for future coordination will 
be  developed  and  a  range  of  procedures 
for  transnational  funding  will  be  agreed. 
By  the  end  of  the  project,  the  goal  is  to 
establish a joint research programme and 
a joint pool of at least three million euros 
per year for transnational research.

Consortium

The  CORE  ORGANIC  consortium  consists  of  13 
partners from 11 different countries.

Mapping and scoping activities

The  following  mapping  was  conducted:    a 
common  European  project  database  with 
ongoing  national  projects,  existing  research 
facilities, 
programmes, 
national  evaluation  criteria  and  procedures  for 
the construction and implementation of research 
programmes and projects.

research 

existing 

A common open source database, Organic Eprints, 
was established in order to systematically store 
data  on  programmes,  projects  and  facilities  in 
each participating country. The publication from 
the transnational projects can be found at www.
orgprints.org by browsing European Union, CORE 
Organic and the short name of the project.

The  mapping  and  description  of  existing 
research  programmes,  projects  and  facilities 
was  carried  out  through  the  collection,  check, 
and storage of all relevant information inorganic 
Eprints.  Country  reports  follow  a  standardised 
structure were made. Each report contained the 

27

  national 

history of organic farming research, explanation 
of the organisational structure and research set 
up, financial details about the different research 
research  facilities, 
programmes, 
national  procedures  for  initiation  of  research 
and  stakeholder  engagement,  call  procedures, 
utilisation  of  research  findings  and  national 
scientific education and research schools. Based 
on the reports, the first comprehensive European 
overview of the status quo of research in organic 
food and farming was published as a book. 

Joint calls

First call 2007
Pilot call

CORE  Organic  ERA-NET  launched  a  pilot  joint 
call in 2007. The topics were:

•	 Animal disease and parasite management, 
including 
health 
preventive 
improvement therapies to reduce reliance 
on antibiotics;

and 

•	 Quality  of  organic  food  —  health  and 

safety, and 

•	

Innovative  marketing 
strategies  — 
identification  of  successful  marketing 
methods, local markets. 

The budget was EUR 8.3 million. 

Projects funded: 

1.  AGTEC-ORG  -  Methods  to  improve  quality 
in organic wheat. Coordinator: ISARA-Lyon 
(France).  Participating  countries:  France, 
Austria, Switzerland, Denmark, Italy

2.  ANIPLAN - Planning for better animal health 
and  welfare.  Coordinator:    AU  (Denmark).  
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Austria, 
Switzerland, Italy, United Kingdom 

3.  FCP - How to communicate ethical values. 
Coordinator: 
(Germany). 
Uni-Kassel 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Austria, 
Switzerland, Italy, United Kingdom

4.  COREPIG - A tool to prevent diseases and 
parasites in organic pig herds. Coordinator: 
(Denmark).  Participating  countries: 
AU 
Denmark,  Austria,  Switzerland,  Germany, 
France, Italy, Sweden, United Kingdom

5. 

iPOPY  -  More  organic  food  for  young 
people.  Coordinator:  BIOFORSK  (Norway). 
Participating  countries:  Norway,  Denmark, 
Finland, Italy

of 

6.  PathOrganic  -  Assessing  and  Reducing 
Risks 
Contamination. 
Pathogen 
Coordinator:  BOKU  (Austria).  Participating 
countries:  Austria,  Switzerland,  Germany, 
Denmark, The Netherlands, Sweden

7.  PHYTOMILK  -  What  makes  organic  milk 
(Sweden). 

healthy?  Coordinator:  SLU 

Participating  countries:  Sweden,  Denmark, 
Finland, Norway

8.  QACCP  -    How  to  assure  safety,  health 
and sensory qualities of organic products. 
Coordinator: 
(Germany). 
Uni-Kassel 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Austria, 
Switzerland,  Denmark,  Finland,  France, 
Norway, Italy

The  projects  were  running  from  2007  to 
2011/12,  and  kick-off  and  mid-term  seminars 
were organised.

28

ERA-ARD 

The Agricultural Research for 
Development (ARD) dimension of 
the European Research Area (ERA) 

Objective

The ERA-ARD Agricultural Research Development 
project  is  focused  on  research  addressing  the 
agricultural  challenges  faced  by  developing 
countries.  Most  developing  countries  rely  on 
agriculture  as  the  engine  for  their  economic 
growth.  In  Africa,  for  example,  70%  of  the 
population  works,  directly  or  indirectly,  in  the 
agricultural sector, and agriculture accounts for 
35% of the gross national product and 40% of 
exports.  Agricultural  research  is  thus  a  critical 
element in fighting poverty and hunger in poor 
countries  and  also  in  promoting  sustainable 
development. 

Europe  also  faces  its  own  challenges  over 
agriculture,  food  chains,  food  safety,  animal 
health  and  welfare  etc.,  which  clearly  have  a 
global  dimension.  Many  EU  Member  States 
have  developed  specialist  scientific  expertise 
in  agricultural  R&D  and  give  support  through 
their  bilateral  and  multilateral  programmes. 
Together  with  the  European  Commission  they 
support the international research centres of the 
Consultative Group on International Agricultural 
Research (CGIAR), providing more than EUR 140 
million per year. 

Europe  has  a  strong  tradition  in  ARD  and  as 
many  as  10  000  scientists  are  involved  in 
projects in this field. But in EU Member States, 
the  responsibility  for  ARD  programme  planning 
and funding is often dispersed. One of the aims 
is to overcome this fragmentation by improving 
synergies  between  national  ARD  programmes.

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To      

2005-04-01
2009-12-31

Follow-on ERA-NET

ERA-ARD II

Project reference

517837

Programme 
acronym

FP6-COORDINATION

Call identifier

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-C

Title

The Agricultural Research for Development 
(ARD) dimension of the European Research 
Area (ERA)

Contract type 

Coordination (or networking) action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  3 536 234
€  3 452 582

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

15

French Agricultural Research Centre for 
International Development CIRAD

Christian Hoste 
E christian.hoste@cirad.fr

www.era-ard.org

AT

BE
CH

DE

Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and 
Water Management BMLFUW
Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Directorate DGOS
Federal Department of Foreign Affairs/Swiss Agency for 
Development and Cooperation SDC
Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture Consumer Protection 
BMELV

DK Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Department of Development 

ES

FR

Policy – Research Section DMFA
National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food 
Research INIA
Agricultural Research Centre for International Development 
CIRAD

FR Ministry of Higher Education and Research MESR
IT

Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Directorate General for 
Development Cooperation DGCS
Ministry of Agriculture – Rural Development Department ZUM

LT
NL Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ
PL Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development – Department 

of Science, Advisory Services and Agriculture MriRW
Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology  – Office 
for International Cooperation and EU Affairs MHEST
Department for International Development – Central Research 
Department DFID
Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems 
VINNOVA
Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural 
Sciences and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Forestry Commission FC
Scottish Enterprise Dumfries and Galloway SEDG

SI

UK

SE

SE

UK
UK

29

Mapping and scoping activities

Initial  efforts  of  the  programme  focused  on 
mapping  exercises.  A  4-page  document  was 
produced  by  country  as  well  as  a  synthesis 
which served as background documents for the 
2007 mid-term conference and were entered in 
the European information system InfoSys+. They 
were  updated  at  the  end  of  2009  and  three 
new  countries  (Finland,  Portugal  and  Turkey) 
contributed  to  the  exercise.  ARD  programmes 
funded  by 
these  17  European  countries 
represent around EUR 520 million each year. 

Based  on  these  results  and  contributions  of 
a  Southern  Advisory  Group  (SAG),  a  strategic 
vision for European ARD in 2025 was developed. 
This work paved the way to a more integrated 
and coordinated approach between agricultural 
research  for  Europe  and  European  agricultural 
research for developing and emerging countries. 
The  project  also  explored  ways  and  means 
to  increase  impact  of  European  ARD  on  the 
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The  project  developed  shared  methodologies 
and innovative approaches for ARD programmes 
management  (planning,  monitoring,  evaluation 
and  impact  assessment).  It  also  provided  a 
stronger coordination and cooperation between 
on-going ARD projects through the formulation 
and 
joint  activities  on 
“Agri-food  chain  Safety”  and  on  “Capacity 
Development” and by launching a transnational 
competitive call on “Bioenergy: an opportunity or 
threat for the rural poor”. 

implementation  of 

Consortium

The  ERA-ARD  consortium  consists  of  15 
organisations  from  14  different  European 
countries.

Joint calls

First call

and threats that bioenergy production poses for 
the rural poor in terms of food security, poverty 
alleviation  and 
rural  development  and  to 
investigate how bioenergy production influences 
land use and affects natural resources. 

ERA-ARD  partners  committed  a  total  of  over 
two  million  euros  into  funding  transnational 
bioenergy projects. 

Researchers and research consortia were invited 
to submit proposals addressing one or more of 
the following topics: 

•	 Bioenergy production and food security; 

•	 Bioenergy 

production 

and 

poverty 

alleviation and rural development; 

•	 Bioenergy production and natural resources 
(land, water, ecosystems, biodiversity). 

Projects funded:

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

in 

production 

 PROBIOFUEL  -  Prospects  for  sustainable 
biofuel 
developing 
countries:  A  Case  study  of  Kenya,  East 
Africa.  Coordinator:  University  of  Natural 
Resources and Applied Life Sciences BOKU 
(Austria).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Kenya, Hungary

-  Bioenergy 

in  Ukraine  – 
 BIOPLUS 
possibilities  of  rural  development  and 
communities. 
opportunities 
Coordinator: 
Building 
Mechanization  and  Electrification  of 
Agriculture, Warsaw (Poland). Participating 
countries: Poland, Lithuania, Ukraine

for 
Institute 

local 

for 

 BIODIESELFEED  -  Reduction  of  impact 
of  biofuel  production  to  food  stock. 
University 
Lithuanian 
Coordinator: 
of 
(Lithuania). 
Kaunas 
Participating  countries:  Lithuania,  Poland, 
Ukraine

Agriculture, 

 JATROPHABILITY - Impacts of tropical land 
use conversion to Jatropha and oil palm on 
rural  livelihoods  and  ecosystem  services 
in  India  and  Mexico.  Coordinator:  CABI, 
Wallingford (United Kingdom). Participating 
countries: United Kingdom, Belgium, Spain, 
Switzerland, Mexico, India

The  first  coordinated  call  under  the  ERA-ARD 
was to contribute to exploring the opportunities 

5. 

 Bioenergy  in  Africa–  Opportunities  and 
Risks  of  Jatropha  and  Related  Crops. 
Coordinator:  University  of  Bern,  Centre 

30

for  Development  and  Environment  CDE 
countries: 
(Switzerland). 

Participating 

Switzerland,  Netherlands,  Austria,  UK, 
Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Mexico, Belize

31

ERA-IB 

Towards an ERA in Industrial 
Biotechnology

Objective 

Industrial  Biotechnology  (IB)  is  the  modern 
use  and  application  of  biotechnology  for  the 
sustainable  processing  and  production  of 
chemicals, materials and fuels. It uses enzymes 
and  micro-organisms  to  make  products  in 
sectors such as chemistry, food and feed, paper 
and pulp, textiles and energy. 

This ERA-NET is a joint initiative of 22 research 
programme 
funding  and/or  management 
organisations  of  13  countries  with  important 
initiatives  in  the  field  of  IB.  In  all  of  the 
participating  countries  Industrial  Biotechnology 
(IB)  is  recognized  as  a  key  technology  for  a 
sustainable  chemical  industry  and  society  and 
of utmost importance for economic growth and 
innovation in Europe. 

IB,  although  already  successfully  established 
in some sectors, is still in its infancy. Therefore, 
more  in-depth  knowledge  derived  from  both 
basic as well as applied research, is necessary 
to  fully  explore  the  wide  range  of  possibilities. 
As national strategies and activities in this area 
are currently being developed and implemented, 
it is now the moment for effective coordination 
and cooperation in Europe. 

The partners of this ERA-IB committed themselves 
to enhanced cooperation and coordination in IB 
research  funding  and  management  policies. 
The  structured  work  programme  includes  the 
development  of  dedicated  procedures  and 
systems  for  coordination  and  integration  of 

32

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2006-05-01
2011-12-31  

Follow-on ERA-NET ERA-IB 2

Project reference

035581

Programme 
acronym

FP6-COORDINATION

Call identifier

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-E

Title

Towards an ERA in Industrial Biotechnology

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 513 644
€  2 513 644

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

22

The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific 
Research NWO, The Netherlands

Mark Schmets
E m.schmets@nwo.nl

www.era-ib.net

Belgium Science Policy Office BelSPO
Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH
Agency for Renewable Resources FNR
Saxon State Ministry for the Environment and Agriculture SMUL

BE
DE
DE
DE
DE
DK Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish 

Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation DASTI

ES Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness MINECO
Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECyT)
ES
Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation TEKES
FI
FR
French Environment and Energy Management Agency ADEME
HR Ministry of Science, Education and Sports of the Republic of 

Croatia MSES
Chief Scientist Office, Ministry of Health CSO-MOH
Ministry of Science, Culture and Sport MOST
The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research NWO

IL
IL
NL
RO National Centre for Programme Management CNMP
PL Ministry of Science and Higher Education MSHE
PL
PL
PT
UK

Lodz University of Technology TUL
National Centre for Research and Development  NCBiR
Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
Department of Trade and Industry DTI, later Department for 
Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform BERR
University of York UoY
Technology Strategy Board TSB

UK
UK

national  programmatic 
research  activities, 
identification  of  important  themes  for  new 
research  programmes,  and  creation  of  (new) 
transnational  managed  research  programmes 
(including joint calls for proposals). In selecting 
the  most  important  research  themes  for  these 
jointly  managed  research  programmes,  the 
ERA-IB  closely  cooperates  with  the  European 
Technology  Platform  for  Sustainable  Chemistry 
and the European Federation for Biotechnology 
(EFB). The ultimate goal of ERA-IB is to establish 
a network that will serve as a basis for a long 
in 
lasting  European 
Industrial Biotechnology.

research  cooperation 

Consortium

In  the  ERA-NET  “Towards  an  ERA  in  Industrial 
Biotechnology”  partners  from  13  different 
countries joined forces to reduce fragmentation 
of  national  research  efforts  in  the  area  of 
Industrial Biotechnology (IB), 22 partners and five 
observers  from  13  states  decided  to  organize 
the network ERA-IB within the ERA-NET scheme. 
Observer  organisations  are:  IB  Section  Italian 
Technology  Platform  for  Sustainable  Chemistry 
IT-Suschem (Italy), Ministry of Higher Education, 
Science  and  Technology  MHEST  (Slovenia), 
Swedish  Governmental  Agency  for  Innovation 
System VINNOVA (Sweden), Research Council of 
Norway RCN (Norway) Deutsche Bundesstifting 
Umwelt DBU (Germany).

Mapping and scoping activities

The  preparations  for  the  joint  call  started  in 
2007.  The  partners  of  ERA-IB  investigated 
the  possibilities  of  how  national  and  regional 
funding  programmes  and  procedures  could  be 
integrated  in  such  a  way  that  they  could  be 
commonly  executed.  In  addition  ERA-IB  invited 
stakeholders  from  both  the  academic  and 
industry sectors to discuss the topics that should 
be addressed in the 1st Joint Call. The result of 
this was a list of 11 topics which was used for 
both 1st and 2nd Joint Call.
With  the  joint  calls  ERA-IB  also  aimed  at 
establishing cross-border partnerships between 
industrial  and  academic  IB  research,  improving 

technology 

and  accelerating 
transfer,  and 
strengthening  European  efforts  to  achieve 
sustainable industrial development. These goals 
were  achieved  by  implementing  common  calls 
for transnational R&D projects. The transnational 
collaboration on research as well as on funding 
level  contributed 
the  still 
fragmented  European  Industrial  Biotechnology 
funding landscape.

to  strengthen 

Joint calls

First call 2008

first 

Europe’s 

launched 

ERA-IB 
jointly 
for  project 
transnational  call 
coordinated, 
proposals  in  Industrial  Biotechnology,  entitled: 
“Industrial  biotechnology 
for  Europe:  an 
integrated  approach”  in  February  2008.  The 
1st joint call of ERA-IB provides academic and 
industrial  researchers  to  establish  cross-border 
partnerships in industrial biotechnology research. 
Out of the 32 applications, eight projects were 
selected  for  funding.  The  total  granted  budget 
is EUR 9.7 million. In all, 51 research groups in 
academia  and  industry  were  funded,  and  an 
additional  seven  partners  participate  with  own 
funding.  The  projects  will  run  at  least  three 
years.

Projects funded:

1.  BioProChemBB  -  Bio-based  production  of 
chemical building blocks: Corynebacterium 
glutamicum  as  a  platform  for  new  and 
efficient 
Coordinator: 
Institute of Microbiology and Biotechnology, 
University of Ulm (Germany). Participating 
countries: Germany, Spain, France, Portugal, 
The Netherlands

bioprocesses. 

2.  Eng  Biocat  -  Implementing  an  Enzyme 
Engineering  Technology  Platform 
for 
the  provision  of  tailor-made  enzymes 
for  biocatalytic.  Coordinator: 
c-LEcta 
GmbH  (Germany).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, The Netherlands, Finland, Spain, 
Denmark

3.  EPOS  -  Enzyme  Production  in  Optimized 
Streptomyces. Coordinator: Leiden Institute 
of  Chemistry,  Leiden  University 
(The 
Netherlands).  Participating  countries:  The 

33

Netherlands, Spain, Belgium, France

Projects funded:

4.  ERA-NOEL  -  Novel  enzyme  tools  for 
production  of  functional  oleochemicals 
lipids.  Coordinator: 
from  unsaturated 
VTT  Valtion  Teknillinen  Tutkimuskeskus 
(Finland).  Participating  countries:  Finland, 
The  Netherlands,  Germany,  Portugal, 
Denmark

5. 

the 

Integrated,  multi-host 
IMAPPROT 
- 
approach  for 
improved  microbial 
production  of  high  quality  therapeutic 
enzymes  and  proteins.  Coordinator: 
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) 
(Spain).  Participating  countries:  Spain, 
Finland, Italy, Austria

6.  POPCORN 

- 

Targeting 

population 
heterogeneity  at  microscale  for  robust 
fermentation  processes. 
  Coordinator: 
Center 
for  Microbial  Biotechnology, 
Technical University of Denmark (Denmark). 
Participating  countries:  Denmark,  The 
Netherlands, Belgium

7.  PUBB  -  Production  and  Upgrading  of 
2,3-Butanediol from Biomass. Coordinator: 
Johann  Heinrich  von  Thunen-Institute 
Institute  of  Agricultural  Technology  and 
Biosystems 
(Germany). 
Engineering 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Poland, 
Spain, Belgium

8.  VOC 

lignin 

reduction  of 

containing 
materials  - 
Improvement  of  strength 
properties  and  reduction  of  emission  of 
volatile  organic  compounds  by  enzymatic 
modification 
containing 
biopolymers  and  composites.  Coordinator:  
Saxon  Institute  for  Applied  Biotechnology 
(SIAB)  (Germany).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, Spain, Belgium, Poland, Finland

lignin 

of 

Second call 2010

The 2nd Joint Call of ERA-IB provides academic 
and  industrial  researchers  to  establish  cross-
border  partnerships  in  industrial  biotechnology 
research. Out of the 46 applications, 10 projects 
were  selected  for  funding.  The  total  granted 
budget is EUR 11.1 million. The projects will run 
at least three years.

34

1.  BioSurf  -  Novel  Production  Strategies  for 
Biosurfactants.  Coordinator:  Fraunhofer-
der  
Gesellschaft 
Angewandten  Forschung  e.V.  (Germany).  
Participating countries: Germany, Belgium, 
France

Förderung 

zur 

2.  ChitoBioEngineering 

- 

Enzyme 

Engineering 

Metabolic 
and 
the 
for 
Biotechnological  Production  of  Partially 
Coordinator: 
Acetylated 
Chitosans. 
Wilhelms-Universität 
Westfälische 
Münster (Germany). Participating countries: 
Germany, Spain, Belgium

3.  GenoDrug  -  Genome  mining  for  drug 
discovery: Activation of silent biosynthetic 
clusters.  Coordinator:  Eberhard 
gene 
Karls  Universität  Tübingen 
(Germany). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Spain, 
Poland, Finland

4. 

-  Robust 

fermentation 
IMMUNOTEC 
production  of  tacrolimus  and 
related 
immunosuppressors:  Molecular  genetics 
and  metabolic  engineering  to  construct  a 
by-product free superproducer. Coordinator: 
INBIOTEC  Instituto  de  Biotecnología  de 
León (Spain). Participating countries: Spain, 
Germany, Portugal

5. 

[INTACT]  -  Integral  Engineering  of  Acetic 
Acid Tolerance in Yeast. Coordinator: Delft 
University of Technology (The Netherlands). 
Participating  countries:  The  Netherlands, 
Portugal, Germany, Spain

6.  MESIAB  -  Multi  enzyme  systems  involved 
in  astin  biosynthesis  and  their  use  in 
heterologous astin production. Coordinator: 
Technische Universität Dresden (Germany). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  The 
Netherlands, France, Finland

7.  MicroTechEnz - Microreactor technology for 
continuous  enzymatic  reactions  catalysed 
by C-C-bond forming enzymes. Coordinator: 
University of Zagreb (Croatia). Participating 
countries: Croatia, Germany, Spain

8.  ProAChIm  -  Combining  efforts  in  enzyme 
and process engineering to improve access 
to  multifunctional  chiral 
intermediates. 
Coordinator:  Freiberg  University  of  Mining 
and  Technology  (Germany).  Participating 
The 
countries: 

Germany, 

Poland, 

Netherlands, Portugal

9.  Products from lignocellulose - Development 
of  a  process  for  the  utilization  both  the 
lignin  content 
carbohydrate  and 
from  lignocellulosic  materials  of  annual 
plants  for  the  production  of  valuable 
products.  Coordinator:  Saxon 
Institute 
for  Applied  Biotechnology  at  the  Leipzig 

the 

(Germany). 

University 
Participating 
countries: Germany, Finland, Romania, The 
Netherlands

10. Pseudomonas 2.0 - industrial biocatalysis 
using living cells. Coordinator: TU Dortmund 
University 
Participating 
countries:  Germany,  The  Netherlands, 
Croatia, Spain

(Germany). 

35

ERA-NET BIOENERGY 

Establish a structural cooperation 
between national bioenergy RTD 
programmes aiming at: cost 
efficiency, improved quality and 
accelerated development

Objective

The  EU’s  energy  strategy  sets  out  to  replace 
12%  of 
total  energy  consumption  with 
renewable sources such as bioenergy by 2010. 
Bioenergy  is  a  form  of  energy  that  could  bring 
many benefits to the developing as well as the 
developed  world.  The  biomass  used  to  create 
bioenergy  or  biofuels  is  abundant  in  many 
countries,  especially  in  the  form  of  agricultural 
by-products.  Growing  bioenergy  crops  can 
give  a  boost  to  rural  economies,  providing  an 
alternative  market  for  existing  crops.  Biomass 
also  has  the  advantage  that  it  can  be  mixed 
in with other fuel sources. As an energy source 
biomass is nearly ‘CO2 neutral’.

for 

launched 

transnational  cooperation 

initial  50-month  ERA-NET  Bioenergy 
The 
programme  which  was 
in  2004 
sets  out  to  develop  a    sustainable,  long-term 
platform 
in 
bioenergy research across the EU. Across Europe 
there are many national and regional bioenergy 
research programmes which have been working 
independently,  driven  by  the  potential  benefits 
of bioenergy and renewable energy sources.

The  ERA-NET  Bioenergy  project  is  focused  on 
developing  structured  cooperation  between 
national bioenergy research programmes in the 
EU  Member  States.  Its  mission  is  to  enhance 
the quality and cost-effectiveness of European 
bioenergy research programmes and encourage 
the development of new transnational research 
projects.

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2004-10-01
2010-12-31  

Follow-on ERA-NET

Self-funding from 2011

Project reference

515738

Programme 
acronym

FP6-COORDINATION

Call identifier

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-B

Title

Establish a structural cooperation between 
national bioenergy RTD programmes aiming 
at: cost efficiency, improved quality and 
accelerated development

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 651 593
€  2 651 593

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

15

Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ - Agency NL 
The Netherlands

Kees Kwant  
T +31 (0)88-6022458 
E kees.kwant@agentschapnl.nl 
Matté Brijder 
T +31 (0)88-6027954 
E matte.brijder@agentschapnl.nl

Website

www.eranetbioenergy.net

Participants until 2011

AT
AT
AT
DK
FI
FR
DE

Austrian Research Promotion Agency FFG
Austrian Energy Agency AEA
Federal Ministry of Transport, Innovation and Technology BMVIT
Energinet.dk
Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation TEKES
French Environment and Energy Management Agency ADEME
Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection 
BMELV
Agency for Renewable Resources FNR
Sustainable Energy Authority Ireland SEI
National Centre for Research and Development  NCBiR

DE
IE
PL
NL Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ
NL
SE
UK
UK

Agency NL  (formerly SenterNovem)
Swedish Energy Agency SWEA
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council EPSRC
Department of Trade and Industry DTI

Participants self-funded

AT
AT
DE
IE
PL
NL
SE
UK
UK

Austrian Research Promotion Agency FFG
Federal Ministry of Transport, Innovation and Technology BMVIT
Agency for Renewable Resources FNR
Sustainable Energy Authority Ireland SEAI
National Centre for Research and Development NCBiR
Agency NL (formerly SenterNovem)
Swedish Energy Agency SWEA
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council BBSRC
Technology Strategy Board TSB

36

 
A further focus of the Bioenergy programme is 
to  enhance  the  complementarity  and  synergy 
between  Community  actions 
undertaken 
under  the  EU’s  Framework  Programme  and 
those  of  other  European  scientific  cooperation 
organisations, such as COST, EUREKA, etc. Over 
the first four years of operation the programme 
has  developed  ‘cooperation  models’  for  both 
short  and  long  term  projects  which  take  into 
account  the  legal  aspects,  selection  criteria, 
evaluation  methods,  financial  support  and 
monitoring methods.

Gaps  have  been  identified  in  research,  and 
opportunities  for  interdisciplinary  work  have 
been  pinpointed.  A  platform  has  been  created 
for  information  exchange  between  programme 
managers and pilots of transnational bioenergy 
research in joint work programmes.

the  effectiveness  and  gained 
To  ensure 
experience 
in  the  cooperation  models  the 
programme  has  been  extended  for  two  more 
years  with  EC  funding  until  31st  December 
2010.  After  this  EU  funded  period  six  partners 
decided to continue the work on a self-funded 
basis which is intended to last for 2015. In 2013  
two more partners joined the consortium. 

Consortium

The  ERA-NET  Bioenergy  consortium  consists 
of  organisations  that  finance  or  manage 
national  or  regional  research  activities  with 
respect  to  bioenergy.  The  ERA-NET  Bioenergy 
consortium  combines  the  basic  elements  of 
RTD  programmes  for  a  successful  bioenergy 
development  of  all  participating  countries. 
All  consortium  partners  are  key  players  in  the 
stimulation  of  research  activities  in  this  field. 
Their  involvement  in  the  consortium  enables 
the  ERA-NET  Bioenergy  project  to  combine 
national  policy  makers  and  policy  executing 
organisations  of  different  European  countries 
to  learn  from  each  other  and  research  the 
possibilities of coordination and cooperation of 
RTD programmes. The involvement of all three 
elements (ministries,  agencies, programmes) is 
essential for the project. There were 15 countries 
participating in the ERA-NET Bioenergy network 
until  31  December  2010.  The  self-funded 

consortium from 2011 consists of eight partners 
(from the Netherlands Germany, Austria, Ireland, 
Poland, Sweden and the UK) and four observers: 
Energinet.dk (Denmark), Finnish Funding Agency 
for  Technology  and  Innovation  TEKES  (Finland), 
French  Environment  and  Energy  Management 
Agency  ADEME  (France)  and  Engineering  and 
Physical  Sciences  Research  Council  EPSRC 
(United Kingdom).

Mapping and scoping activities

•	 Create  a  structure  for  cooperation  and 

systematic information exchange;

•	

Identify areas of common strategic interest 
for  collaboration  by  networking  national 
RTD programmes;

•	 Develop a workable model of cooperation 

between the partners;

•	 Set  up  pilots  of  joint  work  packages  and 

learn from these projects;

•	 Develop  national  political  support  and 
expand the collaboration by dissemination 
of results.

The  involvement  of  high  level  management 
from each of the ERA-NET partners helps ensure 
that the project results will become embedded 
in national research policies.

Joint calls

First call 2006
Pilot call

The first pilot joint call for proposals on the topic 
“Small Scale Combustion” was launched at the 
beginning of March 2006. The process resulted 
in  five  funded  projects  with  a  total  granted 
support of EUR 1.7 million  (total project costs: 
EUR  2.1  million)  provided  by  the  participating 
countries Sweden, Austria, Germany, Finland and 
the United Kingdom.

Projects funded:

1.  Development  of  Test  Methods  for  Non 
Wood  Small-Scale  Combustion  Plants. 
Coordinator:  University  of  Nottingham 

37

 
(United  Kingdom).  Participating  countries: 
Austria, Germany, Sweden and Finland 

2.  BIOMASS-PM 

- 

Clean 

Biomass 
Residential  Heating: 
in 
Combustion 
Particulate  Measurements, 
Sampling 
and  physicochemical  and  Toxicological 
Characterization.  Coordinator:  Austrian 
(Austria). 
Bioenergy 
Participating  countries:  Finland,  Germany, 
Austria, Sweden

Center 

GmbH 

3.  Combustion  Characteristics  of  Ash  Rich 
Pellets - Evaluation of technology for small 
scale  combustion  of  pellets  from  new 
ash  rich  biomasses  regarding  combustion 
technology  and  emission  reduction 
in 
special  case  particulate  matter  and  NOx. 
Coordinator: University of Kuopio (Finland). 
Participating  countries:  Sweden,  Finland, 
Germany

4.  Small  Scale  Biomass-Fired  CHP  Systems 
University 
Coordinator: 
of 
(Sweden). 
Participating  countries:  United  Kingdom, 
Germany

Agricultural 

Sciences 

Swedish 

5.  COPECOM  -  Control  Potential  of  Different 
Operating  Methods  in  Small-Scale  Wood 
Pellet  Combustion.  Coordinator:  Tampere 
University 
(Finland). 
Participating countries: Finland, Sweden 

Technology 

of 

Technology  Group  BTG  (The  Netherlands). 
Participating  countries:  The  Netherlands, 
Sweden 

2.  EMF  -  Mop  Fan  and  Electrofilter:  an 
innovative  approach  to  cleaning  product 
gasification. 
biomass 
gases 
Coordinator: 
Universität 
Technische 
Berlin  (Germany).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, United Kingdom

from 

3.  Synclean  - 

Intensification  of  Syngas 
Cleaning  and  Hydrogen  Separation. 
Coordinator: Institut für Mikrotechnik Mainz 
GmbH  (Germany).  Participating  countries: 
United Kingdom, Germany

4.  Tar 

removal 

low-temperature 
from 
gasifiers.  Coordinator:  Energy  Research 
Centre ECN (The Netherlands). Participating 
countries: The Netherlands, Denmark

5.  Energy  efficient  selective  reforming  of 
hydro  carbons.  Coordinator:  Chalmers 
University 
Participating 
countries: Sweden, Denmark

(Sweden). 

6.  OptiBtLGas 

- 

of 

Gas 

Product 

Cleaning 

and 
from 
treatment 
biomassgasifiersoptimisation of the H2:CO 
- ratio in synthesis gases for the production 
of  2nd  generation  biofuels.  Coordinator: 
CU  Tec  Institut  (Germany).  Participating 
countries: Germany, Austria

Second call 2007

Third call 2008

The  second  joint  call  within  the  framework 
of  ERA-NET  Bioenergy  was  the  Joint  Call 
Gasification: cleaning and treatment of product 
gas  from  biomass  gasifiers.  This  call  was 
launched on 1st June 2007 and was specifically 
for the topic: treatment and cleaning of product 
gas  from  biomass  gasifiers.  Six  Projects  were 
funded with a total granted support of EUR 3.7 
million    (total  project  costs:  EUR  4.6  million), 
provided by the participating countries Sweden, 
Germany,  the  Netherlands,  United  Kingdom, 
Denmark and Austria.

Projects funded:

1.  Development 
detection 
measurement 
concentrations. 

technique 

of  a  photoionization-
on-line 
for 
tar 
biomass 
Biomass 

of 
Coordinator: 

On  2nd  January  2008,  the  Joint  Call  on  Short 
Rotation Coppice (woody species) was launched 
within the framework of ERA-NET Bioenergy. The 
call  aims  to  generate  joint  European  research 
and development activities and focuses on three 
topics: 

•	

•	

•	

Genetic  improvement  of  Salix  and  other 
woody SRC species 

Improving the value chain of SRC

Environmental aspects of SRC

Three projects were funded with a total granted 
support  of  EUR  2.2  million  (total  project  costs: 
EUR  2.7  million),  provided  by  the  participating 
countries  Germany,  France,  Sweden,  Austria, 
United Kingdom.

38

Projects funded:

countries: Austria, Finland, France, Sweden

1.  CREFF  -  Cost  reduction  and  efficiency 
improvement  of  Short  Rotation  Coppice. 
Coordinator:  INRA  (France).  Participating 
countries: France, Germany, Austria 

2.  RATING-SRC  -  Reducing  environmental 
impacts  of  SRC 
through  evidence-
based  integrated  decision  support  tools. 
Coordinator: Rothamstad Research (United 
Kingdom).  Participating  countries:  United 
Kingdom, Sweden

3.  BREDNet-SRC 

- 

Towards 

targeted 
breeding  of  a  European  SRC  willow  crop 
for  diverse  environments  and  future 
climates.  Coordinator:  Swedish  University 
(Sweden). 
of 
Participating  countries:  Sweden,  Germany, 
United Kingdom

Agricultural 

Sciences 

Fourth call 2009

ERA-NET  Bioenergy  launched  on  9th  February 
2009 the joint call on Clean Biomass Combustion 
Clean  Biomass  Combustion  is  a  sustainable 
way  to  ensure  a  renewable  energy  supply  and 
improved air quality. It is also a prerequisite for 
a significant extension of biomass use for power 
and heat production. The call aims to generate 
joint  European 
research  and  development 
activities and focused on four topics: 

•	 Modelling of the combustion process 

•	 Advanced  characterisation  and  relevant 

standardisation of biofuels 

•	

Technology  development  for  fine  particle 
and NOx reduction (< 20 MWth)

•	 Health  effects  of  small  scale  combustion 

(< 3 MWth)

Four projects were funded with a total granted 
support  of  EUR  6.1  million  (total  project  costs: 
EUR  8.5  million),  provided  by  the  participating 
countries  Austria,  Germany,  Sweden,  Poland, 
Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland. 

2.  BIOMODELLING  –  Advanced  Biomass 
Combustion  Modelling  for  Clean  Energy 
Production.  Coordinator:  Czestochowa 
University 
(Poland). 
Participating  countries:  Finland,  Poland, 
Sweden 

Technology 

of 

3. 

FUTUREBIOTEC  –  Future  low  emission 
biomass combustion systems. Coordinator: 
Bioenergy  2020+  (Austria).  Participating 
countries:  Austria,  Germany,  Denmark, 
Finland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Sweden

4.  SCITOBICOM  –  Scientific  tools  for  fuel 
characterization  for  clean  and  efficient 
biomass 
Coordinator: 
Technical University of Denmark (Denmark). 
Participating  countries:  Austria,  Denmark, 
Norway, Finland

combustion. 

Two  other  proposals,  which  were  included 
in  the  originally  submitted  proposals,  were 
implemented  through  funding 
subsequently 
support  outside  of 
formal  ERA-NET 
Bioenergy process. 

the 

Projects funded:

1.  EN-PME-TEST – Common European method 
for the determination of particulate matter 
emissions of solid fuel burning appliances 
and boilers. Coordinator: Bioenergy 2020+ 
(Austria).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Switzerland,  Germany,  Denmark,  Finland, 
France, Sweden

2.  BRAN  BLENDING  -  Development  of  a 
low  emission  standardized  biomass  fuel 
from  bran.  Coordinator:  Austria  Research 
Institute  for  Chemistry  and  Technology 
(Austria).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
France, Sweden

Fifth call 2010

Joint  Call  between  ERA-NET  Bioenergy  and 
WoodWisdom-Net.

Projects funded:

1.  BIOHEALTH – Health effects of particulate 
emissions  from  small  scale  biomass 
combustion.  Coordinator:  University  of 
(Finland).  Participating 
Eastern  Finland 

The Joint Call: Sustainable forest management 
and  optimised  use  of  lignocellulosic  resources 
-  Bridging  gaps  between  research  disciplines, 
producers, consumers and society was launched 
15th September 2010. 

39

Call topics: 

1. 

Forest  for  multiple  needs  of  society, 
including  enhanced  productivity  and 
optimised use of forest feedstock.

2.  Advanced  products  and 

technologies 
for  primary  wood  processing  and 
manufacturing  of  wood  and  fibre-based 
products.

3.  Advanced biofuels and biorefineries.

The  total  public  funding  of    EUR  18.5  million 
for  the  call  is  provided  by  the  19  participating 
national  funding  organisations  from  Finland, 
France,  Germany,  Ireland,  Italy,  Latvia,  Norway, 
Poland, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey and the 
United Kingdom.

Under  this  joint  call  13  projects  of  ERA-NET 
Bioenergy  and  WoodWisdom-Net  2  started  in 
early 2012. 

Projects funded: 

1.  Cell-Assembly 

-  Self-Assembled  Bio-
mimetic  Wood-Based  Nanocomposites. 
Coordinator:  Aalto  University 
(Finland). 
Participating  countries:  Finland,  Germany, 
Sweden 

2.  LBTGC  -  Load  Bearing  Timber-Glass 
Composite 
Coordinator: 
Structures. 
Vienna  University  of  Technology  (Austria). 
Participating  countries:  Austria,  Sweden, 
Germany, Turkey, Slovenia, China, Brazil

3.  RegioPower - A regional IT-based platform 
for bringing resource needs and land-based 
resource  production  together.  Coordinator: 
of 
Technology 
Dresden 
(Germany). 
countries: 
Participating 
Germany, Sweden, Finland, Slovenia, China

University 

4.  WoodApps - Improvement in collaboration 
along  the  wood  value  chain  through 
knowledge-based  methods  and  mobile 
applications. 
Research 
Association  High  Competence  Network 
(Germany). 
countries: 
Participating 
Germany, Slovenia, Sweden, Ireland

Coordinator: 

5.  WOP -  WoodSupply. Coordinator: University 
of Helsinki (Finland). Participating countries: 
Finland, Sweden, Germany

6.  GREASE  -  A  novel 

sustainable  bio-based  products 

lipid  platform  to 
from 

low-value forestry streams through multi-
functional  fatty  acids.  Coordinator:  VTT 
Technical  Research  Centre  of  Finland 
(Finland).  Participating  countries:  Finland, 
Sweden, Germany, Italy, Turkey

7.  BIOFOAMBARK 

- 

Valorization 
Bark 
into 
insulating  Foams  and  Bioenergy. 
Coordinator:  Institute  of  Forest  Utilization 
and  Works  Science,  University  of  Freiburg 
(Germany). 
countries: 
Participating 
Germany, Finland, France, Slovenia, Spain, 
Italy

8.  PowerBond  -    Enhancement  of  Fiber  and 
Bond  Strength  Properties  for  Creating 
Added Value in Paper Products. Coordinator: 
Tampere  University 
Technology 
(Finland).  Participating  countries:  Finland, 
Germany, France, Sweden, Austria

of 

9.  ProLignin - High-value products from lignin 
side-steams  of  modern  Biorefineries. 
Coordinator: VTT Technical Research Centre 
of Finland (Finland). Participating countries: 
Finland,  Latvia,  Germany, 
Italy,  Spain, 
Norway, United States, Brazil

10. WOBAMA  -  Wood  Based  Materials  and 
Fuels.  Coordinator:  Kungliga  Tekniska 
Högskolan 
Participating 
(Sweden). 
countries: Finland, Sweden, France, Poland

11. AgroCop  -  Maximizing  Timber  and  Energy 
Wood Production by Innovative Agroforestry 
Systems  with  Short  Rotation  Coppice 
as 
Intercrop.  Coordinator:  FVA  Baden-
(Germany).  Participating 
Württemberg 
countries: Germany, France, Ireland, United 
Kingdom, Italy

12. PINOBIO  -  Pinosylvins  as  novel  Bioactive 
Agents for Food Applications. Coordinator: 
University  of  Eastern  Finland  (Finland). 
Participating  countries:  Finland,  Slovenia, 
Latvia, Spain

13. COOL - COMPETING USES OF FOREST LAND 
– The future of integrative and segregative 
policy and forest management approaches 
in  Europe.  Coordinator:  Institute  of  Forest 
and Environmental Policy (IFP)/University of 
Freiburg (Germany). Participating countries: 
Finland, Germany, Norway, Slovenia, Spain

40

Sixth call 2012

The 6th ERA-NET Bioenergy joint call on Biogas 
and  Energy  Crops  was  launched  on  1st  March 
2012  and  will  support  transnational  research 
and development projects in areas ranging from 
energy plant breeding to biogas upgrading. 

Call topics: 

•	

Innovative biogas production. Focal points 
include  e.g.  pre-treatment  technologies, 
unexploited 
substrates,  measurement/
control,  upgrading,  management  of 
digestate.

•	 Sustainable biomass for energy purposes. 
Focal  points 
include  e.g.  optimisation 
of  existing  and  new  crops  by  way  of 
plant  breeding  or  cultivation  techniques, 
breeding  and  cultivation  for  cascading 
uses, harvesting/storage technologies.

Four projects were funded with a total granted 
support  of  EUR  4.3  million  (total  project  costs: 
EUR  6.6  million)  provided  by  the  participating 
countries Sweden, Poland, Germany, Ireland and 
the United Kingdom. 

Funded projects:

1.  SE  Biomethane  -  Small  but  efficient  – 
Cost  and  Energy  efficient  BioMethane 
Production. Coordinator: Swedish University 
(Sweden). 
of 

Agricultural 

Sciences 

Participating  countries:  Germany,  Sweden, 
Poland

2.  ORNATE  -  Optimisation  of  Reed  Canary 
Grass  as  a  native  European  Energy  Crop. 
Coordinator: IBERS Aberystwyth University 
(United  Kingdom).  Participating  countries: 
Sweden,  Ireland,  United  Kingdom,  United 
States 

3.  AmbiGAS  -  Biogas  production  from  high 
volume  industrial  effluents  at  ambient 
Coordinator:  University 
temperatures. 
(United  Kingdom). 
of 
Participating  countries:  United  Kingdom, 
Ireland, Germany, Sweden

Southampton 

4.  ERANET  GAS  -  Genetic  Adaptation  of 
Sorghum:  Genomics-based  breeding  of  a 
sustainable,  next-generation  bioenergy 
crop for Europe. Coordinator: Justus Liebig 
University Giessen (Germany). Participating 
countries: Germany, Sweden, Poland

Seventh call 2013

The seventh joint call on Small-scale heat and 
power  production  from  biomass  was  launched 
on 1st March 2013. 

(Sweden, 
Four  countries  are  participating 
Germany, Poland and the United Kingdom) with 
a total budget of EUR 3.6 million.

41

ERA-PG 

ERA-NET Plant Genomics 

Objective

The main endeavour of ERA-PG was to structure 
the  scientific  and  technological  basis  for  plant 
genomics  programmes  in  Europe  and  develop 
the  common  knowledge  base  necessary  for  the 
development  of  coherent  transnational  policy. 
Plants are essential to human life. Either directly 
or indirectly, plants produce all of the world’s food. 
They also provide materials, pharmaceuticals and 
offer  renewable  sources  of  energy.  In  European 
industry  and  agriculture,  plants  have  a  central 
role. Studying their genomes is essential to drive 
innovation,  stimulate  commercial  exploitation 
and keep Europe’s economy healthy. 

The  ERA-NET  Plant  Genomics  began  its  work 
in 2004 with an original duration of four years, 
but was later prolonged for two years more by 
an  amendment  to  the  contract.  It  started  with 
twelve  member  organizations  from  eleven 
countries,  and  since  then  has  grown  from 
strength  to  strength.  ERA-PG  concentrated  on 
creating a stimulating and fruitful environment 
for European plant genomics together with the 
scientific community. 

ERA-PG’s main objectives are the following:

•	 Coordination  and  cooperation  between 

national research programmes.

•	 Creating a European network.

•	 Sustaining Europe’s competitive position in 

agro-food.

•	 Strengthening  the  foundation  of  plant 

genomics research in Europe.

42

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To      

2004-01-01
31-12-2009

Follow-on ERA-NET

ERA-CAPS

Project reference

510189

Programme 
acronym

FP6-COORDINATION

Call identifier

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-A

Title

ERA-NET Plant Genomics

Contract type 

Coordination Action

 Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 900 000
€  2 900 000

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

17

The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific 
Research NWO, The Netherlands

Christine Bunthof
T +31 317 480996
E christine.bunthof@wur.nl  

www.erapg.org

AT
BE

Austrian Federal Ministry for Science and Research BMWF
Department of Economy, Science and Innovation Flemish 
Government EWI
Swiss National Science Foundation SNSF
German Research Foundation DFG
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH

CH
DE
DE
DK Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish 

ES
FI
FR
FR
IL
IT
NL

Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation DASTI
Ministry of Science and Innovation MICINN
Academy of Finland AKA
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA
National Agency for Research ANR
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MOARD
Ministry of Education, University and Research MIUR
The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research/
Netherlands Genomics Initiative NWO/NGI

NO Research Council of Norway RCN
PT
SE

Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
The Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural 
Sciences and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council BBSRC

UK

•	

Laying  a  cornerstone  for  the  knowledge-
based bioeconomy (KBBE).

•	 Developing  and  executing  joint  (research) 

programmes and calls.

and  the  European  Technology  “Platform  Plants 
for  the  Future”.  Cooperation  between  networks 
proved of great value and importance in building 
the ERA in plant sciences and related fields.

Consortium

Joint calls

ERA-PG  started  in  2004  with  twelve  member 
organizations  from  eleven  countries.  On  1 
January  2006  the  network  was  contractually 
enlarged  by  four  countries  and  later  in  2006 
Bulgaria jointed as affiliate, followed by Canada 
in  2007.    Affiliate  partners  are:  Ministry  of 
Education and Science MES (Bulgaria), Agriculture 
and Agri-Food Canada AAFC (Canada), Genome 
(Canada),  Genome  Prairie/Manitoba 
Alberta 
Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives, National 
Research  Council  NRC  (Canada)  and  Plant 
Biotechnology Institute PBI (Canada). As a result 
of  the  network’s  commitment  to  extending 
collaboration  to  more  countries  with  plant 
genomics  programmes  in  and  beyond  Europe, 
ERA-PG comprised at the end of its contracting 
period in 2009 23 partners from 17 countries. 

Mapping and scoping activities

the  programmes 

ERA-PG started out with mapping the research 
landscape  and 
in  plant 
genomics.  Country  reports  were  made  of  each 
ERA-PG partners, as well as about some major 
players beyond Europe. In the development of the 
joint calls the partners exchanged good practices. 
Another major endeavour of ERA-PG was on IPR 
issues  within  transnational  projects,  including 
projects  that  are  public-private  partnerships. 
To  this  aim  ERA-PG  commissioned  a  team  of 
national  (genomics)  IPR  experts  to  develop  a 
legal framework for transnational research. The 
framework  was  tested  in  the  projects  of  the 
joint calls and proved very useful. Furthermore, 
ERA-PG  conducted  forward-looking  activities, 
in  particular  through  scoping  workshops  with 
plant  scientists  organised  by  funders  of  the 
ERA-PG  consortium.  During  its  course,  ERA-PG 
maintained close contacts with other ERA-NETs, 
particularly those in the area of the Knowledge 
Based Bioeconomy (KBBE), as well as with the 
European  Plant  Science  Organisation  (EPSO) 

ERA-PG  was  a  front  runner  in  the  ERA-NET 
community and its joint research programme is 
among the largest joint calls organised by ERA-
NETs. Two joint calls were organised by ERA-PG 
consortium in 2006 and 2008. All together, these 
two  calls  resulted  in  41  transnational  research 
projects  with  a  total  budget  of  EUR  55  million. 
ERA-PG  organised  project  status  seminars  in 
association  with  the  European  Plant  Genomics 
Meetings (Plant GEMs) in 2007 and 2009 to bring 
together  the  owners  and  managers  of  national 
and 
regional  plant  genomics  programmes, 
researchers from academia and industry and the 
policy  makers  from  the  ministries,  councils  and 
agencies that fund the projects.

First call 2006

With 
the  aim  of  promoting  European 
collaboration, scientific excellence, synergy and 
cohesion, on 1 February 2006 ERA-PG issued its 
first transnational call for collaborative research 
proposals  “Structuring  Plant  Genomic  Research 
in  Europe”.  The  call  was  addressed  to  plant 
in  Flanders  (Belgium), 
genomic  researchers 
Denmark,  Finland,  France,  Germany,  Italy,  The 
Netherlands,  Norway,  Portugal,  Spain  and  the 
United Kingdom. 

The call was divided into two sub calls: 
Sub  call  A  –  “Broad  Call  for  Publicly  Funded 
Research  in  Plant  Genomics”  –  and  sub  call  B, 
“Trilateral  Partnership  and  Beyond;  the  Future 
for European Public-Private Partnerships in Plant 
Genomics”. 

More than 100 applications involving a total of 
over 500 applicants were submitted. In total, 29 
projects were granted. In the sub call A, the 15 
highest  ranked  proposals  were  granted  with  a 
total  budget  of  nearly  EUR  21  million  .  In  the 
sub  call  B,  14  proposals  of  which  13  public-
private  partnerships  were  granted  with  a  total 

43

budget of EUR 16.6 million. The call received a 
lot  positive  feedback  from  both  the  academic 
and the industrial community, particularly for its 
bottom-up  approach,  transparency,  openness 
to small consortia and low bureaucratic burden. 
The  scientific  community  also  indicated  that  it 
would like to see the collaboration extended to 
more countries.

of  Copenhagen  (Denmark).  Participating 
countries:  Denmark,  Finland,  Italy,  The 
Netherlands, Norway  

8.  Plant  Stem  Cell  Network  -  Integrated 
analysis  of  stem  cell  function  in  plant 
growth  and  development.  Coordinator: 
Cardiff  University 
(United  Kingdom). 
Participating  countries:  Denmark,  Finland, 
The Netherlands, Portugal, United Kingdom 

Sub  call  A  –  “Broad  Call  for  Publicly  Funded 
Research in Plant Genomics”. 

Projects funded:

1.  ACT  -  Genome  wide  analysis  of  auxin-
cytokinin cross-talk. Coordinator: University 
of  Helsinki (Finland). Participating countries: 
Germany, Finland, United Kingdom

2.  ARelatives  -  Leveraging  the  genome 
sequences  of  two  Arabidopsis  relatives 
for  evolutionary  and  ecological  genomics. 
Institute  for 
Coordinator:  Max  Planck 
Developmental  Biology 
(Germany). 
Participating countries: Belgium, Germany, 
Denmark, Finland, United Kingdom

3.  BARCODE  -  Genomics-assisted  dissection 
of  barley  morphology  and  development. 
Coordinator:  Scottish  Crop  Research 
Institute  (United  Kingdom).  Participating 
countries: Germany, Italy, United Kingdom

4.  CISCODE  -  Conservation  and  diversity  in 
transcriptional regulation of developmental 
processes in crop and model plant species. 
Coordinator:  Wageningen 
University 
and  Research  Centre  (The  Netherlands). 
Participating countries: Belgium, Germany, 
Italy, The Netherlands, United Kingdom.

5.  Effectoromics  -  Understanding  host  plant 
susceptibility  and  resistance  by  indexing 
and deploying obligate pathogen effectors. 
Coordinator: University of Warwick (United 
Kingdom). Participating countries: Germany, 
The Netherlands, United Kingdom

6.  EXBARDIV  -  Genomics-Assisted  Analysis 
and  Exploitation  of  Barley  Diversity. 
Coordinator:  University  of  Dundee  (United 
Kingdom). Participating countries: Germany, 
Denmark, Finland, Italy, United Kingdom 

7.  MultiStress  -  Multiple  Stress  Responses 
and  Adaptations.  Coordinator:  University 

9.  PRECIAR 

-  Proteomics  analysis  of 
endosomal  compartments  in  Arabidopsis. 
Tubingen 
Coordinator:  University 
(Germany). 
countries: 
Participating 
Germany,  Spain,  The  Netherlands,  United 
Kingdom  

of 

10. RLPRLKs - RLP- and RLK-mediated innate 
immune  responses  in  Arabidopsis  and 
tomato  triggered  by  pathogen-associated 
molecular patterns (PAMPs) and a virulence 
factors  (Avrs).  Coordinator:  Wageningen 
UR  (University  and  Research  Centre)  (The 
Netherlands). 
countries: 
Germany,  Spain,  Italy,  The  Netherlands, 
United Kingdom

Participating 

programs 

11. Seeds  for  Growth    -  Identification  of 
transcriptional 
controlling 
seed  growth  and  development  from 
Arabidopsis to rice. Coordinator: University 
(a  researcher 
(France) 
of  Strassbourg 
that  moved  from  a  German 
institute 
and  was  still  funded  by  DFG  the  money-
follows-researcher  principle);  Participating 
countries: Germany, Italy, Norway. 

network 

12. STRESSNET  -  Regulation  of  the  plant 
metabolic 
stress. 
Coordinator:  Max  Planck 
Institute  for 
(Germany). 
Molecular  Plant  Physiology 
Participating countries: Germany, Denmark, 
United Kingdom

during 

13. STRESSsRNA  -  Genome-wide  analysis  of 
short  RNAs  as  modulators  in  dehydration 
stress tolerance using tolerant and genetic 
model  systems.  Coordinator:  University  of 
Bonn  (Germany).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, Portugal, United Kingdom

14. TRANSLEG - Using translational genomics 
to  underpin  germplasm  improvement  for 
complex traits in crop legumes. Coordinator: 
University of Grassland and Environmental 
Research  (United  Kingdom).  Participating 

44

 
countries:  Germany,  The  Netherlands, 
United Kingdom

15. TRITOP  -  Thrips  resistance  in  tomato 
plants.  Coordinator:  University  of  Leiden 
(The  Netherlands).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, The Netherlands, United Kingdom

Sub call B - “Trilateral Partnership and Beyond; 
the 
European  Public-Private 
Partnerships in Plant Genomics”.

Future 

for 

Projects funded:

1.  ARABRAS  -  Identifying  relevant  candidate 
genes  for  improving  plant  growth  under 
abiotic stress conditions in Brassica crops. 
Coordinator: Max Planck Institute for Plant 
Breeding Research (Germany). Participating 
countries: Germany, Spain, France

2.  Bioregulators - Identification of molecular 
markers for the detection of bio-regulators 
that  enhance  plant  productivity  and 
quality.  Coordinator:  Bayer  CropScience 
AG 
(Germany).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, Spain, France

3.  CEREHEALTH  -  Securing  a  sustainable 
production of food and feed - a functional 
genomic-guided  strategy  for  improving 
cereals. 
tolerance 
biotic 
Coordinator:  KWS  Saat  AG  (Germany). 
Participating 
Switzerland, 
countries: 
Germany, Spain, France

stress 

in 

4.  COGS  -  Comparative  genomics  of  shoot 
branching.  Coordinator:  University  of  York 
(United  Kingdom).  Participating  countries: 
Germany,  Spain,  France,  The  Netherlands, 
United Kingdom

5.  EUCANET - Eucalyptus genomics research 
network for improved wood properties and 
adaptation  to  drought.  Coordinator:  CNRS 
and University Paul Sabatier Mixed Unit of 
Research  (France).  Participating  countries: 
Spain, France, Portugal

6.  FROSTY  -  Cold  tolerance  for  the  future: 
the  CBF  genes  and  beyond.  Coordinator: 
INRA  Genetic  and  Plant  Breeding  Station 
(France).  Participating  countries:  Germany, 
Spain, France 

7.  GENBLAST - Deciphering the genetic basis 
of field resistance to blast in European rice 

45

varieties  to  improve  breeding  for  durable 
resistance. Coordinator: Instituto Valenciano 
de 
(Spain). 
Participating countries: Spain, France 

Investigaciones 

agrarias 

8.  GRASP  GRAPE  WINE  -  Genomic  research-
assisted breeding for sustainable production 
of  quality  grapes  and  wine.  Coordinator: 
(Germany). 
Julius 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Spain, 
France, Italy, The Netherlands, Portugal 

Kuehn-Institute 

9.  LEGRESIST  -  Exploiting  genetic  variability 
of  resistance  genes  in  major  European 
food  legumes  to  improve  varieties  for 
sustainable 
Coordinator: 
agriculture. 
GENCPro  GmbH  (Germany).  Participating 
countries: Germany, Spain, France, Portugal

10. MELRIP - Understanding the climacteric vs. 
non-climacteric  fruit  ripening  mechanisms 
in melon using transcriptomic, metabolomic 
and reverse genetic approaches. Coordinator: 
Consejo  Superior 
Investigaciones 
Científicas  (Spain).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, Spain, France 

de 

11. MuExpress - Isolation of key genes for kernel 
development  through  the  identification, 
in  a  collection  of  300  mutant  lines,  of 
Mutator  insertions  in  genes  expressed  in 
the  maize  seed.  Project  leader:  University 
of Alcalá de Henares (Spain). Participating 
countries: Germany, Spain, France

12. ProteinStorage  -  An  integrated  genomic 
and proteomic characterization of induced 
seed  storage  organelles  for  the  optimal 
production of biopharmaceuticals in plants 
and  plant  cells.  Coordinator:  University 
of  Lleida  (Spain).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, Spain, France 

13. RCA  Genomics  -  International  reference 
centre  for  the  genomics  and  diagnosis  of 
viruses with small circular DNA. Coordinator: 
(Germany). 
University 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Spain, 
France

Stuttgart 

of 

14. TRIESTER - Trilateral initiative for enhancing 
salt tolerance in rice. Coordinator: Consejo 
Superior  de 
Investigaciones  Científicas 
(Spain).  Participating  countries:  Germany, 
Spain, France

Second call 2008

In  2008,  the  ERA-PG  consortium  organised  a 
single  joint  call  focused  on  the  integration  of 
new  technologies  in  plant  science.  The  funders 
were  from  Austria,  Flanders  (Belgium),  Finland, 
Germany,  Israel,  Portugal,  the  Netherlands  and 
the  United  Kingdom.  Funding  bodies  in  Canada 
initiative  and  became  affiliated 
joined  this 
partners  of  the  ERA-PG  funding  body  network. 
Topics  included  yield  improvement,  resistance 
to  biotic  stresses,  quality  traits,  adaptation 
to  effects  of  climate  change  and  sustainable 
agriculture.  Among  the  54  submitted  proposals, 
12 were granted with a total budget of EUR 16.5 
million.

Projects funded:

1.  ASSYST 

-  Associative  expression  and 
systems analysis of complex traits in oilseed 
rape/canola.  Coordinator:  University  of 
Giessen  (Germany).  Participating  countries: 
Canada, Germany, United Kingdom 

2.  BLOOM-NET  -  The  meristematic  regulatory 
network  controlling  the  floral  transition. 
Coordinator:  Wageningen  UR 
(University 
and  Research  Centre)  (The  Netherlands). 
Participating countries: Germany, Israel, The 
Netherlands, United Kingdom 

3.  CROPP  -  Calcium  Regulation  of  Plants 
Ludwig-
Productivity. 
Maximilians-Universität 
München 
(Germany).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Germany, Israel, United Kingdom 

Coordinator: 

4.  PASAS - Plant Alternative Splicing and Abiotic 
Stress.  Coordinator:  University  of  Dundee 
(United  Kingdom).  Participating  countries: 
Austria, Israel, Poland, United Kingdom 

5.  PathoNet  -  Signaling  to  plant  immunity 
responses. Coordinator: University of Vienna 
(Austria).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Germany, United Kingdom 

6.  PcG-code  -  Application  of  genomics  to 

dissect  Polycomb-group  protein  mediated 
control  of  plant  development.  Coordinator: 
University  of  Vienna  (Austria).  Participating 
countries: Germany, The Netherlands, United 
Kingdom 

7.  POPsRNA  - 

the 

role  of 
Investigating 
short  RNAs  on  wood  formation,  cambium 
development  and  adaptation  of  poplar 
tree.  Coordinator:  University  of  East  Anglia 
(United  Kingdom).  Participating  countries: 
Finland, The Netherlands, United Kingdom 

8.  PROSIG - Plant Receptor-like Kinases in ROS 
Signaling. Coordinator: University of Helsinki 
(Finland).  Participating  countries:  Germany, 
Denmark, Finland, The Netherlands 

9.  PRR-CROP  -  Pattern  recognition  receptors: 
discovery, function and application in crops 
for  durable  disease  control.  Coordinator: 
Sainsbury  Laboratory 
(United  Kingdom). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  France, 
The Netherlands, United Kingdom 

tomato 

quantitative 

10. TomQML  -  Integrating  genetics  and  high 
identify  genes 
throughput  genomics  to 
trait 
underlying 
loci  (QTL)  for  metabolites  that  influence 
fruit  quality.  Coordinator:  University  of 
Nottingham (United Kingdom). Participating 
countries:  Germany,  France, 
Israel,  The 
Netherlands, United Kingdom, United States 

11. TritNONHOST  -  Integrative  genomic  and 
genetic  analysis  of  nonhost 
resistance 
across Triticeae species. Coordinator: Leibniz 
Institute  of  Plant  Genetics  and  Crop  Plant 
Research (Germany). Participating countries: 
Germany, The Netherlands, United Kingdom 

12. vSEED  -  The  virtual  seed:  Combined 
mathematical,  engineering  and  post-
genomics  comparative  biology  to  model 
the  systems  biology  of  seed  dormancy, 
after-ripening and germination. Coordinator: 
University of Nottingham (United Kingdom). 
Participating 
countries:  Germany,  The 
Netherlands, United Kingdom

46

ERASysBio 

Towards a European Research Area 
for Systems Biology

PROJECT DETAILS

Objective

Period

From
To       

2006-02-01
2011-02-28

Follow-on ERA-NET

ERASysAPP and ERA-NET PLUS ERASysBio+

Project reference

Programme 
acronym

23212

FP6-IST

Call identifier

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-D 

Title

Towards a European Research Area for 
Systems Biology – A Transnational Funding 
Initiative to Support the Convergence of Life 
Sciences with Information Technology & 
Systems Sciences 

Contract type 

Coordination Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 950 000
€  2 950 000

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

16

Jülich Research Centre JUELICH, Germany

Stefan Lampel 
E s.lampel@fz-juelich.de

www.erasysbio.net

AT
BE
DE
DE
ES
FI
FR
FR
IL
IT

NL
NL

NO
RU
SI
UK

Federal Ministry of Science and Research BMWF
National Fund for Scientific Research FRS-FNRS
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH
Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
Ministry of Science and Innovation MICINN
Academy of Finland AKA
National Centre for Scientific Research CNRS
National Agency for Research ANR
Israel Science Foundation ISF
Autonomous Province of Trento (PAT) Department of 
University and Scientific Research
The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research NWO
The Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and 
Development ZonMw
Research Council of Norway RCN
Russian Foundation for Basic Research RFBR
Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology MHEST
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council 
BBSRC

With  the  advance  of  computer  technology 
and  the  success  of  high-throughput  “-omics” 
research in life sciences, the in silico modelling 
of  complex  biological  processes  has  become 
a  distinct  scientific  vision.  In  the  first  place, 
the  USA  and  Japan  have  launched  ambitious 
research initiatives to support the convergence 
of  both  technology  fields  into  a  new  discipline 
called  systems  biology 
In  the  next 
decades, SB will contribute to new key enabling 
technologies  in  the  bio-industry  that  will  give 
rise to more individualized and multi-component 
biomedicines,  computer-aided  drug  screening, 
more  sophisticated  animal  and  plant  breeding 
programmes, etc. 

(SB). 

to  other 

In  contrast 
life  science  areas, 
programme  funding  in  SB  is  very  young  in 
Europe  and  still  fragmented,  but  nevertheless 
ready for restructuring. Thus, ERASysBio aims at: 

•	 Cooperation/coordination  of  SB-relevant 
national  programme  (part)s  in  12  partner 
countries; three other countries that do not 
yet have a running activity are affiliated; 

•	

Internal  market  for  SB  with  improved 
mobility 
resources, 
of 
personnel, etc;

knowledge, 

•	 SB research & training agenda as part of a 

European research policy; 

•	 Strengthen Europe’s competiveness in life 
sciences by exploiting the SB approach. 

The  consortium  consists  of  senior  programme 

47

managers of the leading public funding bodies, 
who will - in interaction with high-level scientists, 
industry,  and  other  stake-holders  -  address 
among others: 

•	 Knowledge  exchange  on  programme 

content and implementation; 

•	

Inventory of research and training sites; 

•	 Analysis of cooperation potentials and new 

challenges; 

•	

innovation  strategy  to  stimulate 

Joint 
economic exploitation; 

•	 Contractual  & 

legal  framework  for  a 

transnational funding scheme; 

•	

•	

Joint team of administrative personnel for 
executing transnational activities; 

Transnational  funding  programme  (three 
funding  rounds  with  the  early  pilot  call 
SysMo); 

•	 Perspectives for international cooperation; 

•	 SB science & society. 

Consortium

The ERASysBio Coordination Action springs from 
the Specific Support Action (SSA) EUSYSBIO that 
has  already  laid  the  foundations  of  this  new 
network.  It  brings  together  funding  agencies 
from  13  countries  including  Israel  and  Russia. 
Luxembourg  and  Switzerland  joined  later  as 
associate partners.

Mapping and scoping activities

The  ERASysBio  Coordination  Action  builds  on 
national  programmes  in  systems  biology  and 
on  several  European  efforts  springing  from 
EUREKA,  the  ESF,  the  EMBL  and  several  other 
EU-supported  projects.  The  first  task  was  the 
collection  of  information  about  projects  and 
programmes under way in the partner countries 
and their plans for the future. Next, the partners 
drafted  a  research  agenda  in  systems  biology 
for  the  period  2006-2008  outlining  topics 
of  common  interest  and  potential  for  future 
collaboration. In parallel, the partners paved the 
way  for  new  transnational  funding  initiatives 
by  setting  up  the  appropriate  contractual 

arrangements and a joint funding scheme. Three 
joint calls from which one was transferred to an 
ERA-NET Plus activity resulted from this work.

initiatives 

The  consortium  participated  in  the  founding 
of  several  other 
like  the  ERA-
NETs  ERASynBio  and  ERASysAPP,  the  official 
successor  of  ERASysBio,  and  the  CSA  Systems 
Medicine  (CASyM).  Furthermore,  the  partners 
supported the networking of European Systems 
Biology centres that finally let to the ESFRI ISBE 
(Infrastructure  for  Systems  Biology  Europe) 
project. Additionally, a series of summer schools 
for  data  management  addressed  the  needs  of 
young researchers.

Joint calls

First call 2005
Pilot call

The  first  joint  call  -  the  pilot  initiative  SysMO 
-  was  launched  as  a  transnational  activity  for 
the  funding  of  research  on  Systems  Biology  in 
Micro-organisms in 2005. SysMO is financed by 
the Federal Ministry of Education and Research 
in  Germany  (BMBF),  the  Federal  Ministry  of 
Science  and  Research  (BMWF)  in  Austria,  the 
Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research 
(NWO),  the  Research  Council  of  Norway  (RCN), 
the  Biotechnology  and  Biological  Sciences 
Research Council (BBSRC) of the United Kingdom 
and the Ministry of Education and Science (MEC, 
later MICINN) in Spain. 

Under  this  initiative  11  consortia,  including  91 
groups across Europe, were funded from March 
2007  until  summer  2010  with  a  financial 
commitment  across  all  partners  of  more  than 
EUR  28  million.  The  progress  of  the  research 
consortia  was  evaluated  annually  during  the 
SysMO conferences: The Kick-Off Meeting took 
place in Bad Honnef (Germany) in 2007 and was 
followed  by  conferences  in  Edinburgh  (United 
Kingdom,  2008),  Vienna  (Austria,  2009),  and 
Noordwijkerhout (The Netherlands, 2010).

The  SysMO  funding  partners  have  embarked 
on a joint effort to involve all groups from the 
11  consortia  in  a  common  data  management, 
storage  and  sharing  strategy.  The  SysMO 

48

Data  Management  Group  (DMG)  is  composed 
of  representatives  from  all  SysMO  projects. 
The  DMG  focused  on  communication,  data 
storage, data and model exchange/sharing and 
recommended  funding  of  a  data  management 
project. This was realised by BBSRC and BMBF. 
As a result, the project SysMO-DB developed a 
common data management system called SEEK.

Projects funded:

1.  BaCell-SysMO - The transition from growing 
to  non-growing  Bacillus  subtilis  cells  -  A 
systems  biology  approach.  Coordinator: 
University 
(Germany) 
of  Greifswald 
Participating  countries:    Germany,  United 
Kingdom, France, The Netherlands

2.  COSMIC  -  Systems  Biology  of  Clostridium 
acetobutylicum  -  a  possible  answer  to 
dwindling  crude  oil  reserves.  Coordinator: 
University of Ulm (Germany). Participating 
countries:  Germany,  The  Netherlands, 
United Kingdom

3.  SUMO 

-  Systems  Understanding  of 
Microbial  Oxygen  Responses.  Coordinator: 
University  of  Sheffield  (United  Kingdom). 
Participating  countries:  United  Kingdom, 
Germany, The Netherlands

enteric 

4.  KOSMOBAC - Ion and solute homeostasis 
integrated 
bacteria:  an 
in 
view  generated  from  the  interface  of 
modelling  and  biological  experimentation. 
Coordinator: University of Aberdeen (United 
Kingdom).  Participating  countries:  United 
Kingdom, Germany, The Netherlands, Spain

5.  SysMO-LAB 

-  Comparative  Systems 
Biology:  Lactic  Acid  Bacteria.  Coordinator: 
University of Amsterdam (The Netherlands). 
Participating  countries:  The  Netherlands, 
Germany,  Norway,  United  Kingdom,  South 
Africa

6.  PSYSMO  -  Systems  analysis  of  biotech 
induced  stresses:  towards  a  quantum 
increase in process performance in the cell 
factory Pseudomonas  putida. Coordinator: 
Helmholtz  Centre  for  Infection  Research 
Braunscheig 
Participating 
(Germany). 
countries: Germany, United Kingdom, Spain

7.  SCaRAB - Systems Biology of a genetically 
engineered Pseudomonas fluorescens with 
inducible  exo-polysaccharide  production: 

analysis  of  the  dynamics  and  robustness 
of  metabolic  networks.  Coordinator: 
Norwegian  University  of  Science  and 
Technology 
Participating 
(Norway). 
countries:  Norway,  Germany,  United 
Kingdom

8.  MOSES 

Systems 
-  MicroOrganism 
Biology:  Energy  and  Saccharomyces 
cerevisiae.  Coordinator:  University  of 
Manchester/NISB  (United  Kingdom),  Free 
University,  Amsterdam  (The  Netherlands). 
Participating  countries:  United  Kingdom, 
The Netherlands, Austria, Germany, Norway

9.  TRANSLUCENT - Gene interaction networks 
and  models  of  cation  homeostasis  in 
Saccharomyces  cerevisiae.  Coordinator: 
Autonomous  University  of  Barcelona 
(Spain).  Participating  countries:  Spain, 
Germany,  The  Netherlands,  Austria,  Czech 
Republic

10.  STREAM  -  Global  metabolic  switching 
in  Streptomyces  coelicolor.  Coordinator: 
University  of  Warwick  (United  Kingdom). 
Participating  countries:  United  Kingdom, 
Germany, The Netherlands, Spain, Norway

11.  SulfoSYS - Silicon cell model for the central 
carbohydrate metabolism of the archaeon 
Sulfolobus solfataricus under temperature 
variation. Coordinator: University of Bergen 
(Norway).  Participating  countries:  Norway, 
The Netherlands, Germany, United Kingdom

Second call

The second call in the ERA-NET ERASysBio is the 
ERA-NET Plus ERASysBio+ (see above).

Third call 2010

The  third  call  SysMO2  is  a  continuation  of  the 
pilot  call.  The  eight  projects  (seven  research 
and  one  data  management)  jointly  funded  by 
five partners (Germany, Spain, The Netherlands, 
Norway and United Kingdom) under the SysMO2 
call  comprise  50  working  groups  from  seven 
countries  (one  group  each  from  Denmark  and 
Czech Republic) with a total funding of EUR 17.7 
million. The projects have started in spring 2010 
and end in 2013. 

49

transcription,  and  its  consequences  for 
phenotypic  bistability 
in  Streptococcus 
pneumoniae.  Coordinator:  University  of 
Groningen (The Netherlands). Participating 
The  Netherlands,  United 
countries: 
Kingdom, Germany

4.  SilicoTryp  -  The  Silicon  Trypanosome. 
Coordinator:  University  of  Groningen  (The 
Netherlands).  Participating  countries:  The 
Netherlands, United Kingdom, Germany

5.  SUMO2 

- 

Understanding 
Systems 
of  Microbial  Oxygen-Dependent  and 
Independent  Catabolism.  Coordinator: 
University  of  Sheffield  (United  Kingdom). 
Participating  countries:  United  Kingdom, 
Germany, The Netherlands

of 

6.  SysMO-LAB2  -  Comparative  Systems 
Biology 
Bacteria. 
Lactic 
Coordinator: University of Amsterdam (The 
Netherlands).  Participating  countries:  The 
Netherlands,  Germany,  Norway,  United 
Kingdom, Denmark

Acid 

7.  TRANSLUCENT-2 

-  Modelling 

ion 
homeostasis  in  the  yeast  Saccharomyces 
Autonomous 
Coordinator: 
cerevisiae. 
University 
(Spain). 
of 
Participating  countries:  Spain,  Germany, 
The Netherlands, Czech Republic

Barcelona 

8.  SysMO-DB 

- 

sharing  and 
Finding, 
exchanging Data, Models and Processes in 
Systems Biology. Coordinator: University of 
Manchester (United Kingdom). Participating 
countries: United Kingdom, Germany

The  Kick-Off  Meeting  was  combined  with  the 
SysMO conference 2010 in Noordwijkerhout (The 
Netherlands) and followed by annual evaluation 
conferences  in  Oxford  (2011),  Tenerife  (2012) 
and Berlin (2013).

transferred 

The  central  data  management  system  (and 
project)  was  successfully  continued  and 
into  various  other 
meanwhile 
initiatives  (e.g.  Virtual  Liver  Network).  The 
SysMO-DB project, all SysMO 1 and 2 research 
consortia and the funding partners agreed on the 
SysMO  data  sharing  policy.  This  policy  defines 
rules  for  the  usage  of  the  data  management 
system  as  well  as  for  sharing  and  publication 
of data. It is based on OECD suggestions and is 
open for application in future funding schemes.

Projects funded:

1.  BaCell-SysMO  2  -  Modelling  carbon  core 
metabolism in Bacillus subtilis – Exploring 
the  contribution  of  protein  complexes  in 
core  carbon  and  nitrogen  metabolism. 
Coordinator:  University  of  Greifswald 
countries: 
Participating 
(Germany). 
Germany, The Netherlands, United Kingdom

2.  COSMIC 2 - Systems biology of the butanol-
producing  Clostridium  acetobutylicum: 
new  source  of  biofuel  and  chemicals. 
Coordinator:  University  of  Ulm  (Germany). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  The 
Netherlands, United Kingdom

3.  Noisy-Strep  -  The  role  of  transcriptional 
fidelity  and  processivity  on  the  noise  of 

50

EUPHRESCO I  

Coordination of European 
Phytosanitary (Statutory Plant 
Health) Research

Objective

invasive  species 

EUPHRESCO  is  a  project  focused  on  research 
policy development and implementation in the 
field  of  statutory  and  emerging  plant  pests, 
(excluding 
diseases  and 
GMO’s).  Statutory  plant  pests  and  diseases 
can cause serious economic and environmental 
damage  and  today  there  are  multiple  threats 
to  plant  health  that  must  be  addressed. 
Over  the  last  century,  the  rate  of  introduction 
and  establishment  of  new,  economically  or 
environmentally  damaging  plant  pests  and 
diseases  has  increased  steadily  as  a  result  of 
the expansion in global trade of plant material. 
Unfortunately,  this  has  also  simultaneously 
opened  the  door  to  unwanted  imports  such 
as  foreign  pests,  disease  and  invasive  plant 
species  which  threaten  agriculture  and  the 
environment  alike.  Whilst  the  regulatory  policy 
designed  to  protect  European  agriculture  and 
environment  from  these  exotic  pest  threats 
is  determined  at  the  EU  level,  the  research 
that  underpins 
is  undertaken 
this  policy 
primarily at the national level and there is little 
coordination  of  these  programmes.  Increased 
global  trading  and  continued  enlargement 
of  the  EU  are  likely  to  increase  the  risks  from 
exotic  plant  pests  and  pathogens.  Improved 
coordination and collaboration between national 
research  programmes  is  therefore  essential  to 
ensure  effective  support  of  EU  policy  and  its 
implementation.

increase 
EUPHRESCO’s  broad  aim 
cooperation  and  coordination  of  national 

to 

is 

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To      

2006-05-01
2010-07-31

Follow-on ERA-NET

EUPHRESCO II

Project reference

CA 036212

Programme 
acronym

FP6-COORDINATION

Call identifier

ERANET/1/CA-SSA-E

Title

Coordination of European Phytosanitary 
(Statutory Plant Health) Research

Contract type 

Coordination (or networking) action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 633 991
€  2 633 991

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

22

Department for Environment, Food & Rural 
Affairs, Food and Environment Research 
Agency (DEFRA-FERA), United Kingdom

Alan Inman 
T +44 (0)1904 455346 
E alan.inman@defra.gsi.gov.uk

www.euphresco.org

AT

AT
BE
BE

BG
CY
CZ
DK
FI
FR

FR
DE

DE
IE
IT
NL
NL
SI
ES

CH
TR

UK

Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and 
Water Management BMLFUW
The Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety AGES
Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research ILVO
Federal Public Service Health, Food Chain Safety and 
Environment  FPS
The National Service for Plant Protection NSPP
Agricultural Research Institute ARI
Ministry of Agriculture NAAR
Directorate for Food, Fisheries and Agri-business DFFAB
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 
Ministry of Agriculture and Fishery, General Food Directorate 
MAP-DGAL
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA
Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection 
BMELV
Julius Kuhn Institute JKI
Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food DAFF
Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF
Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ
The Netherlands Plant Protection Service NPPS
Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food MAFF
National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food 
Research INIA
Federal Office for Agriculture FOAG
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, General Directorate of 
Agricultural Research MARA/GDAR
Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, Food and 
Environment Research Agency DEFRA-FERA

51

phytosanitary  (statutory  plant  health)  research 
programmes at the EU level through networking 
of  research  activities  and  joint  activities  (e.g. 
transnational research commissioning) between 
national programmes. It has three over-arching 
strategic goals:  

•	

to  develop  phytosanitary  (statutory  plant 
health)  research  policy  at  the  EU-wide 
level; 

•	 optimise 

the 

research  provision 

that 
underpins EU quarantine plant health policy 
development and policy implementation; 

•	

the 

increase 
capacity  of  European 
phytosanitary  science  and  research,  in 
order to prevent the disappearance of EU 
expertise in this field and maintain Europe’s 
competitiveness in the global market. 

Whilst  bringing  together  all  existing  and  future 
key  players  EUPHRESCO  will  support  the 
development  of  common  agendas  based  on 
identified, shared priorities. It will help create a 
long-term, sustainable network of phytosanitary 
research  programme  funders  and 
improve 
the  interaction  with  stakeholders  and  industry 
bodies at national and EU levels. It will help build 
a European phytosanitary research capacity and 
establish  links  between  the  Network  and  key 
research funding bodies around the world.

Consortium

two 

The  EUPHRESCO  Network  has  expanded  from 
23  partners  in  17  countries  (2006-2010)  to 
31  partners  in  22  countries  with  12  European 
international 
Observer  countries  and 
Observers. Its partners are leading organisations 
involved with funding phytosanitary research in 
Europe.  Observers  are:  Ministry  of  Agriculture, 
(Estonia), 
Plant  Health  Department  EVPM 
Ministry  of  Rural  Development  and  Food, 
Department  of  Phytosanitary  Control  (Greece), 
Ministry  of  Agriculture  and  Rural  Development, 
Department  for  Plant  Protection  and  Soil 
Conservation  (Hungary),  Ministry  of  Agriculture 
ZUM  (Lithuania),  Plant  Health  Department, 
Ministry  of  Rural  Affairs  and  the  Environment 
(Malta),  Direccao  Geral  de  Porteccao  das 
Culturas DGPC (Portugal).

52

Mapping and scoping activities

Seventeen  countries  and  24  participants  (all 
funding and/or managing phytosanitary research 
programmes)  are 
in  EUPHRESCO: 
involved 
Austria,  Belgium,  Bulgaria,  Cyprus,  Czech 
Republic,  Denmark,  Finland,  France,  Germany, 
Ireland,  Italy,  The  Netherlands,  Slovenia,  Spain, 
Switzerland and Turkey, United Kingdom. All the 
participants  except  one  entered  a  total  of  35 
different  programmes  and  260  phytosanitary 
research projects. 

The current annual budget for nationally-funded 
phytosanitary  research  in  2007  was  about 
EUR  15.72  million;  EU-funded  research  was 
estimated at about EUR 1.2 million per year on 
average,  so  national  funds  accounted  for  over 
90% of the total phytosanitary research funding. 

Strengths,  weaknesses,  overlaps,  gaps  and 
opportunities  were  analysed.  Most  national 
programmes  undertook  very  applied  research, 
which  was  potentially  both  a  strength  and 
a  weakness.  Pooling  resources  might  allow 
more  effective  commissioning  of  such  applied 
research  as  well  as  providing  opportunities  for 
more  strategic  or  fundamental  research.  Some 
potential  overlaps  were  identified,  highlighting 
opportunities 
reducing  duplication  of 
work  and  optimising  resources.  In  general, 
there  was  a  good  balance  between  the  pest 
groups  studied,  though  invasive  alien  species 
(especially invasive plants) were under studied, 
as were environmental plant health issues. Clear 
benefits of better coordination of phytosanitary 
research  at  the  European  level  were  identified 
and potential strategies for achieving this were 
considered. 

for 

Due  to  relatively  limited  national  budgets, 
there was a continuing need for EU funding of 
phytosanitary  research,  especially  for  more-
larger  and  more-strategic  projects.  There 
was  a  clear  need  to  coordinate  nationally-
funded  research,  transnational  research  (via 
EUPHRESCO)  and  EU-funded  research  to  make 
best  use  of  resources  and  to  support  EU  Plant 
Health policy. 

Management 

of 

the 

programmes  and 

projects  was  described  for  each  participant 
through  various  project 
initiation  stages: 
project  proposals/applications;  evaluation  of 
proposals;  project  management;  and  research 
contracts.  Most  of  the  public  governmental 
and non-governmental research providers were 
listed  for  each  country.  Information  for  future 
transnational  activities  was  also  collated, 
especially the potential barriers to transnational 
activities  and  initial  ideas  on  future  research 
priorities.  The  mapping  also  tried  to  gather 
information  from  non-partner  countries,  mainly 
in 
countries  from  EPPO  and  not 
EUPHRESCO. Four countries provided consistent 
data:  Estonia,  Hungary,  Poland  and  Ukraine. 
Morocco  partially  completed  the  questionnaire, 
but  only  the  section  regarding  future  research 
priorities. From these non-partner responses, 11 
programmes  and  72  projects  were  identified. 
Future research priorities were also provided for 
these non-partner countries.

involved 

conclusion,  phytosanitary 

In 
transnational 
research  activities  were  almost  non-existent  in 
Europe, except through EU-funded phytosanitary 
projects, at the start of the EUPHRESCO-I ERA-
NET  Project.  EUPHRESCO  therefore  has  a  clear 
opportunity to: facilitate cooperation through its 
current and future activities; optimise the use of 
national resources through sharing information, 
reducing  duplication  and  pooling  funds;  build 
phytosanitary  science  capability  and  capacity; 
and  better  support  European  phytosanitary 
(Plant Health) policy.

Joint calls

First call 2008
Pilot call

EUPHRESCO  held  pilot  calls  for  Phytosanitary 
Research in 2008. These pilot calls intended to: 

•	

funding 
trans-national 
Test 
the 
mechanisms, 
tools 
processes 
developed  within  the  EUPHRESCO  ERA-
NET Project through short, specific research 
projects.

and 

•	 Build 

confidence 

in 
research 
phytosanitary 
facilitate further joint calls in the future.

trans-national 
funding  and 

•	 Produce 

that  will 
research  outputs 
support European Plant Health policy and 
operations.

•	 Contribute 
developing 
science capability.

towards  maintaining  and 
phytosanitary 

European 

EUPHRESCO partners are providing in excess of 
one million euros funding for these pilot calls via 
two competitive funding mechanisms, the virtual 
common pot and real common pot. Additionally, 
a  non-competitive  funding  mechanism  (direct 
commissioning) was also piloted. 

In  addition  to  the  initial  pilot  projects,  the 
EUPHRESCO  commissioned  a  second  round  of 
non-competitive  projects  between  2009  and 
2010.

Projects funded:

1.  DEP  -  Detection  and  epidemiology  of 
Pospiviroids. Coordinator: Aarhus University 
(Denmark). 
countries: 
Participating 
Austria,  Denmark,  France,  Germany,  The 
Netherlands, Slovenia, United Kingdom 

2.  AMBROSIA  -  Strategies  for  Ambrosia 
artemisiifolia control. Coordinator: Institute 
of  Integrated  Pest  Management,  Aarhus 
Participating 
University 
countries:  Denmark,  Germany,  Slovenia, 
Switzerland 

(Denmark). 

3.  ERWINDECT  -  Diagnostic  tools  for  the 
detection of fire blight, Erwinia amylovora. 
Coordinator:  Austrian  Agency  for  Health 
and Food Safety (AGES), Institute of Plant 
Health  (Austria).  Participating  countries: 
Austria, Spain, Switzerland, France

4.  PEKID  -  Phytosanitary  efficacy  of  kiln 
drying. 
(Germany). 
Participating  countries:  Austria,  Germany, 
Italy, Slovenia 

Coordinator: 

JKI 

5.  PROPSCAPH  -  Evaluating  the 

risk  of 
spread  of  Scaphoideus 
titanus  with 
propagation  material.  Coordinator:  UP-
CRS  (Switzerland).  Participating  countries: 
France, Italy, Slovenia, Switzerland

6.  DeCLAIM  -  Decision  support  systems  for 
control  of  alien  invasive  macrophytes. 
Coordinator: Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ 
(The  Netherlands).  Participating  countries: 

53

(Fusarium  circinatum)  cause  of  pitch  pine 
canker. Coordinator: Ministry of Agriculture, 
Food  and  Forestry  (France).  Participating 
countries:  Denmark,  France, 
Italy,  The 
Netherlands, Spain, United Kingdom

and 

13. NCM2  -  Anoplophora 

longhorn  beetle 
risk  management. 
detection 
(United  Kingdom). 
Coordinator:  FERA 
Participating  countries:  Austria,  Belgium, 
Denmark, Germany, Italy 

and  Meloidogyne 

14. NCM2  -  Detection  and  management  of 
the  quarantine  nematodes  Meloidogyne 
chitwoodi 
fallax. 
Coordinator: NPPS (The Netherlands), ILVO 
(Belgium).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, France, 
Germany,  Slovenia,  The  Netherlands, 
United Kingdom, Turkey

15. NCM2  -  Phylogenetic 

identification  of 
quarantine  bacterial  plant  pathogens. 
Coordinator:  FERA 
(United  Kingdom). 
Participating  countries:  Austria,  Belgium, 
Bulgaria, Czech Republic, France, Germany, 
Italy,  The  Netherlands,  Portugal,  Slovenia, 
Spain, United Kingdom 

16. NCM2  -  Interlaboratory  comparison  and 
validation  of  detection  methods 
for 
phytoplasmas  of  phytosanitary  concern 
in  European  orchards.  Coordinator:  DAR 
(Spain).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Belgium, 
Republic, 
Germany,  Italy,  The  Netherlands,  Poland, 
Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, 
United Kingdom

Bulgaria, 

Czech 

17. NCM2  -  Development  of  pathotype-
specific PCR tests for the identification of 
Synchytrium  endobioticum  pathotype  1. 
The  Netherlands  Plant  Protection  Service 
NPPS,  Wageningen  UR  (University  and 
Research  Centre) 
(The  Netherlands). 
Participating countries: funding consortium 
under development. 

The Netherlands, United Kingdom

7.  Q-AMP 

-  Development  of  validated 
procedures for whole genome amplification 
of DNA/RNA for quarantine plant pathogens 
and  pests.  Coordinator:  Wageningen  UR 
(University  and  Research  Centre)  (The 
Netherlands).  Participating  countries:  The 
Netherlands, United Kingdom 

8.  NCM1 - Ring testing of diagnostic methods 
for  the 
identification  of  potato  cyst 
nematodes  and  assessing  resistance  of 
potato  cultivars.  Coordinator:  PPS  (The 
Netherlands), ILVO (Belgium). Participating 
countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech 
Republic,  France,  Germany,  Hungary,  The 
Netherlands,  Slovenia,  Spain,  Turkey, 
United Kingdom

9.  NCM1  -  Ring  test  on  diagnostic  methods 
for Pantoea stewartii ssp. stewartii, maize 
bacterial blight. Coordinator: DGAL (France). 
Participating  countries:  Austria,  France, 
Germany, Hungary, Turkey, United Kingdom 

10. NCM1  - 

ring 

(potato 

sepedonicus 

Interlaboratory  tests  for  the 
detection  of  Clavibacter  michiganensis 
rot) 
ssp. 
and  Ralstonia  solanacearum 
(potato 
brown  rot).  Coordinator:  ILVO  (Belgium). 
Participating  countries:  Belgium,  Bulgaria, 
Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, 
France,  Germany,  Ireland,  Italy,  Latvia, 
Lithuania, Malta, The Netherlands, Norway, 
Poland, Portugal, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, 
Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom 

11. NCM1  -  Validation  of  diagnostic  methods 
identification 
for 
the  detection  and 
of  whitefly-transmitted 
of 
viruses 
regulatory  or  quarantine  concern  to  the 
EU.  Coordinator:  FERA  (United  Kingdom). 
Participating  countries:  Belgium,  Bulgaria, 
Cyprus,  Czech  Republic,  France,  Greece, 
New  Zealand,  The  Netherlands,  United 
Kingdom 

12. NCM2  -  Development  and  validation  of 
diagnostic methods for Gibberella circinata 

54

EUROTRANS-BIO 

EUROpean network  of 
TRANSnational collaborative RTD 
for SMEs projects in the field of 
BIOtechnology 

Objective

Within  the  world-wide  competition,  European 
Biotechnology  SMEs  are  facing  a  challenge  to 
gain a critical size on the market in terms of RTD 
project  portfolio,  capitalisation,  and  scientific 
and  managerial  excellence.  Currently,  national 
RTD  programs  for  biotechnology  SMEs  and 
public  research  laboratories  do  exist  in  many 
EU  member  states.  However,  transnational 
funding  within  the  national/regional  programs 
is  not  common.  In  the  European  Community, 
transnational  public-private  partnerships  could 
achieve  synergy  effects,  reduce  risks  and 
costs in R&D projects and thus gain benefits in 
competitiveness. 

The  aim  of  the  EUROTRANS-BIO  project  is  to 
commit  ministries  and  government  agencies 
from  Member  States  (Austria,  Finland,  France, 
Germany,  The  Netherlands,  Spain/Basque 
Country) in the design and the implementation 
of a truly integrated transnational RTD program. 
Such  an  activity  will  develop  best  practices, 
establish  cross-border  partnerships  between 
laboratories, 
research 
SMEs  and/or  public 
strengthen  European  efforts 
to  achieve 
sustainable development and disseminate best 
practices. The management of the project is led 
by a Network Steering Committee composed of 
high level program and policy representatives. 

The consortium will make all its efforts for the 
incoming  of  new  Member  States  that  where 
not  ready  to  join  during  the  implementation 
of  the  proposal.  After  48  months  duration 

55

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To       

2004-10-01
2008-12-31

Follow-on ERA-NET

ETB-PRO

Project reference

11718

Programme 
acronym

FP6-COORDINATION

Call identifier

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-1-B

Title

EUROpean network of TRANSnational 
collaborative RTD for SMEs projects in the 
field of BIOtechnology

Contract type 

Coordination Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 893 950
€  2 893 950

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

12

Oseo Innovation European and International 
Partnership Department  OSEO, France

Nathalie Trannois
T +33 (0)1 41 79 80 59 
E nathalie.trannois@oseo.fr

offline (does not exist any longer)

AT
AT
DE
DE
ES
ES

Austrian Research Promotion Agency FFG
Federal Ministry of Economics and Labour BMWA
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH
Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
Society for the Promotion of Industry SPRI
Basque Government-Industry, Trade and Tourism Department 
ITT
Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation TEKES

FI
FR Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industry - General Directorate 

For Enterprise DGCIS

FR Ministry of Higher Education and Research - Directorate General 

FR

for Research and Innovation MESR-DGRI
Oseo Innovation European and International Partnership 
Department  OSEO
Agency NL  (formerly SenterNovem)

NL
NL Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ

the  EUROTRANS-BIO  project,  structured  into 
five  work  packages  (exchange  of  information, 
practices, strategic activities, implementation of 
joint activities and transnational call for projects), 
could lead to a truly integrated program in the 
area of biotechnology.

Consortium

The  consortium  of  EuroTransBio  consisted  of 
12  organisations  from  six  European  countries 
and  regions  (Austria,  Finland,  France,  Germany, 
The  Netherlands,  Spain/Basque  Country)  and 
involved  four  more  non-contractual  partners 
from two countries and one region (Spain, Italy 
and Belgium (Flanders)) that participated in the 
calls.  Organisations  are:  Agency  for  Innovation 
by  Science  and  Technology    IWT  (Belgium), 
Ministry  of  Economic  Development  MSE  (Italy), 
Italian  Institute  for  Industrial  Promotion  IPI 
(Italy), Society for the Promotion of Industry SPRI 
(Spain/Basque Country).

Mapping and scoping activities

A  standardized  documentation  of  each  of  the 
participating  national  programmes,  allowing 
each member to compare specific information, 
was  realized.    The  survey  was  complemented 
by  collecting 
information  on  the  national 
RTD  environment  and  actors,  and  potential 
barriers  for  transnational  cooperation.  Based 
on  this  inventory  the  integration  of  individual 
programs  and/or  its  modulation  to  overcome 
identified  barriers  were  discussed  in  order  to 
draft a feasible design for the first joint call for 
proposals.

Basic  elements  of  this  call  design  were  (i)  a 
bottom  up  approach  towards  the  call  topics 
(biotechnology  applications, 
thematic 
priorities), (ii) a strong focus on the target group 
(SMEs and their strategic partners, i.e. research 
organizations),  (iii)  a  two-step  call  procedure 
and (iv) the set-up of a virtual common pot.

no 

Joint calls

ETB  launched  three  transnational  calls  (2006, 
2007,  2008)  with  a  generic  call  title  “Funding 
of  Industrial  R&D  Projects  in  Biotechnology”. 
The  topic  of  the  call  was  bottom-up  and 
allowed for all sectors of modern biotechnology. 
The  calls  aimed  at  transnational  cooperation 
projects  between  biotech  SMEs  and  their 
strategic  partners 
(RTOs,  universities  and 
large  companies).  Projects  were  funded  by  the 
national/regional  funding  agencies  using  the 
virtual common pot model.

First call 2006

The  following  countries/regions  participated  in 
the  ETB  call  (2006):  Austria,  Finland,  France, 
Germany,  Spain  (Basque  country).    There  were 
66  proposals  submitted  and  23  selected  for 
funding (three projects were withdrawn/stopped 
after  they  had  received  a  positive  funding 
decision).  The  projects  amounted  to  a  total  of 
EUR  46  million  project  costs  of  which  EUR  22 
million  were  requested  from  public  funds  (the 
companies  had  to  co-fund  the  projects  up  to 
50% from their own resources).

Projects funded:

1.  Development of a novel Helicobacter pylori 
antigen test. Coordinator:  CARE diagnostica 
Ges.m.b.H. (Austria). Participating countries: 
Austria, Germany

2.  Translational 

approach 

for 

diagnostics  and  therapeutics 
Coordinator:  Dermagene  Oy 
Participating countries: Finland, France  

novel 
in  CTCL. 
(Finland). 

3.  Screening systems for the identification of 
allergic substances. Coordinator: EDI Gmbh 
(Germany). Participating countries: Austria, 
Germany

4. 

Integration  of  Proteomics,  Genomics, 
Transcriptomics  and  Metabonomics  to 
identify and characterize early Prognostic, 
Diagnostic  and  Therapeutic  Biomarkers 
for  widespread  Urologic  Disorders. 
Coordinator: 
  Mosaiques  Diagnostics 
(Germany). Participating countries: Austria,  
Basque Country (Spain), France, Germany

56

5. 

natural 

sources. 

Isolation of novel anti-diabetic compounds 
from 
Coordinator:  
55pharma Drug Discovery & Development 
AG 
countries: 
Austria, France, Germany

(Austria).  Participating 

6.  Marker-assisted  wheat 

improvement: 
creating  semi-dwarf  phenotypes  with 
superior  Fusarium  Head  Blight  resistance. 
Saatzucht  KG 
Coordinator: 
Söllingen 
Participating 
countries: France, Austria,  Germany

STRUBE 
(Germany). 

7.  Development  of  a  high 

throughput 
detection  system  for  diagnostic  purposes 
and  for  screening  of  antiviral  substances 
Influenza  A  H5N2. 
against  Avian 
Coordinator: 
(Germany). 
Participating countries: Austria, Germany

  Mediagnost 

8. 

Indicator  cell  lines  for  fast  identification 
of  pathogens.  Coordinator:  ProBioGen 
(Germany). Participating countries: Austria, 
France, Germany

9.  Development  of  an  aptamer  microarray 
for the simultaneous detection of multiple 
cancer  biomarkers  in  serum.  Coordinator: 
Proteomika  SL 
(Spain).  Participating 
countries: Basque Country (Spain), France, 
Germany

10.  Occurence  of  novel  Ligands  for  a  Nuclear 
Orphan  Receptor  in  plant  Metabolites. 
Coordinator: 
(France). 
  Genfit 
Participating countries: France, Germany

SA 

11.  Development of molecular target-oriented 
recombinant  antibodies  as 
innovative 
therapeutics  against  promestatic  and 
proangiogenic  mediators 
cancer 
microenvironment.  Coordinator:    Millegen 
SA (France). Participating countries: Basque 
Country (Spain), France

of 

12.  Design  and  construction  of  new  cellular 
and  animals  models  for  the  validation  of 
TrkB as an anti-cancer target. Coordinator: 
VECTALYS (France). Participating countries: 
France, Germany

and 

quantification 

of 
13. Identification 
proteins 
in  prokaryotic  and  eukaryotic 
systems  using  a  proteomics  approach 
based on Mass Spectrometry (MS), Surface 
Plasmon  Resonance  imaging  (SPRi)  and 
Stable  Isotope  Labelling  (SIL):  Application 
towards the understanding of the function 

of PDZ-domains as switchboard for signal 
transduction.  Coordinator:  Silantes  GbR/
BioQuantis  GbR  (Germany).  Participating 
countries: France, Germany

14.  Discovery  and  functional  validation  of 
new drugable targets for the treatment of 
colorectal  cancer.  Coordinator:  Fluofarma 
(France).  Participating  countries:  France, 
Germany

15.  The 

link  between  osteoporosis  and 
cardiovascular 
Coordinator: 
disease. 
Biomedica  Medizinprodukte  GmbH    CoKg 
(Austria).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
France

16.  New  treatments  of  bacterial  infections 
based on antivirulence drugs. Coordinator: 
Mutabilis  (France).  Participating  countries: 
France, Germany

17.  New natural terpenoids as building blocks 
for the discovery of novel anti-cancer drug 
candidates. Coordinator: LIBROPHYT S.A.S. 
(France).  Participating  countries:  France, 
Germany

18.  Automated,  Real-Time  and  Multiplex 
detection  of  ligand-target  InteractionS. 
Applications for automated aptamer design 
and  aptamer  based  assay.  Coordinator: 
Genewave (France). Participating countries: 
France, Germany

19.  Predictive  and  preventive  medicine 

in 
breast 
cancer.  Coordinator:  STATLIFE 
(France).  Participating  countries:  Basque 
Country (Spain), France

20.  Diffrachip:  Development  of  a  new 
biological  detection  method  based  on 
interactions 
light  diffraction  to  detect 
between biomolecules, and its application 
to a cancer biochip. Coordinator: INNOPSYS 
(France).  Participating  countries:  Basque 
Country (Spain), France

Second call 2007

The  following  countries/regions  participated  in 
the ETB call (2007): Austria, Belgium (Flanders), 
Finland,  France,  Germany,  Italy,  Spain  (Basque 
Country  and  Spain),  The  Netherlands.  There 
were  21  proposals  submitted  and  18  selected 
for funding. The projects amounted to a total of 

57

EUR  31  million  project  costs  of  which  EUR  17 
million  were  requested  from  public  funds  (the 
companies  had  to  co-fund  the  projects  up  to 
50% from their own resources).

Projects funded:

1.  Development  of  methods  and  means  for 
treating DNA repeat instability associated 
genetic  disorders.  Coordinator:  Prosenza 
B.V. 
(The  Netherlands).  Participating 
countries: The Netherlands, Spain

2. 

Inexpensive  production  of  low  endotoxin 
biopolymers  to  develop  essential  medical 
aids.  Coordinator:    Feyecon  D&I  B.V.  (The 
Netherlands). 
countries: 
Germany, The Netherlands

Participating 

3.  Crossbeta  adjuvation  of  H5  subunit 
vaccine  against  influenza  virus  H5N1:  a 
new  technology  for  acquiring  an  unmet 
need.  Coordinator:    Geneart  (Germany). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  The 
Netherlands

4. 

Identification  of  novel  targets  for  the 
prophylaxis  and  treatment  of  systemic 
Candidiasis.  Coordinator:    Intercell  A.G. 
(Austria).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Germany

5.  CLINICAL  VALIDATION  OF  GENETIC  TESTS 
FOR  THE  EVALUATION  AND  THERAPY 
IN  COLORECTAL  CANCER 
SELECTION 
PATIENTS. 
Dominion 
Coordinator: 
(Spain).  Participating 
Pharmakine  S.L. 
(Spain), 
countries: 
Germany

Country 

Basque 

6.  Spectral Systems for Prion early Detection 
in sheep milk and blood for enhancing food 
safety.  Coordinator:    Prion  Diagnostica 
S.R.L. 
countries: 
Germany, Italy

(Italy).  Participating 

7.  Alzheimer  apheresis.  Coordinator:  AFFiRiS 
Forschungs-  und  Entwicklungs  GesmbH 
(Austria).    Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Germany

8.  Protection of Donor Organs: New Machine 
Perfusion Techniques that Upgrade Organ 
Quality.  Coordinator:  Haemoscan  B.V. 
(The  Netherlands).  Participating  countries: 
France, Germany, The Netherlands

9.  Early 

(non-  and  minimally 

invasive) 
diagnostics  of  lung  cancer.  Coordinator: 

Mubio  Products  B.V.  (The  Netherlands). 
Participating countries: Flanders (Belgium), 
Germany, The Netherlands

10.  Innovative  Diagnostics  for 

the  Rapid 
Identification  and  Detection  of  Azole 
Resistant  Candida  Yeasts.  Coordinator: 
PathoFinder 
Netherlands). 
(The 
Participating countries: Flanders (Belgium), 
The Netherlands

11.  Integration  of  three  pioneering  screening 
technologies  to  provide  innovative  drugs 
for  unmet  medical  needs.  Coordinator: 
Thrombotargets 
(Spain). 
Participating countries: Germany, Spain

Europe 

SL 

12.  Research  on  cultivation  and  properties 
of  probiotic  bacteria  for  application  in 
vegetarian foodstuffs. Coordinator: Biofun 
(Belgium). Participating countries: Flanders 
(Belgium), Italy

therapeutic  proteins 

13.  Creation  of  a  production  platform 
for 
to  develop 
treatment  of 
inflammatory  diseases. 
Coordinator:  Alloksys  Life  Sciences  B.V. 
(The  Netherlands).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, The Netherlands

14.  Improving  immunotherapeutic  treatment 
imaging  of 
Coordinator: 
(Germany).  Participating 

of  cancer  by  molecular 
phosphatidylserine. 
PharmedArtis 
countries: Germany, The Netherlands

15.  A  new  Biotechnology  Platform 

for 
Multipurpose  Biosensors.  Coordinator:  
BIOSENSOR  S.r.l. 
(Italy).  Participating 
countries: Italy, The Netherlands

16.  GLOBCELL:  Global  scale  analysis  and 
prediction  of  human  cellular  behaviour 
in  a  complex  environment.  Coordinator:  
BIOBASE 
Participating 
countries: France, Germany

(Germany). 

17.  Development of new anticoagulant drugs. 
Coordinator:  Compound Handling BV (The 
Netherlands).  Participating  countries:  The 
Netherlands, Spain

18. New peptides for cardiovascular diagnosis. 
Coordinator:  Technoclone  GmbH  (Austria). 
Participating countries: Austria, France

58

 
Third call 2008

Austria, The Netherlands

The  following  countries/regions  participated  in 
the ETB call (2008): Austria, Belgium (Flanders), 
Finland,  France,  Germany,  Italy,  Spain  (Basque 
Country and Spain), The Netherlands

There  were  30  proposals  submitted  and  19 
selected for funding. The projects amounted to 
a total of EUR 27 million project costs of which 
EUR 15 million were requested from public funds 
(the companies had to co-fund the projects up 
to 50% from their own resources).

Projects funded:

- 

Preparation, 

1.  TOXICHIP 
and 
toxigenomics 
LIFELINELAB  SRL 
countries: Basque Country (Spain), Italy

validation 
commercialisation  of  prototype 
Coordinator:  
(Italy).  Participating 

chip. 

2.  BIOKA  -  Electrochemical  biosensors  for 
the  detection  of  the  marine  biotoxin 
okadaic  acid.  Coordinator:    INKOA  (Spain). 
Participating  countries:  Basque  Country 
(Spain), France

3.  CanDia 

-  DEVELOPMENT  OF 

AN 
INTEGRATED  ARRAY  PLATFORM  AND 
TEST  KITS  FOR  CANCER  DIAGNISTICS. 
Coordinator: ViennaLab Diagnostics GmbH 
(Austria).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Germany

4.  PABLISCA  -  Production  of  yeast  as 
biological drugs from the wastage material 
of baking and pastry industry. Coordinator: 
Agroindustry 
Technologies 
Advanced 
(Italy).  Participating countries: Italy, Spain

5.  MBS  -  Colorimetric  method  for  counting 
microorganisms  and  measuring 
their 
metabolism  in  waste  water  treatment 
plants  –  MICROBIOMET.  Coordinator:  MBS 
S.r.l.  (Italy).  Participating  countries:  Italy, 
Spain

6.  EN_CAR_TI 

- 

DEVELOPMENT 

OF 
ENGINEERED 
TISSUE. 
Coordinator:  Biosuma  (Italy).  Participating 
countries: Italy, France

CARTILAGE 

7. 

InnoVac  - 
Streptococcus 
Coordinator: 
Netherlands). 

pneumoniae 

Innovative  development  of 
vaccines. 
(The 
countries: 

Vaxinostics 
Participating 

B.V. 

59

8.  3Dheartscreen  -  New  Drug  Discovery 
platform  combining  in  silico  screening, 
3D-visualization  and  human  heart  cell 
validation. Coordinator:  Virtual Proteins B.V. 
(The  Netherlands).  Participating  countries: 
Flanders (Belgium), The Netherlands

9.  DREAM  -  Detection  and  ranking  of  easy 
accessible  peripheral  markers  for  the 
assessment  of  the  risk  of  Alzheimer 
disease  (AD).  Coordinator:    HO.p.e.  Srl 
(Italy). Participating countries: France, Italy

10.  CETP-vaccine  -  Development  of  an  anti-
CETP  vaccine  for  the  prevention  and 
treatment  of  atherosclerosis.  Coordinator: 
(Austria).  Participating 
AFFIRIS  GmbH 
countries: Austria, Germany

11.  WineChip  -  Development  of  a  SuNS 
Microarray  for  Monitoring  Fermentation  in 
Wine.  Coordinator:    Molecular  Stamping 
s.r.l.  (Italy).  Participating  countries:  France, 
Italy

12.  FLAPS 

-  FLowcytomix  Atherosclerotic 
Protein  Signature.  The  search  for  the 
vulnerable  patient.  Coordinator:  CAVADIS 
(The  Netherlands).  Participating  countries: 
Austria, Finland, The Netherlands

13.  CRC-REC-PRED  -  Molecular  Diagnostics 
Combining  Expression  and  Methylation 
Markers 
for  Prediction  of  colorectal 
cancer  Recurrence.  Coordinator:  Signature 
Diagnostics  A.G.  (Germany).  Participating 
countries: Germany, The Netherlands

14.  SMART 

- 

SPECIFICITY 
SPECIES 
MANAGEMENT  IN  RESISTANT  INFECTIOUS 
THYMIDYLATE 
DISEASES 
SYNTHASE.  Coordinator:    TYDOCKPHARMA 
(Italy). Participating countries: Italy, Spain 

TARGETING 

the 

impact  of  bioprocessing 
15.  PGSYN:  The 
and 
production 
on 
strategy 
downstreaming  of  polygalacturonases  by 
Aspergillus sojae. Coordinator:  GUSERBIOT 
S.L. (Spain). Participating countries: Basque 
Country (Spain), Germany

16.  PRODEME  - 

Innovative  Probe  Design 
Method  to  Extend  the  Use  of  Microarray 
Technology 
Research. 
Coordinator: FlexGen BV (The Netherlands). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  The 
Netherlands 

Genetic 

for 

France, Germany, The Netherlands 

19.  HPPCDB 

-  High  performance,  PAT-
compliant,  disposable  bioreactor  systems 
for  development  and  manufacture  of 
biopharmaceuticals.  Coordinator:  Cellution 
Participating 
BV 
countries:  Austria,  Flanders 
(Belgium), 
Germany, The Netherlands

(The  Netherlands). 

17.  FERMENVEGE  -  Development  of  mixed 
fermentation. 
(Finland). 

culture 
for 
Coordinator: 
Participating countries: Finland, Italy 

vegetable 

Bioferme 

18.  MicroScan - Development of a microsieve-
based  diagnostic  system  for  a  fast  and 
simple  detection  of  microorganisms. 
(The 
Coordinator:  MM  Diagnostics  BV 
countries: 
Netherlands). 

Participating 

60

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To

2006-01-16
2011-01-15

Project reference

25989

Programme 
acronym

FP6-COORDINATION

Call identifier

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-D

Title

The coordination of European Marine Fisheries 
Research Programmes

Contract type 

Coordination Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  3 780 000
€  2 977 070

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

16

Department for Environment, Food and Rural 
Affairs DEFRA, United Kingdom

Contact person

John Locke (untill 15th January 2011)

Website

Participants

www.cofasp.eu/marifish/

BE
CY
DE

DK
ES
FR
GR
IE
IS
NL
NO
PL
PL
PT
SE

UK

Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research ILVO
Research Promotion Foundation RPF
Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection 
BMELV
Directorate for Food, Fisheries and Agri-business DFFAB
Ministry of Science and Innovation MICINN
French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea IFREMER
General Secretariat for Research and Technology GSRT
Marine Institute MI
Icelandic Centre for Research RANNIS
Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ
Research Council of Norway RCN
Sea Fisheries Institute in Gdynia MIR
Ministry of Science and Higher Education MSHE
Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forest IPIMAR
Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural 
Sciences and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Scottish Executive, Fisheries research Services FRS

MariFish 

The Coordination of European 
Marine Fisheries Research 
Programmes

Objective

The EU fishing industry is the third largest in the 
world. It supplies some 6.9 million tonnes of fish 
each  year.  Fishing  and  fish  processing  directly 
provide jobs for more then 400 000 people. In 
addition, the maritime economy overall accounts 
for some five million jobs and some 5% of GDP 
is generated directly by marine-based industries 
and  services.  Today  this  sector  faces  many 
challenge and the priority for EU fisheries policy 
is to strike the right balance between having a 
competitive fishing industry and sustainable fish 
stocks  and  a  sustainable  marine  eco-system. 
European  aquaculture,  for  example,  is  at  the 
forefront  of  sustainable  development  in  the 
world, both in terms of social and environmental 
impacts.  Aquaculture  can  help  offset  declining 
wild  fish  stocks.  Already,  19%  of  the  tonnage 
sold by the EU fishing industry comes from fish 
farms.

The  ERA-NET  MariFish  project  brings  together 
the  major  European  national  funding  agencies 
involved in marine fisheries research to increase 
the  coordination  and  effectiveness  of  fisheries 
research at the European and regional level. The 
goal is to build on Europe’s strengths in marine 
research, technology and innovation. With better 
coordination  of  national  research  efforts  the 
EU  will  be  in  a  stronger  position  to  tackle  the 
significant challenges facing European fisheries 
management.  MariFish  sets  out  to  encourage 
joint  working  and 
increased  understanding 
between  the  project  partners.  This  will  help  to 
avoid  duplication  and  reduce  financial  risks  by 

61

spreading the costs of new research.

The five year project was launched in 2006 and 
for the first time the major funders of fisheries 
research  are  able  to  meet  and  discuss  a  wide 
range  of  issues  including  the  future  priorities 
for research, identification of gaps and overlaps 
in  national  programmes,  and  how  to  achieve 
better collaboration. The partners in the MariFish 
project have a combined annual budget of EUR 
16 million. Much of their work is geared towards 
providing a better understanding of the biology 
and dynamics of fish stocks and the impact of 
fishing on the marine environment.

MariFish  has  set  out  to  find  ways  to  improve 
research planning and procurement. The project 
also  aims  to  compare  and  analyse  national 
research  programmes  to  identify  areas  of 
common interest, gaps in research and areas of 
duplication.  This  will  help  the  partners  develop 
and  commission  shared  research  activities  in 
up  to  five  pilot  areas.  The  long-term  aim  has 
been  to  identify  the  strategic  and  innovative 
requirements  of  fisheries  research  over  the 
next  ten  years  and  develop  jointly  funded 
programmes to meet those needs.

Consortium

providing  any  new  research  funding  and  some 
use  additional  funding  to  strategically  link  the 
programmes together.

Joint calls

On the basis of a number of long-term strategic 
research  issues  which  have  been  identified  by 
MariFish members, a joint call for research was 
made at the end of 2008 and a series of themes 
have been proposed for joint research.

This encompasses:

•	

the  relationship  between  stock  size  and 
recruitment;

•	 by-catches and discards;

•	 biological interaction between species;

•	

•	

environmental impact of fisheries;

economic indicators.

The project represents a total combined budget 
of EUR 4.2 million between 2009 and 2011.

By  providing  the  opportunity  for  a  number  of 
distinct, autonomous organisations to learn from 
each other, the MariFish will help to develop  a 
strong  strategic  dimension  to  marine  fisheries 
research in Europe. 

The consortium consist of 16 partners from 15 
countries.

First call 2008

Mapping and scoping activities

One  of  MariFish’s  objectives  is  to  identify 
research topics that will be particularly suitable 
for coordination at European level and will bring 
added benefits to the European Research Area.

In  the  initial  phase,  the  projects  has  prioritised 
collecting 
in  marine 
information  on  topics 
fisheries  management  and  selected  five  to 
research 
be  developed 
programmes by a group of interested countries.

into  collaborative 

A total of EUR 3.7 million is being committed by 
partners to support three projects which together 
will  help  develop  the  concept  of  operational 
indicators for fisheries management. 

Marifish  launched  a  call  for  proposals  on  15 
December 2008 with a closing date of 2 March 
2009. Nine partners – Cyprus, Denmark, France, 
Greece, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Spain and 
UK (Defra) – committed a total of just over four 
million euros to the “virtual common pot”. Under 
the  “virtual  common  pot  model”,  all  partners 
fund their own national research groups.

Two  programmes  have  a 
regional  focus 
and  three  focus  on  a  particular  issue.  Some 
to  collaborate  without 
programmes  aim 

The  research  theme  selected  for  the  call  was 
the development of the concept of operational 
fisheries management indicators that can assist 

62

managers  in  developing  long  term  fisheries 
management  plans;  and  exploring  ways  these 
indicators  can  be  applied  to  selected  fisheries 
through  their  inclusion  in  fishery  management 
plans.

Six proposals were received and following peer 
review  by  a  panel  of  international  experts  the 
MariFish partners agreed to fund three projects.

Oceanography  IEO  (Spain).  Participating 
countries: Spain, Greece, France, Portugal

2.  BADMINTON  -  Bycatch  and  discards: 
trends  and 
indicators, 
management 
location.  Coordinator:  Hellenic  Centre 
(Greece). 
for  Marine  Research  HCMR 
Participating 
The 
countries: 
Netherlands,  Spain,  United  Kingdom, 
Denmark, Iceland

France, 

3.  DEFINELT 

Developing 
indicators  and 

fisheries 
- 
management 
targets. 
Coordinator:  Danish  Technical  University 
(Denmark).  Participating  countries:  United 
Kingdom, 
The  Netherlands,  Norway, 
Greece, Iceland

Projects funded:

1.  REPROdUCE  -  Understanding  recruitment 
coupled  biophysical 
the  pelagic  ecosystem. 
of 
Spanish 

processes  using 
models  of 
Coordinator: 

Institute 

63

SAFEFOODERA 

European excellence in food safety 
research programming

PROJECT DETAILS

Objective

Period

From 
To     

2004-08-01
2009-05-31

Follow-on ERA-NET Network completed  31st May 2009

Project reference

515726

Programme 
acronym

FP6-COORDINATION

Call identifier

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-B

Title

Food Safety - Forming a European platform 
for protecting consumers against health risks

Contract type 

Coordination Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  3 881 050
€  3 740 691

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

25

Nordic Innovation Centre NICe, Norway

Mads Peter Schreiber
E safefoodera@gmail.com

www.safefoodera.net

Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain FASFC
Research Promotion Foundation RPF

BE
CY
DK Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish 

DK

DK
FI
FR
FR
DE
DE
HU
IS 
IT
NL

Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation DASTI
National Food Institute – Technical University of Denmark 
NFI-DTU
Nordic Council of Ministers NCM
Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation TEKES
French Ministry of Research and New Technologies MRNT
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA
Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety BVL
Federal Institute for Risk Assessment BfR
National Office of Research and Technology NKTH
Icelandic Centre for Research RANNIS
Italian National Institute for Public Health ISS
The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority 
NVWA

NL Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ
NO Research Council of Norway RCN
NO Nordic Innovation Centre NICe
PL
PT
PT
SI
ES

National Food and Nutrition Institute IZZ
Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
National Institute of Biological Resources INRB
Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology MHEST
Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Research Directorate 
DAPA Basque Country
Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems 
VINNOVA
Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey 
TUBITAK
The Food Standards Agency FSA

SE

TR

UK

The  primary  objective  of  SAFEFOODERA  is  to 
establish  a  European  platform  for  protecting 
consumers  against  health 
risks  from  the 
consumption  of  food  through  a  coordination 
action. The EU is one of the largest producers of 
food and drink and a leading world exporter. Food 
safety is a key policy priority for Europe. Indeed 
there  have  already  been  outbreaks  of  food-
borne disease, such as BSE in beef or salmonella 
in eggs, and incidences of dangerous chemicals 
like  dioxins  in  dairy  products  which  have  had 
a  serious  impact  on  farming  and  exports,  and 
consumer  confidence.  The  EU  White  Paper  on 
food safety of January 2000 stressed the need 
for  high-quality  assessment,  management 
and  communication  of  risks  and  this  ERA-NET 
project responds to this need. National research 
efforts  are  often  embedded  in  environment  or 
agriculture  research  programmes  and  not  well  
coordinated or communicated at European level.

The  ERA-NET  SAFEFOODERA  project  was 
launched  in  2004  to  coordinate  national  food 
safety  research  across  Europe  and  enables 
research  programmes  to  cooperate  across 
national  borders.  The  five-year  project  has 
created  a  European  platform  for  protecting 
consumers against health risks. The project has 
established an effective network of programme 
managers and actively looks for opportunities for 
transnational research programmes to fill gaps 
in  knowledge.  It  also  aims  to  improve  Europe-
wide  communication  to  stakeholders  of  new 
research and risks, thereby helping to safeguard 

64

the  safety  and  welfare  of  European  citizens. 
The  primary  ‘impact’  measure  of  success  is 
a  confirmed  willingness  of  stakeholders  to 
cooperate and collaborate in a transparent way 
with the aim to restore and maintain consumer 
confidence in food safety. In addition to this also 
the question of how to cooperate in the future 
is an issue. The establishment of the emerging 
risk platform was in focus and a business plan 
and  structure  was  developed.  The  overall  aim 
of  the  platform  is  to  exchange  information 
on  current  and  future  research  related  to  the 
proactive  identification  of  emerging  feed  and 
food safety risks, i.e. research related to signals 
that may indicate the occurrence of (a) potential 
hazard(s).

food  safety  research”  showing  that  in  35 
funding  agencies/ministries  2359  food  safety 
related  projects  were  running  in  2004.  A  high 
number of duplicates were monitored (example: 
111  projects  concerning  campylobacter).  This 
database  of  projects  becomes  a  fundament 
for  the  development  of  trans  national  calls.  In 
addition  to  this  overview  of  national  research 
activity  the  network  continuously  the  selection 
of  research  topics  and  the  available  key 
resources  for  food  safety  research.  A  mapping 
of the national barriers for participation in trans-
border calls was performed. This survey focused 
at  the  funding  mechanism,  at  the  specific 
national  rules  for  reporting,  application  and 
evaluation and at the barriers for cooperation in 
joint research programme. 

Consortium

The  SAFEFOODERA  consortium  consists  of 
25  partners  from  18  different  countries. 
SAFEFOODERA  developed  a  strategy 
for 
involving  stakeholders  of  food  safety  aspects 
(EFSA), 
(European  Food  Safety  Authorities 
European  Commission 
(EU)  and  European 
organisations  of 
scientist,  business  and 
trade  in  food  products)  in  the  networking  on 
regular  consulting  basis  to  get  the  optimal 
coordination  of  national/regional  programmes 
as well as SAFEFOODERA targets. A pipeline for 
membership of SAFEFOODERA a memorandum 
of understanding signed with Brazil, Croatia, The 
Czech  Republic,  Ireland,  Latvia  and  Lithuania. 
Brazil was especially engaged as the first non-
European  country  with  a  large  export  of  food 
to Europe.  Participating organisations in these 
countries  are:  Plant  Inspection  Service  Ministry 
of Agriculture, Livestock & Food Supply (Brazil), 
Ministry  of  Agriculture  -  Food  Authority  (Czech 
Republic),  The  Croatian  Food  Agency  (Croatia), 
The  Irish  Safefood  (Ireland),  Lithuanian  State 
Food  and  Veterinary  Service  (Lithuania),  Food 
and Veterinary Service of Latvia (Latvia).

Mapping and scoping activities

SAFEFOODERA did in the early stage a mapping 
“Comparison and clustering of national/regional 

constraint 

level  a 
some 

Food  safety  is  both  at  European  level  and 
regulated  area  and  this 
national 
for 
political 
implicate 
cooperation.  Emerging  risks  is  a  part  of  the 
general objective and SAFEFOODERA identified 
a possible network of resources and instruments 
to  support  in  the  effective  identification  of 
(re)emerging  risks  and  prediction  of  new  risk. 
SAFEFOODERA  held  regular  meetings  with  the 
main  European  stakeholders  (scientist,  food 
producers,  food  distributers,  regulators  etc.) 
in  food  safety  research  and    summed  up  the 
common conclusions of the need for  European 
cooperation in the field.

Joint calls

First call 2006
Pilot call

to  better  organise  and 
full 

The pilot call intended to help the SAFEFOODERA 
consortium 
run 
transnational  programmes 
subsequent 
(larger  number  of  countries  and  topics  and 
with larger budgets). Three topics were chosen 
(two under a common pot funding scheme and 
one  with  a  distributed  pot  funding  scheme).  
The  projects  working  period  were  May  2007  – 
August 2008. They were finished by a seminar 
in Iceland 2008. 

Four  projects  were  funded  under  the  pilot  call 
with a network budget of EUR 3.8 million.

65

Projects funded:

1.  PUFFIN  -    Pathogen  &  ugly  microbe  free 
food  industry  network.  Coordinator:  MATIS 
(Iceland).  Participating  countries:  Cyprus, 
Denmark, Spain (Basque Country), Finland, 
Iceland, Norway, Sweden United Kingdom

2.  MYCONET  - 

in 

information 
  Network  of 
sources  for  an  identification  system  of 
emerging  mycotoxins 
international 
plant  production  chains.  Coordinator: 
Wageningen  UR  (University  and  Research 
Centre)  (The  Netherlands).  Participating 
countries:  Germany,  Denmark,  Finland, 
Iceland, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, 
Sweden

3.  SAFErment 

- 

Increased  safety  of 
fermented  sausage  by  the  application  of 
production exposure assessment for VTEC. 
Coordinator:  SIK  (Sweden).  Participating 
countries: Cyprus, Denmark, Spain (Basque 
Country), Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden 
United Kingdom

4.  CAMPEC-NET  -    Foodborne  zoonosis  - 
Campylobacter  and  E.  coli  -  a  network 
project.  Coordinator:  Norwegian  School  of 
Veterinary  Science  (Norway).  Participating 
countries:  Cyprus,  Germany,  Denmark, 
Spain  (Basque  Country),  Finland,  Iceland, 
Lithuania,  The  Netherlands,  Norway, 
Portugal, Sweden, United Kingdom

Second call 2008

A  second  call  was  launched  in  2008  focusing 
on topic of trans-nation interest in food safety 
research.  The  total  funding  budget  of  the  Call 
is approximately EUR 6.5 million. The activity in 
total approximately  EUR 11 million. The projects 
working period were May 2009 – August 2011. 
They were finished by a seminar in Copenhagen 
2011. 

Projects funded:

1.  Detection  of  traces  of  allergens  in  foods. 
Coordinator:  University  of  Basque  Country 
(Spain).  Participating  countries:  Czech 
Republic, Spain (Basque Country), Finland

2.  Piglet model for safety testing of probiotic 

66

Bacillus  species.  Coordinator:  Norwegian 
School  of  Veterinary  Science  (Norway). 
Participating  countries:  Iceland,  Norway, 
Slovenia

3.  BIOTRANSPORT:  Safe  transportation  of 
marine  bioactives  from  source  to  active 
site.  Coordinator:    Chalmers  (Sweden). 
Participating  countries:  Iceland,  Norway, 
Sweden, Slovenia.

polycyclic 

4.  RISKFOOD  –  BioAvailability  and 
of 

risk 
assessment 
aromatic 
hydrocarbons  (PAHs)  and  toxic  elements 
(As, Cd, Hg and Pb) in processed meat and 
seafood  products.  Coordinator:    IPIMAR 
(Portugal).  Participating  countries:  Spain 
(Basque Country), Portugal, Slovenia.

5.  EMTOX:  Effects  of  climate  change  on 
emerging  natural  toxins 
in  plant  and 
seafood  production.  Coordinator:  RIKILT 
-  Institute  of  Food  Safety,  Wageningen 
UR  (University  and  Research  Centre)  (The 
Netherlands). 
countries: 
Cyprus,  Denmark,  Finland,  Iceland,  The 
Netherlands, Norway, Sweden.

Participating 

6.  GMOseek.  Coordinator:  National  Ins  of 
Biology  (Slovenia).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, Slovenia, United Kingdom

7.  The  role  of  commensal  microflora  of 
animals  in  the  transmission  of  extended 
spectrum 
(ESBLs). 
ß-lactamases 
Coordinator:  Wageningen  UR  (University 
and  Research  Centre)  (The  Netherlands). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  The 
Netherlands, United Kingdom

8.  BEPRARIBEAN:  Best  Practices  for  Risk-
Benefit  Analysis:  experience  from  out 
of  food  into  food.  Coordinator:    RIVM/
Maastricht  University  (The  Netherlands). 
Participating  countries:  Finland,  Iceland, 
The Netherlands, Denmark, Norway

9.  LISRISK:  Risk  assessment  of  Listeria 
in  traditional  ready-to-eat  food  items. 
Coordinator: 
  University  of  Akureyri 
(Iceland).  Participating  countries:  Spain 
(Basque Country), Cyprus, Iceland, Portugal.

10. eTrace - electronic Traceability using EPCIS. 
Coordinator:  SINTEF (Norway). Participating 
countries: Norway, Iceland, Sweden

 
67

SNOWMAN 

Sustainable management of soil 
and groundwater  

Objective

SNOWMAN is a transnational group of research 
funding organisations and administrations in the 
field  of  sustainable  management  of  soil  and 
groundwater in Europe. SNOWMAN projects aim 
at bridging the gap between knowledge demand 
and supply (Science-Policy-Practice Interface).

The SNOWMAN network wants to develop and 
share knowledge for the sustainable use of soil 
and groundwater by:

•	

Executing  our  research  programme  by 
organising calls for projects;

•	 Disseminating  knowledge  by  sharing  the 
knowledge  developed  in  the  SNOWMAN 
projects  among  the  members  and  our 
broader networks, for example knowledge 
dissemination activities involve:

 -

 -

 -

 -

 -

November  2011  Workshop  on 
Natural Attenuation, Paris France

November  2012,  Online  conference 
(webinar)  on  Sediments  Sweden  – 
The Netherlands

A  “Dialogue  Session”  will  be  held 
at  the  Global  Soil  Week  in  Berlin 
(October 2013)

A  joint  Workshop  together  with  the 
NICOLE  network  is  scheduled  for 
November 2014

Involving end-users and stakeholders 
by giving them a role in our advisory 
group  and  in  our  project  consortia 
with end-user participation.

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To      

2004-01-01
2009-06-30

Follow-on ERA-NET

SNOWMAN Network, a self-maintained 
research funding network (2009 onwards)

Project reference

3219

Programme 
acronym

Call identifier

Title

Contract type 

ERA-NET:
Total cost
EU contribution

Self-sustained:
Annual cost 
secretariat
Research budget 
per call
EU contribution

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Self-sustained

Contact person

FP6-COORDINATION

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-A

ERA-NET: Sustainable management of soil 
and groundwater under the pressure of soil 
pollution and soil contamination
Self-sustained: Knowledge for Sustainable 
Soils

Coordination Action

€ 1 046 032
€ 1 046 032

€      60 000
€ 2 000 000 (on average)
€               0

ERA-NET 7; self-sustained 8

Ministry of Life - Federal Ministry of 
Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water 
Management BMLFUW (Austria)
Netherlands Centre for Soil Quality 
Management and Knowledge Transfer SKB 
(The Netherlands)

Simon Moolenaar, Chair of the SNOWMAN 
network 
E simon.moolenaar@skbodem.nl

Website

www.snowmannetwork.com

Participants ERA-NET
AT

Ministry of Life - Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, 
Environment and Water Management BMLFUW
Public waste agency of Flanders OVAM
Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and 
Nuclear Safety BMU
French Environment and Energy Management Agency ADEME
Netherlands Centre for Soil Quality Management and 
Knowledge Transfer SKB
Swedish Environment Protection Agency SEPA
Environment Agency of England and Wales

BE
DE

FR
NL

SE
UK

Self-sustained: Members/Public Funders

BE
BE
BE
FR

FR
SE
SE

NL

Public waste agency of Flanders OVAM
Department of Environment, Nature & Energy LNE
Public Service of Wallonia SPW D GARNE
Ministry for the Protection of Nature and the Environment 
MEDDE
French Environment and Energy Management Agency ADEME
Swedish Environment Protection Agency SEPA
Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural 
Sciences and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Netherlands Centre for Soil Quality Management and 
Knowledge Transfer SKB

68

Consortium

The  consortium  was  funded  by  the  European 
Commission’s  6th  Framework  Programme  for 
Research  and  Technological  Development 
(RTD)  and  included  seven  partners  from  seven 
different  EU  countries  representing  national 
activities in the field of SNOWMAN. In the self-
sustained continuation the consortium consist of 
eight partners from four different countries.

Mapping and scoping activities

SNOWMAN  started  as  a  European  financed 
ERA-NET  project  (FP6)  with  a  budget  for  five 
years  (2004-2009).  The  scope  of  this  ERA-
NET was “Sustainable management of soil and 
groundwater under the pressure of soil pollution 
and soil contamination”. The SNOWMAN partners 
created  a  vision  on  research  coordination,  a 
communication strategy and action plan for the 
dissemination  of  research  results,  a  common 
research  programme  and  a  framework  for 
conducting  transnational  calls  for  research 
projects.

The  first  call  was  successful  and  resulted  in 
six  research  projects  of  which  the  results  were 
shared  among  the  partners.  The  SNOWMAN 
Navigator, delivered in 2005, gives an overview 
of research funding organisations in the field of 
soil and groundwater.

When the ERA-NET project ended, the SNOWMAN 
Network continued as a self-financed/sustained 
network  with  a  broadened  scope:  “Knowledge 
for sustainable soils”.

Relationships between sustainable soil, (ground)
water, and land management on the one hand and 
on the other hand topics related to contaminated 
sites and brownfields, biodiversity and ecosystem 
services, sustainable management of agricultural 
and forestry soils, climate change and energy and 
socio-economics  are  at  the  core  of  the  current 
SNOWMAN projects.

•	

•	

•	

•	

•	

field with specification of next steps, short- 
and medium-term (living document).

SNOWMAN  Research  Programme  which 
provides  the  basis  for  our  coordinated 
research  calls  and  a  strategy  to  develop 
transnational  research  coordination  (yearly 
updated).

SNOWMAN Management Paper with a set of 
rules and agreements on how to cooperate 
and how to execute the coordinated research 
calls (revised when necessary).

to 

SNOWMAN  LANDSCAPE  connects  research 
projects 
research  questions.  The 
SNOWMAN  Landscape  is  a  database  of 
SNOWMAN,  EU  and  national 
research 
projects,  categorized  by  the  SNOWMAN 
Network 
research 
research  areas  and 
questions.  We  aim  to  provide  a  better 
overview  of  all  research  projects  in  the 
field  of  soil  and  groundwater  in  Europe: 
aiming  for  continuous  updates  at  www.
snowmanlandscape.com.

SNOWMAN  Scoping  Workshop  on  socio-
economics  (June  2010)  serving  as  a  basis 
for the fourth Call. 

Investigation 

SNOWMAN  Future 
(May-
November  2013)  to  arrive  at  a  roadmap 
to  attract  new  funders  and  other  network 
partners  and  to  align  the  SNOWMAN 
activities with Horizon 2020 (H2020).

(2013)  carries  out  an 
SNOWMAN  currently 
investigation on the future of the network and at 
the same time reviews the network organisation. 
New  developments  at  the  European 
level, 
especially  within  the  context  of  Horizon  2020, 
may open opportunities for new ways of funding 
and  of  working.  We  relate  the  self-sustained 
SNOWMAN  network  to  the  H2020  themes  and 
challenges  and  align  our  activities  with  H2020 
instruments (EIPs, JPIs, ERA-NETs, KICs).

SNOWMAN  wants  to  build  strong  transnational 
and subnational collaboration on sustainable soil 
management in Europe in order to get soil issues 
higher on the agenda of the EC as a cross cutting 
theme to address the H2020 societal challenges.

•	 SNOWMAN Vision Paper defines the goal of 
European research activities in this specific 

Although  not  formally  a  JPI,  the  ambition  of 
SNOWMAN  is  to  become  a  truly  European 

69

platform  (“umbrella”)  for  sustainable  soil  and 
land management with special emphasis on soil 
as a natural resource within H2020.

3. 

In  this  sense  soil  issues  could  be  incorporated 
in  a  strategic  research  agenda  relating  to 
several themes (like Energy, Environment, KBBE, 
Health,  Socio-Economics  and  other  themes) 
thus  enhancing  cross-thematic  cooperation,  for 
example with PLATFORM (KBBE ERA-NETs & JPI-
FACCE).

Joint calls

First call 2006 
Pilot call

In  December  2006,  the  SNOWMAN  consortium 
opened  its  pilot  call  for  transnational  research 
in  the  field  of  “Sustainable  Management  of  Soil 
and Groundwater Pollution”. SNOWMAN received 
a total of 23 project proposals, which have been 
evaluated in a stepwise process. Almost EUR 800 
000  was  available  for  the  call;  the  budget  was 
over-subscribed by 3.5 times. Of the 23 proposals 
there  were  four  with  partners  outside  the 
SNOWMAN  consortium  (namely:  Czech  Republic, 
Denmark,  Italy,  Russia,  Spain)  willing  to  bring  in 
external funding into the respective projects. 

research  projects  were 

Five 
funded  by 
SNOWMAN. The smallest consortium consisted of 
two organisations from two SNOWMAN partner 
countries.  The 
research  consortium 
included  11  organisations  from  six  SNOWMAN 
partner countries and one organisation from the 
Czech Republic and Italy each.

largest 

Projects funded:

1.  PERSPEC  -  Perspectives  on  mobilisation 
soil. 
of  prioritised 
Coordinator:  Umeå  University  (Sweden). 
Participating  countries:  Austria,  Sweden, 
United Kingdom

contaminants 

in 

2.  MUSA 

- 

on 

Ecosystems 

Integrating  Multiple  Scale 
for 
Assessment 
Land 
Management. 
Contaminated 
Coordinator: 
SETEMIP-Environnement 
(France).  Participating  countries:  France, 
The Netherlands

- 

system 

IOPSIM 
(Im)mobilization  of  organic 
pollutants  by  soil  constituents  in  the  soil/
groundwater 
for 
innovative  management. 
Coordinator: 
Universität  für  Bodenkultur  Wien  BOKU 
(Austria).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Germany, The Netherlands

-  Strategies 

4.  SUMATECS 

-  Sustainable  management 
of  trace  element  contaminated  soils  - 
Development  of  a  decision  tool  system 
and  its  evaluation  for  practical  application. 
Coordinator:  Universität 
für  Bodenkultur 
Wien BOKU (Austria). Participating countries: 
Austria,  Czech  Republic,  Flanders  (Belgium), 
France,  Germany, 
Italy,  Sweden,  United 
Kingdom

5.  ENACT  -  Extending  the  Natural  Attenuation 
of Chlorinated solvents Toolbox. Coordinator: 
Tauw  bv  (The  Netherlands).  Participating 
countries: 
Flanders 
The  Netherlands, 
(Belgium), Germany

6.  Rejuvenate - Rejuvenate: Crop Based Systems 
for Sustainable Risk Based Land Management 
for  Economically  Marginal  Degraded  Land. 
Coordinator:    R3  environmental  technology 
ltd (United Kingdom). Participating countries: 
United Kingdom, Germany, The Netherlands, 
Sweden

Final results were presented in Vienna on June 
17th, during the SNOWMAN Science day.

Second call 2009 

The  second  call  of  SNOWMAN  was  opened 
between 12 January 2009 and 31 March 2009. 
This  call  was  launched  in  the  ERA-NET  period 
and finalized in the self-sustained network. 

Project proposals for three topics were asked: 

•	 Areal  management  of  contaminated  soil 

and groundwater

•	

Integration  of  soil  management 
spatial planning

into 

•	 Use of contaminated land for biofuel crop 

production

Available budget: EUR 1.8 million. Of this budget 
EUR 994 000 was rewarded.

70

SNOWMAN  received  a  total  of  10  project 
proposals,  which  have  been  evaluated  in  a 
stepwise process. This evaluation resulted in the 
selection of three projects in the second call.

Projects funded:

1.  MCA  -  Multi-criteria  analysis  (MCA)  of 
remediation  alternatives  to  access  their 
overall impact and cost/benefit, with focus 
on  soil  function  (ecosystem  services  and 
goods)  and  sustainability.  Coordinator: 
Umeå  University  (Sweden).  Participating 
countries: Sweden, Austria

2. 

INSPECT - INtegration of SPatially Explicit 
risks  of  ConTaminants  in  Spatial  Planning 
and  Land  Management.  Coordinator: 
university 
Chrono-Environnement, 
of 
(France). 
Participating countries: Flanders (Belgium), 
The Netherlands

Franche-Comté/CNRS 

3.  Rejuvenate2  -  Crop  Based  Systems  for 
Sustainable Risk Based Land Management 
for  Economically  Marginal  Degraded 
Areas,  Phase  II:  Demonstration  projects 
and  evaluation  decision  support  tool. 
Coordinator: Swedish Geotechnical Institute 
(Sweden). Participating countries: Romania, 
Flanders (Belgium), The Netherlands

Kick-off  meeting:  Vienna,  February  9th  and 
10th, 2010; Midterm meeting: Paris, November 
9th, 2011; Final meeting: Paris, November 18th, 
2013.

Third call 2011 (self-sustained)

This  call  was  open  from  15  September  2010 
until 15 December 2010.

Project proposals for three topics were asked: 
Topic 1: Soil functions and ecosystem services
Topic 2: Sustainable agriculture and forestry
Topic 3: Contamination

Available budget : two million euros.
The available budget was completely spent and 
even exceeded by about 10% (extra funding)

SNOWMAN  received  a  total  of  14  project 
proposals,  which  have  been  evaluated  in  a 

stepwise process. This evaluation resulted in the 
selection of six projects in the third call.

Projects funded: 

1.  SUSTAIN - Soil Functional Biodiversity and 
Ecosystem  Services,  a  Trans  disciplinary. 
Coordinator: University of Rennes (France). 
Participating  countries:  The  Netherlands, 
France

2.  ECOSOM  -  Soil  organic  matter  as  a  key 
factor  in  the  provision  of  soil  ecosystem 
services.  Coordinator:  Institut  National  de 
la  Recherche  Agronomique.  Participating 
countries: Sweden, France, The Netherlands

3.  SAS-STRAT  -  Sustainable  Agriculture  and 
Soil:  comparative  study  of  strategies 
for  managing  the  integrated  quality  of 
agricultural  soils  in  different  regions  of 
Europe/Belgium,  France,  The  Netherlands. 
Coordinator: Mutadis (France). Participating 
countries: 
The  Netherlands, 
Wallonia (Belgium)

France, 

4. 

5. 

Integrating  Bioavailability 

IBRACS  - 
in 
Risk  Assessment  of  Contaminated  Soils: 
opportunities and feasibilities. Coordinator: 
Swedish  Geotechnical  Institute  (Sweden). 
Participating  countries:  Sweden,  Wallonia 
(Belgium), Flanders (Belgium), France

ImaHg - Enhanced knowledge in mercury fate 
and  transport  for  improved  management 
of  Hg  soil  contamination.  Coordinator: 
Bureau de Recherche Géologique et Minière 
(France).  Participating  countries:  Flanders 
(Belgium), France, United Kingdom

6.  PACMAN  -  Assessment  and  Management 
of  polar  PACs  in  contaminated  soils  and 
remedial  processes.  Coordinator:  Umeå 
University(Sweden). Participating countries: 
Sweden, France

Kick-off meeting: Paris, November 8th, 2011
Midterm  meeting:  Paris,  November  18th  -19th, 
2013 

Fourth call 2012

This  call  was  open  from  September  17th  until 
December 17th 2012.

71

 
Integrating natural, social and economic science 
perspectives on soil research.

The scope of the fourth Call was based on the 
relationship between soil, on the one hand, and 
social and economic sciences on the other.

All  SNOWMAN  partners  believe  soil  quality 
management  should  change  from  being  a 
specific, sectoral policy and management issue 
into  an  integrated  factor  in  decision  making 
processes. There is lack of knowledge in terms of 
how society understands, perceives and values 
soils.  The  4th  call  was  therefore  focussing  on 
integrating natural, social and economic science 
perspectives on soil research. Attention has thus 
been drawn to the coupled interactions between 
economic  (profit),  ecologic  (planet)  and  social 
(people) systems. 

Ten major “issues” in the context of social and 
economic  research  related  to  soil  have  been 
defined:

1.  Consideration  of  soil 

in  the 
holistic approach to land management and 
redevelopment.

(quality) 

2.  Assessment  of  the  trade-offs  between 

different soil services

3. 

Ignorance  and  the  appeal  of  (using)  the 
soil

4.  Ownership relationships with regard to soil

5.  Formal  framework  for  achieving  efficient 

and sustainable use of soil

6.  Sectoral  (or  private)  versus  social  (or 

public) value systems

7.  Fragmented share of costs and benefits

8.  Consideration of specific characteristics of 
the soil system as an object of concern in 
environmental management and policy 

9.  Communication, 

perception 
and 
raising: 
9a.  Risk  perception  of  contaminated 

risk 
awareness 

soils  by  different  stakeholders  and 
communication  with  the  general  public. 
9b. Communication and awareness-raising 
(on all soil issues, not just contamination)

In the fourth call these 10 issues were addressed 
within two specific thematic clusters:

Soil contamination 

I. 
II.  Agricultural and forest soils (with special 
emphasis on research related to climate 
change)

Available budget : EUR 1.8 million. Of this budget 
EUR 856 716 was awarded. 

SNOWMAN  received  a  total  of  eight  project 
proposals,  which  have  been  evaluated  in  a 
stepwise process. This evaluation resulted in the 
selection of three projects in the fourth call. 

Projects funded:

1.  BALANCE4P  –  Balancing  decisions  for 
urban  brownfield  regeneration  –  people, 
planet,  profit  and  processes.  Coordinator: 
Technology 
Chalmers  University 
(Sweden). Participating countries: Sweden, 
The Netherlands, Belgium

of 

2.  RAI  SOILCOMP  –  Raising  awareness 
on  the  Impact  of  subSOIL  COMPaction. 
Coordinator:  Wageningen  UR  (University 
and  Research  Centre)  -  Alterra 
(The 
Netherlands).  Participating  countries:  The 
Netherlands, Flanders (Belgium), Sweden

3.  URBAN  SOIL  –  Relationship  between 
City-Dwellers  and  soils:  How  to  use 
urban  and  Peri-urban  soils  to  face  the 
urban  challenge.  Coordinator:  Fondation 
Maison des sciences de l’homme (France). 
Participacting  countries:  France,  Wallonia 
(Belgium), The Netherlands

Kick-off  meeting:  Planned  for  November  19th 
2013 in Paris.

72

WOODWISDOM-NET 

Networking and Integration of 
National Programmes in the Area 
of Wood Material Science and 
Engineering

PROJECT DETAILS

Objective

Period

From
To      

2004-01-01
2008-12-31

Follow-on ERA-NET WOODWISDOM-NET 2 and WOODWISDOM-

NET+

Project reference

ERAC-CT-2003-510206

Programme 
acronym

FP6-COORDINATION

Call identifier

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-A

Title

Supporting the cooperation and coordination 
of research activities carried out at national 
or regional level (ERA-NET Scheme)

Contract type 

Coordination Actions (CA)

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 195 180
€  2 195 180

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

18

Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and 
Innovation TEKES, Finland

Ilmari Absetz 
E ilmari.absetz@tekes.fi
T +358 2950 55837
Mika Kallio  
E mika.kallio@woodwisdom.net

www.woodwisdom.net

Austrian Research Promotion Agency FFG
Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH

AT
DE
DE
DK Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish 

DK
FI
FI
FI
FR
FR

Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation DASTI
Danish Forest and Nature Agency DFNA
Academy of Finland AKA
Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation TEKES
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA
Ministry of Agriculture/General Direction for Forest and Rural 
Affairs MAAPR
Technical Centre for Wood and Furniture CTBA

FR
NO Norwegian Industrial and Regional Development Fund SND
NO Research Council of Norway RCN
NO Nordic Forest Research Cooperation Committee SNS
SE

Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems 
VINNOVA
Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural 
Sciences and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Forestry Commission FC
Scottish Enterprise Dumfries and Galloway SEDG

SE

UK
UK

The  aim  of  the  WoodWisdom-Net  project  was 
to  create  a  common  research  platform  by 
developing  sustained  collaboration  between 
the  European  forestry  sector  and  forest-based 
industry, the wood material research community 
and  funding  organisations  and 
integrating 
research 
in  different  countries. 
innovative 
the  development  of 
Promoting 
forest-based  products,  processes  and  services, 
the collaboration was aimed to benefit Europe’s 
citizens and strengthen the competitiveness of 
Europe’s forest sector and forest-based industry.

resources 

final  goal  of 

The 
the  WoodWisdom-Net 
consortium  was  to  prepare  and  implement  a 
cooperation  agreement  and  launch  a  joint  call 
of  a  transnational  programme.  The  experience 
gained  in  planning  and  implementation  of  the 
Finnish-Swedish  co-funded  Wood  Material 
in  the 
Science  Programme,  which  started 
beginning of 2003, gave a good basis to build 
up a long-term European research area in wood 
material  science.  Structuring  of  the  activities 
was  grouped  into  two  categories:  information 
collection and cooperation objectives.

Consortium

The first ERA-NET on wood material science and 
engineering, WoodWisdom-Net, started in 2004 
with  12  partners  from  five  countries  and  was 
later  in  2006  expanded  with  six  new  partners 
(3 countries).

73

Mapping and scoping activities

The  ERA-NET  WoodWisdom-Net  had  several 
tasks  designated  for  mapping  and  scoping 
activities such as:

•	

•	

Information 
programmes (and research activities);

exchange 

on 

research 

institutional 

information  on  political 
Exchange  of 
and 
and 
environment 
implementation  approaches  of  research 
programmes;

•	 Development 

of 

networking 

and 
for  programme 
cooperation  structure 
makers 
programme  managers 
and 
(information  of  programmes,  projects, 
partners and other activities) in Europe;

•	

Identification  of  potentially 
relevant 
new  partner  countries  to  be  involved  in 
WoodWisdom-Net in the future;

•	 Documentation  on  common  goals  and 
activities  within  the  national  activities 
involved in the ERA-NET;

•	 Creating  an  overview  on  legal  barriers 
transnational  cooperation 
that  hinder 
and  guidelines  and  recommendations  for 
future activities.

The main outcomes of the mapping and scoping 
activities are published in the following reports:

•	 Report  1-2005  -  Overview  of  Evaluation 
Practises  and  Guidelines  for  Common 
Research Activities

•	 Report  1-2006  -  Overview  on  Barriers 
That Hinder Transnational Cooperation and 
Models for Future Cooperation

•	 Report 

2-2006 

and 
- 
Transnational  Research  Programmes  of 
the WoodWisdom-Net Partners

National 

•	 Report 1-2008 - Best Practises of Research 
Programmes  of  the  WoodWisdom-Net 
Partners in the Field of Wood and Forestry 
Research

•	 Report  2-2008 

–  Overview  of  Foresight  Studies 
WoodWisdom-Net Countries

-  Foresight  Report 
in 

•	 Report 3-2008 - Report on WoodWisdom-

Net Self-evaluation

The  project  also  created  a  specific  joint  online 
database/document  pool  (Research  Landscape 
Tool) on national research programmes/projects. 
The  Research  Landscape  Tool  was  designed 
to  support  the  objectives  of  the  development 
of  networking  and  cooperation  structure  for 
programme  makers  and  programme  managers 
(information  of  programmes,  projects,  partners 
and  other  activities)  in  Europe,  and  to  collect 
relevant stakeholder information.

Joint calls

First call 2006

The  first  joint  call  for  proposals  within  the 
WoodWisdom-Net Research

launched 

the  first 

At the start of November 2006 the participating 
two-step 
organisations 
Joint  Transnational  Call  for  Proposals.  The  call 
was  devoted  to  basic  research  with  sub  call  A 
addressed  “Wood  production  and  properties” 
as  applied  to  industrial  Research  Technology 
and  Development  (RTD).  Sub  call  B  addressed 
“New wood-based products, efficient processes 
and  sustainable  forestry”.  In  the  first  phase 
70  proposals  from  consortia  with  over  400 
participating  organisations 
total  were 
submitted. In the 2nd phase 40 consortia were 
invited  to  submit  a  full  proposal  and  finally, 
17  proposals  were  accepted  for  funding  (see 
below),  the  call  having  a  total  funding  of  over 
EUR  20  million.  The  share  of  public  national 
funding  was  70%,  industrial  funding  15%  and 
research  centres  own  funding  totalling  15%.  It 
was very pleasing to note that a further seven 
countries (not ERA-NET partners) participated in 
the programme by providing funds to individual 
project participants.

in 

List of selected projects sorted by main research 
area:

FIBRES - Wood Fibre Properties and Processing 

Projects funded:

1.  BioPack  -  Design  of  biocomposites  based 
on  nanocellulose  and  hemicelluloses  for 
future  packaging  materials.  Coordinator: 

74

STFI-Packforsk  AB  (Sweden).  Participating 
countries: Sweden, Finland, France

2.  DesignCell 

- 
Nanostructures. 
Packforsk  AB 
countries: Sweden, Finland, France

Cellulosic 
STFI-
(Sweden).  Participating 

Designed 
Coordinator: 

3.  FibreSurf  -  New  Biotechnical  tools  for 
wood  fibre  modification  and  analyses. 
Coordinator:  Royal  Institute  of  Technology 
(KTH)  -  Div.  of  Wood  Biotech.,  School  of 
Biotechnology 
(Sweden).  Participating 
countries: Sweden, Finland, United Kingdom

4.  FUNFIREBIC  -  Functional  fibre  reinforced 
biocomposites. Coordinator: Oy All-Plast Ab 
(Finland).  Participating  countries:  Finland, 
Germany, Sweden

5.  HemiPop  -  Engineering  structure  and 
properties  of  poplar  hemicelluloses. 
Coordinator: University of Helsinki (Finland). 
Participating  countries:  Finland,  Sweden, 
France

6.  PROBARK  -  A  sustainable  process  for 
production  of  green  chemicals 
from 
softwood bark. Coordinator: VTT Technical 
Research  Centre  of  Finland 
(Finland). 
Participating  countries:  Finland,  Germany, 
Sweden

7.  ReCell  -  Refined  cellulose  derivatives 
for 
high-value  biomedical  products. 
Coordinator: Royal Institute of Technology, 
Fibre-  and  Polymer  Technology  (Sweden). 
Participating  countries:  Sweden,  Germany, 
Finland

8.  WoodFibre3D - Structure-property relations 
of  wood  fibres:  3D  characterization  and 
modelling.  Coordinator:  SINTEF  Materials 
(Norway).  Participating 
and  Chemistry 
countries:  Norway, 
Finland,  Sweden, 
Denmark

WOOD - Wood Materials and Engineering

Projects funded:

1.  FireInTimber - Fire resistance of Innovative 
Timber  structures.  Coordinator:  SP  Trätek/ 
Wood  Technology  (Sweden).  Participating 
countries:  Sweden,  Finland,  Germany, 
France,  Norway,  United  Kingdom,  Austria, 
Switzerland, Estonia

75

2.  GRADEWOOD  -  Grading  of  timber  for 
engineering  wood  products.  Coordinator: 
VTT  Technical  Research  Centre  of  Finland 
(Finland).  Participating  countries:  Finland, 
United Kingdom, France, Germany, Sweden, 
Austria, Slovenia. 

3. 

Improved  Moisture  - 
Improved  glued 
wood  –  modelling  and  mitigation  of 
moisture-induced  stresses.  Coordinator: 
VTT  Technical  Research  Centre  of  Finland 
(Finland).  Participating  countries:  Finland, 
Sweden, Germany, Austria, China

4.  TES-Energy 

Timber-based 
Facade  – 
element systems for improving the energy 
the  building  Envelope. 
efficiency  of 
Coordinator: 
Universität 
Technische 
München  -  TUM,  Timber  Architecture 
(Germany). 
countries: 
Participating 
Germany, Finland, Norway

5.  WinFur - Use of furfurylated wood for the 
production  of  high-performance  windows 
made  of  European  Timbers.  Coordinator: 
University of Göttingen - Institute of Wood 
Biology  and  Wood  Technology  (Germany). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Norway, 
Sweden

6.  WoodExter - Service life and performance 
of exterior wood above ground. Coordinator: 
SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden 
(Sweden). Participating countries: Sweden, 
United  Kingdom,  Finland,  France,  Austria, 
Norway, Germany, Belgium

FORESTRY - Wood Resources and Logistics

Projects funded:

1. 

IRIS  -  New  technologies  to  Optimize  the 
wood information basis for forest industries 
-  developing  an  integrated  information 
system. Coordinator: Norwegian University 
of  Life  Sciences 
(UMB).  Participating 
countries:  Norway,  Germany,  Finland, 
Sweden, Ireland

2.  WOODVALUE  -  Value  creation  in  wood 
supply  chains.  Coordinator:  The  Finnish 
Forest Research Institute (Metla) - Parkano 
Research  Unit.  Participating  countries: 
Sweden,  United 
Finland,  Germany, 
Kingdom, Denmark, Norway, Italy

3.  WOVEN  -  Wood  formation  under  varying 
environmental conditions. Coordinator: The 
Finnish  Forest  Research  Institute  (Metla). 
Participating  countries:  Finland,  Norway, 
Sweden

76

FP7 ERA-NET Actions

European Reseach Area Networks
of the 7th Framework Programme

ANIHWA 

Animal Health and Welfare

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2012-01-01
2015-12-31

Project reference

291815

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2011.1.3-05

Title

Animal health and welfare ERA-NET

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 242 784
€  1 999 918

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

30

French National Institute for Agricultural 
Research INRA, France

Contact person

Abdenour Benmansour
E Abdenour.Benmansour@jouy.inra.fr

Website

Participants

www.anihwa.eu

AT

BE

BE

BE

CH

CY

CZ

DE

DE

DE

DE

DK

ES

FI

FR

FR

FR

FR

Austrian Federal Ministry of Health BMG

Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain FASFC

National Fund for Scientific Research FRS-FNRS

Veterinary and Agrochemical Research Centre CODA-CERVA

Federal Veterinary Office FVO

Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment MOA

Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic MZE

Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF

Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection BMELV

Federal Agency of Agriculture and Food BLE

Jülich Research Centre JUELICH

Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish Agency for Science, 
Technology and Innovation DASTI
National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food Research INIA

Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 

Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety ANSES

French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA

INRA Transfert IT

National Agency for Research ANR

GR

Hellenic Agricultural Organization  DEMETER

IE

IL

IT

IT

LT

NL

NL

NO

SE

UK

UK

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food DAFF

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Veterinary Services and 
Animal Health VSAH
Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF

Ministry of Health HM-DVPHNFS

Veterinary Academy of Lithuanian University of Health Science LUHS

Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ

The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority NVWA

Research Council of Norway RCN

Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences and Spatial 
Planning FORMAS
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council BBSRC

The Secretary Of State For Environment, Food And Rural Affairs DEFRA

Objective

The  activities  of  consumer  groups  and  animal 
protectionists  and  the  effects  of  large-scale 
sanitary  crises  have  increased  the  awareness 
that  animal  production  is  more  than  just  an 
industry.  Farm  animal  welfare  is  now  clearly 
an  important  issue  for  people  across  Europe 
and  there  is  clear  demand  for  higher  animal 
welfare standards. Exotic or emerging infectious 
threats  are  ever  present  and  their  potential 
environmental  consequences  are  a  growing 
concern.  Endemic  and  production  diseases 
are  often  overlooked,  although  they  exert 
the  maximum  trouble  to  animal  welfare.  The 
disease  threats  to  the  livestock  industry  have 
increased steadily as a result of intensification 
of  livestock  production,  globalisation,  evolving 
pathogens and climate change. 

Building  on  the  experience  and  achievements 
of  the  previous  ERA-NET  EMIDA,  the  Animal 
Health  and  Welfare  ERA-NET  (ANIHWA)  aims 
to  increase  cooperation  and  coordination  of 
national research programmes on animal health 
and welfare of farm animals, including fish and 
bees. The cooperation and coordination among 
the  partners  will  be  deepened  by  systematic 
exchange  of 
information  and  mapping  of 
national  research  activities  and  facilities,  gap 
analysis and preparation of a dedicated strategic 
research  agenda,  thorough  assessment  of  the 
funding mechanisms with increased number of 
joint calls and finally strategic activities aimed 
at a sustainable development and extension of 
the network.

7878

Consortium

Joint calls

The  consortium  consists  of  30  partner 
organisations from 19 countries: Member State 
Countries  (17);  Associated  Countries  (2).  The 
consortium  will  be  led  by  INRA  (France).  The 
consortium  represents  the 
leading  national 
financing bodies for Animal Health And Animal 
Welfare research in the EU, with funds estimated 
at over EUR 250 million annually. The consortium 
contains members from the different zones from 
Scandinavia  to  the  Mediterranean  and  Eastern 
Europe and with interest in the various livestock 
sectors including fish, bees and horses as food 
producing  animals.  It  also  includes  funders  of 
basic,  strategic  and  applied  science,  allowing 
a  joined-up  approach,  which  should  improve 
delivery.

Mapping and scoping activities

Two Work Packages are aimed at mapping and 
research gap analysis:

WP2:  Mapping  of  existing  research  resources 
and programmes in Animal Health and Welfare. 
The objective of WP2 is to evaluate and analyse 
existing  research  and  to  increase  exchange  of 
information  through  the  establishment  of  a 
common open web based archive for mapping 
of  existing 
research  programs,  funds  and 
capacities  in  all  the  countries  participating  in 
the consortium. Building up from EMIDA, It will 
develop  the  basic  data  resources  and  analysis 
tools  for  the  ERANET  users  and  for  long-term 
cooperation.

WP3:  Gap  Analysis  and  Strategic  research 
agenda  development  in  animal  health  and 
welfare. WP3 will conduct a gap analysis study 
on AH and WF research across EU member states 
and  associated  countries.  WP3  will  Elaborate 
a  framework  for  transnational  research  and 
identify potential synergies between AH and WF 
partners to improve their research capacities and 
enhance future joint activities and transnational 
research  cooperation  in  animal  health  and 
welfare.

Up  to  three  generic  large  calls  and  up  to  two 
small  focused  on  request  calls  are  foreseen 
during the ANIHWA activity period.

First call 2012

First  transnational  call  for  proposals  launched 
17 September 2012, closed 15 February 2013.

It covers the following four topics: 

•	 Promoting 

the 

research  on 

interface 
between  animal  health  and  welfare: 
development  of  practical  animal-based 
indicators  of  animal  health  and  welfare, 
and  implementation  of  new  husbandry 
strategies  ensuring  good  health  and 
welfare

•	 Development  of  knowledge  which  may 
lead  to  tools  for  diagnosis  and  disease 
prevention, including vaccines

•	

Improvement of preparedness for emerging 
and exotic diseases (including vector-borne 
diseases and zoonosis) by epidemiological 
approach to risk pathways identification

development 

•	 Antimicrobial  and  anthelmintic  resistance, 
and 
alternative 
curative  and  preventive  therapies,  like 
biotherapeutics  and  other  potential 
alternatives.

of 

Only  transnational  projects  will  be  funded, 
therefore each proposal must involve a minimum 
of three partners (and a maximum of ten) from 
at least three  and a maximum of eight different 
ANIHWA-countries  involved  in  funding  the  call. 
Research groups from other countries, including 
from outside Europe, are welcome provided they 
have their own secured resources. 

Projects will be funded for a maximum period of 
three years.  

In  this  call  20  funding  organisations  were 
involved from 16 countries. The call budget was 
a  total  of  approximately  EUR  14  million.  From 
the 67 full-proposals received 10 projects were 
recommended for funding: three projects under 

79

topic 1, four projects under topic 2, two projects 
under topic 3 and one project under topic 4.

Projects funded:

1.  Bru-EPIDIA  -  Brucellosis  in  wildlife  and 
domestic  animals:  development  of  a 
direct diagnostic method and assessment 
of  genetic  diversity  of  Brucella  melitensis 
and  B.  suis  biovar  2  strains  in  the  EU. 
Coordinator:  ANSES,  France.  Participating 
countries: Spain, France, Italy

2.  FareWellDock - Ending tail docking and tail 
biting in the EU - Hazard  characterization  
and  exposure  assessment  of  a  major  pig 
welfare  problem.  Coordintor:  University  of 
Helsinki,  Finland.  Participating  countries: 
Germany,  Denmark,  Finland,  France,  The 
Netherlands,  Norway,  Sweden,  United 
Kingdom

3. 

Improved  understanding  of 
IUEPPR  - 
the  epidemiology  of  peste-des-petits 
ruminants.  Coordinator:  The  Pirbright 
Institute,  United  Kingdom.  Participating 
countries:  Germany,  France,  Sweden, 
United Kingdom

4.  KOlimastIR 

-  Controlling 

impact 
the 
through 
of  Escherichia  coli  mastitis 
modulation 
responses. 
of 
Coordinator: University of Glasgow, United 
Kingdom.  Participating  countries:  Belgium, 
Israel, France, United Kingdom

immune 

5.  LIVEepi -Prediction and Control of Vector- 
and Movement-Borne Livestock  Epidemics. 
Coordinator: University of Warwick, United 
Kingdom.  Participating  countries: 
Italy, 
France,  The  Netherlands,  Sweden,  United 
Kingdom

6.  MADISUP - Marek’s Disease Virus induced 
immunosuppression:  From  diagnosis  to 
vaccination.  Coordinator: 
INRA,  France. 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  France, 
The Netherlands, United Kingdom

7.  RABHO  Rabbit  housing  -  Development 
and  assessment  of  alternative  animal-
friendly  housing  systems  for  rabbit  does 
with kits and growing rabbits. Coordinator: 
Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany. 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Spain, 
France, Italy

80

8.  NADIV  -  Co-circulation  of  avian  influenza  
and  velogenic Newcastle disease viruses 
-impact    on    pathogenesis,    immune 
prevention. 
response 
Zooprofilattico 
Coordinator: 
Italy. 
Sperimentale 
Venezie, 
Participating  countries:  Belgium, 
Israel, 
Italy, Sweden

Istituto 
delle 

disease 

and 

9.  TURKEYWELFARE - Improving turkey health 
and welfare by reducing foot pad dermatitis. 
Coordinator:  Wageningen  UR  Livestock 
Research,  The  Netherlands.  Participating 
countries:  Italy,  The  Netherlands,  United 
Kingdom

10. SporeBiotic - Control of Clostridium difficile: 
an  Emerging  Threat  to  the  European 
Industry.  Coordinator:  Royal 
Livestock 
Holloway,  University  of  London,  United 
Kingdom. Participating countries: Denmark, 
Germany, United Kingdom

Second call 2013

The second transnational call for proposals was 
launched 16th September 2013.

Deadlines:  pre-proposal  phase  call  closes  on 
19th  of  december,  2013;  full-proposal  phase 
call closes on 21th of may, 2014. 

It will cover the following four topics: 

•	

•	

•	

•	

Topic  1:  Promoting  research  integrating 
animal  health  and  welfare:  development 
of  animal-based 
indicators  of  animal 
health  and  welfare,  development  and 
implementation of new husbandry systems 
ensuring good health and welfare.

Topic 2: Development of knowledge, which 
may  lead  to  new  or  improved  tools  for 
diagnosis and disease prevention, including 
vaccines.

Topic 3: Improvement of preparedness for 
emerging  and  exotic  diseases  (including 
vector-borne diseases and zoonoses) by an 
epidemiological approach to risk pathways 
identification.

Topic  4:  Antimicrobial  and  anthelmintic 
resistance, and development of alternative 
curative and preventive therapies.

81

ARIMNet 

Coordination of Agricultural 
Research in the Mediterranean

Objective

The ARIMNet project is intended to promote the 
coordination of national research activities and 
to  identify  joint  research  programmes  among 
the countries of the Mediterranean area, to fight 
fragmentation and exploit synergies. 

Agricultural  research  in  the  Mediterranean  is 
characterised by three main features: 

•	

•	

•	

it is scattered within the EU members and 
in Mediterranean Partner Countries as well 
as  most  of  the  problems  and  challenges 
is 
that  the  Mediterranean  agriculture 
facing are shared by all the countries in the 
area and even further, 

its  objectives  are  largely  the  same  in  the 
whole area, even if priorities can vary from 
one country to another,

the  conditions 
resulting  from  climate 
change  as  well  as  the  objective  of 
sustainable  development  and  production 
need to rethink agricultural research in all 
the countries and to begin its alignment in 
the whole area to increase its impact. 

This situation allows and requires a coordination 
action at the level of the Mediterranean (among 
EU members and between them and the other 
the 
Mediterranean  countries) 
convergence  of  national  programmes  and  in 
founding a new critical mass to address the key 
issues  such  as  the  growing  demand  for  safer, 
healthier and higher quality food; the sustainable 
production and use of renewable bio-resources.

fostering 

in 

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To      

2008-10-01
2013-03-31

Follow-on ERA-NET

ARIMNet 2

Project reference

219262

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE-2007.1.2.07

Title

ERA-NET for Coordination of Agricultural 
Research in the Mediterranean

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  1 236 752
€     999 999

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

13

French National Institute for Agricultural 
Research INRA, France

Florence Jacquet
T +33-499612635
E florence.jacquet@supagro.inra.fr

www.arimnet.net

CY
DZ
EG
ES

FR
FR
GR
IL
IT
MA
PT
TN

TR

Agricultural Research Institute ARI
National Institute of Agricultural Research of Algeria INRAA
Agricultural Research Centre ARC
National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food 
Research INIA
Agricultural Research for Development CIRAD
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA
National Agricultural Research Foundation NAGREF
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MOARD
Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF
Agricultural and Veterinary Institute Hassan II IAV
Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
Institution for Agricultural Research and Higher Education 
IRESA 
Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Affairs - General Directorate 
of Agricultural Research GDAR

8282

Consortium

The  ARIMNet  ERA-NET  consist  of  13  partner 
organisations  from  12  countries  and  two 
international 
organisations: 
associated 
International Centre for Advanced Mediterranean 
Agronomic  Studies  CIHEAM  and  International 
Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas 
ICARDA.

Mapping and scoping activities

The  countries  of  the  Mediterranean  basin  face 
a  number  of  similar  problems  in  relation  to 
agriculture, as regards the use and management 
of  natural  resources,  such  as  soil  and  water, 
crop protection, emerging and endemic disease 
and threats to the security and sustainability of 
agricultural  production  resulting  from  climate 
the  agro-food  sector 
change.  Given 
and  rural  development  play  a  crucial  role  to 
guarantee environmental sustainability, healthy 
life 
improving,  economic  development  and 
social stability, priorities have been established 
to  address  the  future  mid  and  long-term 
challenges. 

that 

Three  topics  that  are  interrelated  have  been 
identified:

Production systems and their components.
Facing  climatic  change  and  pressure  in  water 
availability, protecting the natural resources and 
the  environment  will  need  an  evolution  of  the 
current  agricultural  production  practices.  This 
requires researches on several issues that concern 
different  aspects  of  agricultural  production, 
to  improve  simultaneously  the  productivity  of 
agricultural system and their sustainability and 
resilience. Several issues have to be addressed 
in this perspective: genetic breeding of varieties 
resistant to drought and to climate hazards, use 
of local species biodiversity, development of new 
farming  systems  combining  different  activities 
and  species  to  use  their  different  sensitivities 
to  hazards,  diversification  of  cropping  systems 
using local crop species, etc.

Enhancing  the  advantages  of  Mediterranean 
agriculture  in  developing  products  with  high 

83

added value. 
Several  products  benefiting  from  specific 
Mediterranean  natural  advantages  and  know-
how  are  already  competitive  and  provide  high 
added value to farmers and other actors in the 
supply  chains  (fruit,  vegetables,  olive  oil,  etc.). 
They  already  benefit  from  a  domestic  and 
international  demand  for  products  entering  in 
the  Mediterranean  diet.  However  researches 
are  needed  to  enhance  their  development  in 
a  way  that  they  can  really  contribute  to  the 
economic development of rural areas. Research 
topics can concern different stages of the food 
chain:  production,  food  processing,  transport, 
marketing and policies. 

in 

Sustainable  management  of  land  and  natural 
resources. 
Conservation of water resources and soil fertility, 
protection  of  biodiversity  are  major  challenges 
in the Mediterranean area. Risks of degradation 
are  high, 
relation  with  unsustainable 
agricultural  techniques,  increase  of  inputs  use, 
climate change. They have to be address at the 
farm level, but also at larger scale. Some issues 
need to be tackled at the river basin level, some 
others on larger areas, even in some cases (e.g. 
water management) on international level. They 
need integrated approaches combining different 
disciplines.

Joint calls

First call 2011

In  2011  ARIMNet  has  launched  a  call  for 
transnational  research  projects  proposals.  This 
call has been managed under the coordination 
of ARIMNet WP4 Leader, IAV Hassan II (Morocco) 
and  ARIMNet  coordinator,  INRA  (France).  The 
scope of the call and the evaluation procedures 
have been decided and designed by the Steering 
Committee members and the funding agencies 
involved in this call.

This  call  was  aimed  to  enable  collaborative 
on 
interdisciplinary 
projects 
complementarities 
scientists, 
disciplines  and  countries.  Its  objective  was 
to 
to  promote 

international  collaboration 

between 

based 

4.  DOMESTIC - Mediterranean biodiversity as 
a tool for the sustainable development of 
the small ruminant sector: from traditional 
knowledge 
innovation.  Coordinator: 
NAGREF-DEMETER  (Greece).  Participating 
countries: Greece, France, Cyprus, Morocco

to 

approaches 

5.  MEDILEG  -  Breeding,  agronomic  and 
for 
biotechnological 
reintegration and revalorization of legumes 
in  Mediterranean  agriculture.  Coordinator: 
CSIC (Spain).  Participating countries: Spain, 
Morocco,  France,  Italy,  Tunisia,  Portugal, 
Egypt, Algeria

6.  PESTOLIVE - Contribution of olive history for 
the management of soil-borne parasites in 
the Mediterranean Basin. Coordinator: IRD 
(France).  Participating  countries:  France, 
Greece, 
Italy,  Morocco,  Spain,  Tunisia, 
Turkey

7.  POHMED  -  Potato  Health  -  Managed  for 
Efficiency and Durability. Coordinator: INRA 
(France).  Participating  countries:  France, 
Algeria, Morocco, Egypt

8.  REFORMA  -  Resilient,  water-  and  energy-
Efficient  FORage  and  feed  crops  for 
systems. 
Mediterranean 
Coordinator:  CRA  (Italy). 
  Participating 
countries:  Italy,  France,  Morocco,  Algeria, 
Tunisia, United States 

Agricultural 

9.  SAFEMED - Food safety regulations, market 
access  and 
international  competition. 
Coordinator:  INRA  (France).  Participating 
countries:  France,  Italy,  Morocco,  Tunisia, 
Spain, Algeria 

10.  SWIPE  -  Predicting  whitefly  population 
in  changing  environments. 
outbreaks 
Coordinator:  ARO 
(Israel).  Participating 
countries:  Israel,  France,  Spain,  Greece, 
Italy, Turkey, Switzerland, United States

create  research  consortia  in  order  to  respond 
appropriately to the global stakes and challenges 
Mediterranean Agriculture is facing. 

Three topics have been prioritized:

•	 Production systems and their components: 
Developing 
agricultural 
sustainable 
production  in  a  context  of  increasing 
ecological and climatic stresses

•	

•	

chain 

production 

Food 
to 
from 
distribution:  Enhancing  the  advantages  of 
Mediterranean  agriculture  in  developing 
products with high added value

resources  uses 

Landscape  and 
for 
agricultural  and  environmental  purposes: 
Sustainable  management  of  land  and 
natural resources

Projects funded:

1.  APMed - Apple and Peach in Mediterranean 
orchards  –  Integrating  tree  water  status 
and  irrigation  management  for  coping 
with  water  scarcity  and  aphid  control. 
Coordinator:  INRA  (France).  Participating 
countries:  France,  Israel,  Italy,  Morocco, 
Spain

2.  ARIDWASTE  -  Development  of  specific 
agricultural  practices  with  the  use  of 
recycled  wastes  suitable  for  intensively 
cultivated  Mediterranean  areas  under 
degradation  risk.  Coordinator:  NAGREF-
DEMETER (Greece). Participating countries: 
Greece, Israel, Italy, Spain

3.  CLIMED  -  The  future  of  Mediterranean 
Livestock  Farming  Systems:  Opportunity 
and  efficiency  of  Crops  –  Livestock 
Integration.  Coordinator:  CIRAD  (France). 
Participating  countries:  France,  Morocco, 
Egypt

84

ARIMNet2
(under negotiation) 

Coordination of Agricultural 
Research in the Mediterranean

Objective

initiatives, 

ARIMNet2 has the following objectives:
1.  To  develop  an  integrated  strategic  research 
agenda  (ISRA)  describing  key  priorities  for 
Europe and Mediterranean Partners Countries in 
the field of Mediterranean Agriculture Research 
and Innovation (WP1). The ISRA will cover short, 
medium  and  long  period  needs  and  common 
issues  of  concern  to  the  participating  partner 
states.  The  ISRA  will  be  used  to  strengthen 
the  cooperation  between  national  research 
programmes together with agreements on how 
the research agenda is to be implemented and 
reviewed.  It  will  be  done  taking  into  account 
complementarities  with  other 
in 
particular the JPI FACCE and Water JPI and the 
INCO-Nets  related  projects  (MIRA  and  SPRING 
projects and the 2013 ERANETMED).
2.  To  consolidate  the  cooperation  mechanism 
initiated in ARIMNet through the set up of two 
novel  joint  calls  for  transnational  research 
projects (WP2) and the elaboration of guidelines 
for  monitoring  the    research  projects  funded 
inside joint calls (WP3). 
joint 
3.  To  demonstrate  the  feasibility  of 
activities in some areas relevant to the project 
and implement those that are jointly strategic. 
During  ARIMNet  some  crucial 
issues  have 
been  identified  in  a  perspective  of  capacity 
development:  training  of  young  researchers, 
mobility  and 
researcher 
networking 
laboratory,  sharing  of 
infrastructures  and 
data.  Among  them,  ARIMNet2  will  develop 
pilot  actions  (WP4)  i)  to  develop  scientific 
exchanges  between  researchers  and  research 

of 

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From 
To     

2013-12-01 (expected)
2017-11-30 (expected)

Project reference

618127

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2013.1.4-03

Title

Coordination of Agricultural Research in the 
Mediterranean

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 310 300
€  1 998 700 (requested)

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

25

French National Institute for Agricultural 
Research INRA, France

Florence Jacquet
T +33-499612635
E florence.jacquet@supagro.inra.fr

www.arimnet.net

AL

CY

DZ

DZ

EG

EG

ES

HR

FR

FR

FR

IL

IT

IT

GR

MA

MA

MT
PT

SI

SI

TN

TN

TR

INT

INT

Center for Agriculture Technology Transfer Fushe Kruje QTTB

Agricultural Research Institute ARI

Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research MESRS

National Institute of Agricultural Research of Algeria INRAA

Academy of Scientific Research and Technology ASRT

Agricultural Research Centre ARC

National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food Research INIA

Institute for Adriatic Crops and Karst Reclamation KRS

French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA

National Agency for Research ANR

Agricultural Research for Development CIRAD

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MOARD

Institute of Agricultural Economics INEA

Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF

Hellenic Agricultural Organisation – Demeter HAO

Agricultural and Veterinary Institute Hassan II IAV

Ministry of Higher Education, Scientific Research & Management 
Training
Office of the Prime Minister MCST
Foundation for Science and Technology FCT

Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport MIZS

Ministry of Agriculture and the Environment MKO

Institution for Agricultural Research and Higher Education IRESA

Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research MESRT

Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Affairs - General Directorate of 
Agricultural Research GDAR
International Centre  for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas ICARDA

International Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies - 
Institute Agronomique Méditerranéen de Montpellier CIHEAM-IAMM

8585

Systems  in  the  Mediterranean  countries  and 
recommendations  related  with  research  calls 
(like guidelines, selection criteria, etc.) that could 
be  used  to  enhance  the  link  between  research 
and innovation. 

Joint calls

in 
Based  on  the  knowledge  accumulated 
ARIMNet, ARIMNet2-WP2 will focus on defining 
and  implementing  at  least  two  transnational 
calls for research projects. Lessons learnt from 
ARIMNet 2011 call will be the basis for moving 
forward and to improve procedures for launching 
calls in ARIMNet. This will give an administrative 
basis  for  sustainable  cooperation  between 
research funders as well as for synergistic and 
efficient future implementation of joint calls. 

In  advance  to  the  call  implementation  the 
financial  commitments  of  the  participating 
funding  organisations  will  be  collected  and 
funding agencies topics priorities will be defined. 
The possibility to use different funding models 
such  as  “virtual  common  pot  model  or  “mixed 
model”  will  be  explored.  Tools,  procedures  and 
documents  for  launching  joint  calls  will  be 
developed  on  basis  of  experiences  made  in 
the  ARIMNET  and  other  ERA-NETs.  After  the 
establishment of a Call Board Office (CBO), up 
to two transnational.  Calls on  applied research 
will  be  launched  and  the  whole  call  procedure 
will  be  conducted,  including  the  proposals 
collection,  the  expert  evaluation  and  the 
selection processes. To avoid duplication of work 
the task leaders will collaborate very closely and 
a  minimum  of  the  two  calls  will  be  conducted 
strongly  consecutive  and  coordinated.  The 
aim  is  to  create  sustainable  mechanisms  and 
documents for call implementation to facilitate 
each  institution  to  launch  transnational  calls 
after the end of the ERA-NET reaching a possible 
future article 185 on the Mediterranean Area.

groups  in  the  Mediterranean,  (ii)  to  strengthen 
the  coordination  and  coherence  in  research 
management  between  regional  and  national 
institutions  (universities  and  research  centers) 
and  (iii)  develop  capacity  building  in  scientific 
methods, concepts and lab management. 
4.  To 
foster  agricultural  knowledge  and 
innovation  system  in  order  to  ensure  that 
the 
the  agricultural 
stakeholders  of  the  Mediterranean  basin  and 
support  their  economies  (WP5).  This  work 
package will mainly focus on the integration of 
innovation specifically through the ideas about 
the  Agricultural  Knowledge  and 
Innovation 
Systems  (AKIS)  that  has  been  triggered  inside 
the SCAR-CWG and will extend this reflection to 
the Mediterranean area.

research  will 

impact 

Consortium

The ARIMNet2 consortium consist of 25 partner 
organisations  from  16  countries  and  two 
international organisations: International Centre 
for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies 
CIHEAM and International Center for Agricultural 
Research in the Dry Areas ICARDA.

Mapping and scoping activities

that  could 

The  objective  of  the  WP1  of  ARIMNet2  is  to 
develop  a  common  scientific  and  strategic 
to  a 
agenda 
roadmap 
lead 
in  the  field  of 
for  enhancing  cooperation 
Mediterranean  Agriculture.  Based  on 
the 
common  knowledge  produced  in  ARIMNet,  a 
further  step  will  be  achieved  by  deepening 
the  scientific  and  strategic  analysis  of  the 
challenges for the future and identifying actions. 
A  specific  WP  is  focused  on  strengthening  the 
links  between  research  and  innovation  in  the 
Mediterranean  Agriculture.  It  will  provide  a 
common  analysis  on  current  functioning  of 
Innovation 
the  Agricultural  Knowledge  and 

86

BiodivERsA2 

Cooperation and shared strategies 
for biodiversity research 
programmes in Europe

Objective

The  loss  of  biodiversity  and  the  degradation 
of  ecosystems  are  major  scientific  and 
societal  challenges.  Addressing 
them  and 
providing  scientific  support  to  policy  requires  a 
coherent research framework, with coordinated 
strategies  and  programmes  at  the  regional 
and international levels, which are the relevant 
scales for many biodiversity issues.

By  networking  21  funding  agencies  from  15 
countries,  BiodivERsA2  aims  to  strengthen  the 
ERA on biodiversity. Building on the experience of 
the ERA-NET BiodivERsA, but with a wider, more 
balanced  network,  BiodivERsA2  promotes  a 
strategy for biodiversity research, in partnership 
with  other  players  in  the  field,  and  organizes 
joint  funding  to  better  integrate  biodiversity 
science.

The specific objectives of BiodivERsA are to:

•	 develop  an  efficient  agenda-setting 
mechanism  for  joint  activities  (including 
joint  calls),  taking  into  account  existing 
research  strategies  and  agendas  at 
international  levels  along  with  national 
and institutional priorities

•	

instate  a  recurrent  and  visible  funding 
opportunity  for  transnational  biodiversity 
research projects

•	 play  an  active  role  in  the  processes  and 

interfaces to inform policy and users

•	 demonstrate  the  usefulness  and  prepare 
the establishment of a longer term funding 

8787

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2010-11-01
2014-10-31

Project reference

266546

Programme 
acronym

FP7-ENVIRONMENT

Topic identifier

ENV.2010.2.1.4-2

Title

ERA-net on Biodiversity: Towards integrated 
European biodiversity research strategy and 
programmes

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 644 399
€  1 999 600

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

21

Foundation for Research on Biodiversity FRB, 
France

Xavier Le Roux
T +33 631803820
E xavier.leroux@fondationbiodiversite.fr

www.biodiversa.org

AT
BE
BG
DE
DE
EE
ES
FR
FR

TR
UK
UK
UK

Austrian Science Fund FWF
Federal Public Planning Service Science Policy BELSPO
Bulgarian National Science Fund BNSF
German Aerospace Center EV DLR
German Research Foundation DFG
Estonian Research Council ETAG
Ministry of Science and Innovation MICINN
Foundation for Research on Biodiversity FRB
Ministry for the Protection of Nature and the Environment 
MEDDE
National Agency for Research ANR

Research Council of Lithuania RCL
The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research NWO

FR
HU Ministry of Rural Development KvVM
LT
NL
NO Research Council of Norway RCN
PT
SE
SE

Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
Swedish Environmental Protection Agency SEPA
Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural 
Sciences and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Ministry of Food Agriculture and Livestock MoFAL
Joint Nature Conservation Committee JNCC
Natural Environment Research Council NERC
The Secretary Of State For Environment, Food And Rural Affairs 
DEFRA

platform for biodiversity research

The project has six work packages. WP1 promotes 
networking and sharing of best practice, ensuring 
the rapid integration of new members and the 
adoption  of  a  framework  for  joint  calls.  WP2 
analyses  the  biodiversity  research  landscape 
and  enhances  cooperation  with  stakeholders, 
with science-policy interfaces and with relevant 
infrastructure  programmes.  Using  outputs  of 
WP1&2,  WP3  produces  a  roadmap  for  joint 
funding allowing the implementation of annual 
calls  for  research  proposals.  These  activities 
help  in  demonstrating  the  usefulness  of  a 
recurrent and consequent funding opportunity as 
offered by BiodivERsA for European biodiversity 
research.  This  will  provide  solid  grounds  for 
the  network  to  become  a  long  term  funding 
platform  for  European  biodiversity  research, 
which  will  be  fostered  by  WP4.  WP5  develops 
and implements a communication strategy and 
enhances project web-products. WP6 allows an 
efficient coordination and management.

Consortium

All  partners  in  BiodivERsA  have  a  national  or 
regional  responsibility  for  funding  biodiversity 
research. In  the consortium 15 European Union 
member  states  and  associated  countries  are 
represented  through  21  partner  organisations. 
Since  2012  two  observer  organisations  joined: 
National  Science  Centre  NCN  (Poland)  and 
French  National  Agency  for  Water  and  Aquatic 
Environments ONEMA (France).

in  rapidly  evolving  landscape,  the  BiodivERsA 
agenda  is  updated  yearly.  An  updated  version 
can be found here: http://www.biodiversa.org/70.

In  addition  to  annual  joint  calls,  BiodivERsA 
partners  pursue  a  set  of  activities  that  include 
mapping  and  horizon  scanning  and 
the 
development  of  best  practices  and  guidelines 
to  promote  and  enhance  the  profile  of  pan-
European  biodiversity  research.  In  this  context, 
several  BiodivERsA  reports  are  currently  being 
developed. In particular, the “Report on existing 
research  policies 
institutional  biodiversity 
and  strategies  of  BiodivERsA2  partners  and 
identification  of  common  priorities”  and  the 
“BiodivERsA  report  on  international  strategies 
for  biodiversity  research”  will  offer  a  horizon 
scan  of  the  European-wide  and  international 
landscape  in  which  BiodivERsA  evolves.  Such 
analyses of national and international priorities 
for  biodiversity  research,  in  addition  to  liaison 
with main international and European initiatives, 
ensures  that  BiodivERsA’s  strategy  is  not  only 
coordinated amongst partners but also coherent 
with  and  relevant  to  the  biodiversity  research 
field at national and international scales.

Joint Calls

First call 2010

Biodiversity  and  ecosystem  services,  and  their 
valuation

The call addressed the following themes, across 
all ecosystems and organisms:

Mapping and scoping activities

•	 Relationships  between  biodiversity  and 

To  foster  a  coherent  vision  for  the  setting  of 
priorities  in  biodiversity  research,  as  well  as 
to  avoid  wasteful  overlaps,  BiodivERsA  has 
established  a  common  strategic  agenda  to 
support  European  biodiversity  research.  This 
agenda  is  built  upon  existing  research  and 
biodiversity strategies and priorities (at agency, 
national  and  international  levels)  allowing  the 
identification  of  common  thematic  priorities 
among BiodivERsA partners. In order to remain 
relevant  against  pressing  issues  in  the  field  of 
biodiversity  research,  policy  and  management 

ecosystem services;

•	 Valuation  of  biodiversity  and  ecosystem 
services  (monetary  and  non-monetary), 
and better incorporation of biodiversity and 
ecosystem services into society and policy.

The budget was EUR 9.5 million.

Projects funded:

1.  APPEAL  -  Assessment  and  valuation 
of  pest  suppression  potential  through 
biological  control  in  European  agricultural 

88

Coordinator: 

Swedish 
landscapes. 
University 
Sciences 
(Sweden). Participating countries: Sweden, 
Germany, Austria. 

Agricultural 

of 

2.  CONNECT 

- 

Linking 

insights 

biodiversity 
conservation  and  ecosystem  services: 
tradeoffs  and 
in 
advancing 
biodiversity, 
between 
synergies 
ecosystem  functioning  and  ecosystem 
service  values  for  improved  integrated 
biodiversity strategy. Coordinator: Institute 
for  Environmental  Studies,  University 
(The  Netherlands). 
of 
Participating  countries:  The  Netherlands, 
France, Germany, Sweden, Spain.

Amsterdam 

3.  FarmLAND - European network on farmland 
heterogeneity, biodiversity and ecosystem 
services.  Coordinator:  National  Centre  for 
Scientific  Research  –  CEFE,  Montpellier 
(France).  Participating  countries:  France, 
Spain, Germany, United Kingdom, Canada.

4. 

INVALUABLE  -    Integrating  valuations, 
markets  and  policies  for  biodiversity 
and  ecosystem  services.  Coordinator: 
Institute  for  Sustainable  Development 
(France). 
and 
Participating 
The 
Netherlands, Spain, Germany.

International  Relations 

countries: 

France, 

5.  SmallFOREST - Biodiversity and ecosystem 
services  of  small  forest  fragments  in 
European  landscapes.  Coordinator:  Jules 
Verne  University  of  Picardie 
(France). 
Participating  countries:  France,  Germany, 
Spain, Sweden, Belgium.

6.  SCIN  -  Soil  Crust  InterNational  (SCIN)  - 
Understanding  and  valuing  biological 
soil  protection  of  disturbed  and  open 
land  surfaces.  Coordinator:  University  of 
Kaiserslautern 
(Germany).  Participating 
countries: Germany, Spain, Austria, Sweden.

7.  URBES - Urban biodiversity and ecosystem 
services. Coordinator: Stockholm Resilience 
Centre  (Sweden)  Participating  countries: 
Sweden, Spain, The Netherlands, Germany, 
Austria, Finland.

Second call 2011

Biodiversity  dynamics:  developing  scenarios, 
improving 
tipping  points  and 
identifying 

resilience.
The call addressed the following themes, across 
all ecosystems and organisms:

•	 Developing 
scenarios

integrated 

biodiversity 

•	 Understanding  and  predicting  biodiversity 

resilience and tipping points 

•	 Decision support for biodiversity policy and 

management

The budget was EUR 8.8 million.

Projects funded:

1.  BUFFER  -  Partially  protected  areas  as 
buffers  to  increase  the  linked  social-
ecological resilience in coastal ecosystems. 
Coordinator:  National  Centre  for  Scientific 
Research,  CRIOBE  (France).  Participating 
countries: 
France,  Norway,  Portugal, 
Sweden.

for 

2.  CoForTips  -  Congo  basin  forests:  tipping 
points 
conservation 
biodiversity 
and  resilience  of  forested  social  and 
ecological  systems.  Coordinator:  Centre 
for International Cooperation in Agronomic 
Research 
(France). 
for  Development 
Participating  countries:  France,  Austria, 
Belgium.

3.  EC21C  -  European  conservation  for  the 
21st  century.  Coordinator:  University  of 
Evora  (Portugal).  Participating  countries: 
Portugal, France, Germany, Sweden.

- 

Biodiversity 

fragmented 

scenarios 
4.  FISHCON 
landscapes; 
for 
freshwater 
connectivity  
and the future of fish diversity. Coordinator: 
Institute  for  Nature  Research  (Norway). 
Participating  countries:  Norway,  Germany, 
Sweden.

5.  LIMNOTIP  -  Biodiversity  dynamics  and 
tipping  points  in  our  future  freshwater 
ecosystems.  Coordinator:  University  of 
Lund  (Sweden).  Participating  countries: 
Sweden, Norway, Austria, Germany.

6.  REGARDS 

-  Resilience  of  marginal 
grasslands  and  biodiversity  management 
decision  support.  Coordinator:  National 
Centre  for  Scientific  Research  (France). 
Participating  countries:  France,  Germany, 
Austria, Belgium, Norway.

89

7.  SIGNAL - European gradients of resilience in 
the face of climate extremes. Coordinator: 
University 
(Germany). 
Participating countries: Germany, Belgium, 
Bulgaria, France.

Bayreuth 

of 

8.  TIPPINGPOND - Tipping points, biodiversity, 
resilience  and  ecosystem  services:  Ponds 
as model systems. Coordinator: Université 
Catholique 
(Belgium). 
Participating countries: Belgium, Germany, 
France, Sweden.

Louvain 

de 

9.  TipTree  -  Scenarios  for  forest  biodiversity 
dynamics  under  global  change  in  Europe: 
scale 
Identifying  micro-evolutionary 
tipping 
Institut 
Coordinator: 
National  de  la  Recherche  Agronomique 
(France)  Participating  countries:  France, 
Germany, Sweden.

points. 

Third call 2012

Launched  in  November  2012:  Invasive  species 
and biological invasions

The call addresses the following themes, across 
all ecosystems and organisms:

•	 Demonstrating  and  characterising 

the 

impacts of biological invaders

•	 Understanding  mechanisms  of  biological 
invasions  and  levers for mitigating and/or 
reversing the impacts of biological invaders

•	

the 

Evaluating 
biological 
environmental changes

interactions  between 
invasions  and  other  global 

•	 Biological invasions and public perceptions

•	 Biological invasions and adaptation

The  budget  was  a  total  amount  of  over  eight 
million euros. 

Projects funded:

1.  DIARS  -  Detection  of 

invasive  plant 
species  and  assessment  of  their  impact 
on  ecosystem  properties  through  remote 
sensing.  Coordinator:  Flemish 
Institute 
for  Technological  Research 
(Belgium). 
Participating  countries:  Belgium,  France, 
Germany

2.  EXOTIC 

genomics 

-  EXperimentally  Orientated 
Insects  adaptive 

to  Tackle 

invasions: 

Challenges  during  bio 
the 
ladybird  Harmonia  axyridis  as  a  model 
species.  Coordinator:  Institut  National  de 
Recherche  Agronomique  – 
INRA-CBGP 
(France).  Participating  countries:  Belgium, 
France, Germany

3.  FFII  -  Forecasting  Future  Invasions  and 
Impacts.  Coordinator:  Swedish 
their 
University 
Sciences 
Agricultural 
(Sweden).  Participating  countries:  France, 
Germany, Sweden

of 

4.  GC-INVAMOFECT  -  Global  change  and 
invasive mosquitoes as infectious disease 
risks in Europe. Coordinator: Centre National 
de  la  Recherche  Scientifique/University  of 
Lyon  –  CNRS,  University  of  Lyon  (France). 
Participating  countries:  Austria,  Germany, 
France 

5. 

INVAXEN  -  INVAsive  biology  of  XENopus 
laevis  in  Europe:  ecology,  impact  and 
predictive  models.  Coordinator:  Centre 
National  de  la  Recherche  Scientifique/
Muséum  National  d’Histoire  Naturelle 
–  CNRS/MNHN 
(France).  Participating 
countries:  Belgium,  France,  Germany, 
Portugal

6.  PROBIS 

-  Heterogeneity  of  patterns 
and  processes  along  biological  invasion 
successions.  Coordinator:  Centre  National 
de  la  Recherche  Scientifique  –  CNRS 
(France).  Participating  countries:  France, 
Germany, Sweden, Turkey

7.  RESIPATH 

-  Responses  of  European 
Forests and Society to Invasive Pathogens. 
University 
Coordinator: 
Swedish 
of 
(Sweden). 
Participating  countries:  Austria,  Belgium, 
Bulgaria,  Germany, 
France,  Norway, 
Portugal, Sweden, Turkey

Agricultural 

Sciences 

8.  SalmoInvade  -  Causes  and  consequences 
of  invasions  of  aquatic  ecosystems  by 
nonnative salmonids. Coordinator: University 
of  Gothenburg 
(Sweden).  Participating 
countries: France, Germany, Norway, Sweden

9.  WhoIsNext 

-  Climate 

change  and 
escaping ornamentals: Predicting the next 
generation  of  European  plant  invaders. 
Coordinator:  University 
of  Konstanz 
(Germany). Participating countries: Austria, 
France, Germany

90

By the end of the four year project, BiodivERsA 
will have allocated funds of approximately EUR 
34  million  to  qualifying  projects.  On  the  basis 
of  an  initial  EC  funding  of  two  million  euros, 
this  represents  a  ‘leverage’  effect  of  17  times 
the  EC’s  original  investment.  If  non-monetary 
contributions  involved  in  projects  are  included, 
this leverage rises to an even more impressive 
25 times. 

Fourth call 2013
(co-branded with FACCE-JPI)

Launched  in  November  2013.  For  this  call  a 
total  amount  of  EUR  8.5  to  9.7  million  has 
been provisionally reserved by the participating 
partner organisations.

Joint  BiodfivERsA2  and  FACCE-JPI  call  on 
“Promoting  synergies  and 
trade-
offs  between  food  supply,  biodiversity  and 
ecosystem services”.

reducing 

Projects’  pre-registration  takes  place  in  mid-
December  2013  and  complete  applications’ 
submission in mid-February 2014. The selected 
projects and funding magnitude will be known in 
June/July 2014.

91

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To

2012-01-01
2015-12-31

Project reference

Programme acronym

266543

FP7-NMP

Topic identifier

NMP-FP7-2010-4-0-9

Title

Contract type 

Total cost
EU contribution

Catalytic Processes for Innovative 
Technology Applications

Coordination (or networking) actions

€  1 628 947
€  1 499 038

Number of participants

6

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

The Netherlands Organisation 
for Scientific Research NWO, The 
Netherlands

Nico Kos 
T +31 70 344 06 96 
E capita@nwo.nl

www.era-capita.eu

ES
FR
GR
GR
IT
NL

Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness MINECO
National Centre for Scientific Research CNRS
Centre for Research & Technology Hellas CERTH
General Secretariat for Research and Technology GSRT
Ministry of Education, Universities and Research MIUR
The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research NWO

CAPITA  

Catalytic Processes for Innovative 
Technology Applications

Objective

to  establish  an  enduring 
CAPITA  aims 
transnational 
in  applied 
joint  programme 
research  leading  to  innovative  and  exploitable 
process  technology  for  chemicals,  materials, 
and  energy.  The  ERA-NET  is  designed  to  have 
a  substantial  effect  on  the  structuring  and  the 
effectiveness of the ERA in the fields of applied 
catalysis  and  related  sustainable  chemical 
research.

Core  partners  of  the  ACENET  ERA-NET  started 
the  consortium,  which  aims  to  be  extended 
geographically and by the inclusion of agencies 
involved  in  innovation  support.  The  consortium 
aims  to  introduce  new  members,  and  to  be 
flexible  in  how  members  participate.  CAPITA 
will  build  collaborations  both  within  Europe 
and  worldwide  with  relevant  programmes  and 
institutions:  the  ETP  SusChem  and  European 
Research Institute ERIC+ are engaged from the 
beginning of the project to bring both industrial 
and academic policy inputs to work on CAPITAs 
strategic agenda.

The  ERA-NET  begins  where  ACENET  ended, 
with  applied  catalysis  and  catalytic  reaction 
engineering,  which  comprises  an  essential 
group  of  enabling  technologies  for  sustainable 
manufacturing and green chemistry. The scope 
will  expand  through  the  planned  two  calls 
and  the  formation  of  the  Transnational  Joint 
Programme  to  a  wider  approach  to  chemical 
process  technology.  The  projects  will  include 
multidisciplinary  science  and  engineering,  with 

9292

 
 
 
significant  industrial  involvement.  To  maximise 
the innovative potential of the research projects, 
the  design  of  calls  and  project  selection  and 
management  will  be  steered  by  best  practice 
and assessment processes to take into account 
how new technology interacts with the business 
process, and the decision making requirements 
of  speedy  innovation.  Training  and  education 
programmes  aimed  to  support  innovation  will 
also  be  developed  as  part  of  the  network’s 
outreach programme.

Consortium

The  CAPITA  consortium  consists  of  six 
organisations  from  five  different  countries, 
The  Netherlands,  France,  Spain, 
Italy  and 
Greece. There are six associate members to the 
consortium:  Agency  NL  (The  Netherlands),  IWT 
(Flanders, Belgium), FCT (Portugal), Irish Research 
Council (Ireland), Region of Puglia (Italy) and the 
Technology  Strategy  Board  (United  Kingdom), 
which are potential participants in CAPITA Joint 
Calls  and  other  joint  activities.  Also  there  are 
three  advisory  members:  DECHEMA  (Germany) 
and  the  transnational  advisory  partners  ERIC 
(Belgium) and Suschem (Germany).

Other  organisations  and  agencies  interested 
in  transnational  cooperation  in  the  scientific 
fields of CAPITA are invited to participate in the 
consortium. As CAPITA continues to evolve and 
grow, the programme allows flexibility in various 
partnership models.

Mapping and scoping activities

CAPITA  ERANET  is  expected  to  deliver  the 
European  Catalysis  Roadmap  2014  –  2020 
(March  2014),  which  will  be  available  to  all 
stakeholders  and  will  be  used  to  identify 
relevant  scientific  themes,  and  through  an 
annual  updating  process,  provide  the  CAPITA 
Consortium  with  topics  for  research  calls  and 
education and reach-out activities.

and  sustainable  development 
in  chemicals 
manufacturing and energy production in Europe. 
To  overcome  those  challenges  it  is  needed  to  
roadmap  the  developmental  requirements  in 
applied catalysis and process technology. These 
requirements  are  vital  for  addressing  societal 
and industrial needs in energy, in environmental 
concerns for transportation and the quality of life 
and in sustainable chemistry for clean processes 
for  the  chemical  and  industrial  intermediates 
and  the  switch  from  petrochemical  feeds  to 
recycled or renewable feeds.

A workshop with the participation of important 
stakeholders of the Applied Catalysis and Catalytic 
Reaction  Engineering  field  was  organized  and 
held in Paris on 16 May 2013. The participants 
included representatives of Suschem ETP, ERIC+ 
European  virtual  institute,  Japan  Science  and 
Technology Agency, Norwegian Science Council, 
National  Science  Foundation  of  USA,  and 
Slovenian Science Foundation, researchers from 
different  European  universities  and  members 
of  the  CAPITA-consortium.  After  taking  into 
account  the  presentations  of  the  impact  that 
the  ACENET  pilot  call  had  on  the  Catalytic 
scientific  community,  and  the  convergence  of 
existing roadmaps towards a global roadmap in 
catalysis,  the  workshop  revealed  the  necessity 
of networking of the European and world wide 
research  unities,  as  well  the  industrial  need  to 
bridge  the  growing  gap  between  research  and 
innovation.

The  second  CAPITA  conference  on  European 
Catalysis  is  expected  to  take  place  on  15 
January  2014  in  Brussels.  The  meeting  will 
aim  at  mapping  the  current  innovation  and 
technological  challenges  among  the  academic 
and industrial scientists of the field, and initiate 
a process for bottom up extraction of the theme 
of the second CAPITA joint call.

Joint calls

First call 2013

The goal of this study is to examine, taking into 
account  existing  national  and  European  policy 
documents,  the  challenges  facing  innovation 

The  first  call  for  proposals  was  launched  25th 
of  June  2013.  The  aim  of  this  call  is  to  fund 
innovative,  transnational,  R&D  projects  related 

93

Training and education

The International Catalytic Training Course 2014 
in preparation is expected to take place in Italy, 
spring 2014.

The  programme  of  the  course  is  based  on 
advancing  education  and  discovery  through 
knowledge  open  to  industrial  staff  and  young 
professionals 
(including  PhD  or  Post-doc 
students), focussing on the design of processes, 
products  and 
sustainable 
development  goals  and  constraints  and  will 
highlight how chemistry and catalysis, by using 
alternative and sustainable technologies of the 
21st century, contribute to a sustainable future. 

systems  with 

Topics to be addressed:

•	 Synthesis and characterization of catalytic 
nanomaterials with application in thermal 
and photocatalytic processes.

•	 Biomass 

into 

conversion 

fuels  and 
chemicals  (commodities  and  specialty) 
with  implementation  of  the  Biorefinery 
concept.

•	 Utilization of solar energy for water splitting 
and for driving high energy processes such 
as the conversion of CO2 into fuels.

•	 Monetization  of  low  carbon  chains  such 
as  those  produced  in  the  petrochemical 
industry (C2-C4 moieties).

to  Applied  Catalysis  and  Catalytic  Reaction 
Engineering  within  its  thematic  priority,  titled: 
“Innovative catalysis for the monetization of low 
value carbon”.

The  first  call  for  proposals  entitled  “Innovative 
catalysis  for  the  monetization  of  low  value 
carbon”  was  launched  on  25th  of  June  2013. 
innovative, 
The  call  was  aiming  to  fund 
transnational,  R&D  projects  related  to  Applied 
Catalysis  and  Catalytic  Reaction  Engineering 
within its thematic priority. It utilized more than 
EUR 3.5 million from five partner and associated 
partner counties and regions, and is expected to 
bring on another million euros of private and non 
– monetary contributions. The call was closed on 
2nd September 2013 and the outcome is to be 
announced.

Second call 2014

A  second  transnational  joint  call  has  already 
started to being prepared for 2014. Based on the 
experience  gained  and  the  transparent  CAPITA 
Call  management  processes,  the  consortium 
will utilise the assessment of the first joint call, 
the interaction with the stakeholders about the 
strategic  orientations  that  should  be  followed, 
and  the  advisory  group  ideas  on  Innovation 
and  technology  to  come  up  soon  with  a  new 
attractive call theme. This will be communicated 
to National Funding Agencies inside and outside 
Europe to further attract new partners.

94

C-IPM
(under negotiation) 

Integrated Pest management (IPM) 
ERA-NET

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From 
To     

Project reference

not available yet

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2013.1.4-02

Title

Contract type 

Total cost
EU contribution

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Integrated Pest management (IPM) ERA-NET

Coordination (or Networking) Action

€  2 484 982
€  1 998 228

32

National Institute for Agricultural Research 
INRA, France

Antoine Messéan
E Antoine.Messean@grignon.inra.fr

Website

not available yet

Participants
AT

Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety AGES

AT

BE

BE

CH

CZ

DE

DE

DE

DK

EE

ES

FI

FI

FR

FR

HU

IE

IT

IT

LT

NL

NL

NL

NO

PL

PL

PL

PT

SE

TR

UK

Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water 
Management BMLFUW

Agency for Innovation by Science and Technology  IWT

Walloon Agricultural Research Centre CRA-W

Federal Office for Agriculture FOAG

Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic MZE

Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection BMELV

Federal Agency of Agriculture and Food BLE

Julius Kuhn Institute JKI

Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries - Danish Food Industry Agency 
DAFA

Ministry of Agriculture EVPM

National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food Research INIA

Agrifood Research Finland MTT

Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 

French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA

Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry MAAF

Szent István University SZIE

Agriculture and Food Development Authority TEAGASC

Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF

Emilia-Romagna Region - Agriculture Department RER

Lithuanian Research Center for Agriculture and Forestry LRCAF

Agricultural Research Institute DLO (part of Wageningen UR (University and 
Research Centre))

Ministry of Economic Affairs, department of Agri-knowledge EZ

The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority NVWA

Research Council of Norway RCN

Institute of Plant Protection IOR

Plant Breeding and Acclimatization Institute IHAR

Research Institute of Horticulture InHort

General Directorate for Agriculture and Veterinary Affairs DGAV

Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences and 
Spatial Planning FORMAS

Ministry of Food Agriculture and Livestock MoFAL

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs DEFRA

Objective

The overall goal of C-IPM is to ensure a higher 
level  of  implementation  of  Integrated  Pest 
Management  among  European  farmers  by 
creating  synergies  from  national  investments 
in  research  and  extension,  from  European 
initiatives,  and  from  private  sector  activities  in 
the areas of Integrated Pest Management and 
minor  uses.  Preliminary  work  carried  out  in  the 
SCAR  CWG  on  IPM  highlights  the  feasibility  of 
generating added value via joint activities that 
range from information sharing and the creation 
of knowledge hubs to the development of joint 
transnational actions. 

including 

The specific goals are:
To  identify  synergies  and  gaps  in  existing 
national  and  transnational  programmes  and 
from this define a IPM-specific strategic research 
agenda  and  associated  implementation  plan.  
C-IPM  will  analyse  and  map  existing  national 
policies, 
research  and  extension 
programmes, as well as support, integrate, and 
complement on-going initiatives in IPM. This will 
pave the road towards an integration of existing 
national  research  programmes  and  activities 
whenever  it  provides  an  added  value.  In  its 
mapping  activities  and  focused  studies,  C-IPM 
will  also  look  forward  at  the  future  of  IPM  in 
Europe, help develop a strategy on sustainable 
crop  protection  valid  at  the  European  level, 
and  substantiate  further  research  topics  to  be 
addressed in transnational calls or feed into the 
development of the Strategic Research Agenda. 

9595

collective  position  papers  and  foresight 
studies. 

•	 Update  and  complement  overall  map  of 
IPM research initiated in the SCAR CWG IPM 
to  provide  the  general  picture  regarding 
ongoing, planned or desired R&D efforts to 
help  implement  the  Framework  Directive 
on  the  Sustainable  Use  of  Pesticides 
(2009/128/EC) and to advance sustainable 
agriculture with respect to crop protection.

•	

Take  stock  of  existing 
initiatives  and 
analyse  on  minor  uses  problems  without 
a  sustainable  solution  and  gather  data 
from  existing  initiatives  at  the  EU  and 
international levels.

•	

Identify  and  assess  merits  of  new 
approaches for IPM.

Based  on  these  mapping  activities,  C-IPM  will 
translate  their  outcomes  into  research  and 
development  needs  and  identify  concrete  R&D 
joint activities within C-IPM. 

Joint calls

C-IPM  will  adapt 
instruments,  mechanisms 
and  processes  according  to  other  ERA-NET 
experiences  to  enable  common  calls,  common 
evaluation,  and  coordinated  funding  sources. 
Two  transnational  calls  will  be  carried  out 
during the course of C-IPM. Follow-up of funded 
projects after C-IPM will be prepared.

To  organise  and  fund  joint  transnational  calls. 
C-IPM  will  adapt 
instruments,  mechanisms 
and  processes  according  to  other  ERA-NET 
experiences  to  enable  common  calls,  common 
evaluation,  and  coordinated  funding  sources. 
Two  transnational  calls  will  be  carried  out 
during the course of C-IPM. Follow-up of funded 
projects after C-IPM will be prepared.

formulation  and 

the  development  of 

To  ensure  better 
translation  of  National 
and  European  IPM-related  programmes  into 
innovations.  C-IPM  will  support 
applicable 
implementation  of 
the 
research  programmes  dedicated 
national 
to 
Integrated  Pest 
Management  strategies  and  will  contribute  to 
the implementation of NAPs by facilitating the 
sharing  of  national  experiences  on  pesticide-
related policies. Special attention will be paid to 
integrate  the  European  Innovation  Partnership 
initiative in its Strategic Research Agenda.

Consortium

The C-IPM consortium consists of 32 organisation 
from 21 different countries.

Mapping and scoping activities

C-IPM  will  have  various  mapping  and  scoping 
activities, including:

•	 Address the future of IPM in Europe through 
thematic  workshops,  the  development  of 

96

CIRCLE-2

Climate Impact Research and 
Response Coordination for a Larger 
Europe

Objective

frameworks, 

commitments 

Climate Change Impact assessment and related 
Adaptation research are emerging scientific and 
policy  areas  in  Europe.  Several  international 
and 
political 
initiatives are currently acting as main scientific-
technological  drivers  and  shaping  research 
activities.  Interactions  between  science  and 
into  unprecedented 
policy  have  developed 
levels  of 
intensity.  Expert  scientific  advice 
has  been  increasingly  called  upon  to  enable 
informed  decision-making,  but  linking  scientific 
knowledge  and  authoritative  political  decision-
making is not a straightforward task.

Coordinating  nationally  developed  knowledge 
research  programmes)  with 
(typically  via 
European  and  international  frameworks  is  a 
growing  demand.  Making  sure  that  political 
investments such as the ones related to climate 
Adaptation  are  cost  effective  is  a  continuous 
need. Global challenges such as Climate Change 
makes the coordination of high quality research 
an absolute imperative to support national and 
European actions.

CIRCLE-2  is  focused  on  the  interface  between 
Climate  Change  science  and  policy.  Through 
the  promotion  of  networking  activities  it  aims 
to  maximise  the  degree  to  which  research 
outcomes address both national and European 
climate policy needs.

A  structuring  impact  on  the  European  Climate 
landscape  can  only  be 
Change 

research 

9797

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To

2010-05-01
2014-04-30

Project reference

249685

Programme acronym

FP7

Topic identifier

ENV.2009.1.1.6.4

Title

Contract type 

Total cost
EU contribution

ERA-NET on Climate Change Impacts 
and Responses

Coordination and support action

€  2 271 877
€  1 999 331

Number of participants

20

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

Foundation of the Faculty of Sciences 
of Lisbon University FFCUL, Portugal

Tiago Capela Lourenço
E tcapela@siam.fis.fc.ul.pt

www.circle-era.eu

AT
BE
DE

EE
ES
FI
FR

GR

HU
IE
IL
IT
NL
PT
PT

SE
SE
SE

TR

UK

Environment Agency Austria EAA
Public Agency Flanders Hydraulics EVFH
German Aerospace Center - Project Management Agency 
Dep. "Environment, Culture, Sustainability" PT-DLR
Estonian Research Council ETAg  
Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness MINECO
The Academy of Finland AKA
 Ministry for Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy 
MEDDE
Mariolopoulos-Kanaginis Foundation for the Environmental 
Sciences MKF 
Ministry of Rural Development MRD
Irish Environmental Protection Agency EPA-I
Israel Ministry of Environmental Protection IME
Euro-Mediterranean Centre on Climate Change CMCC
Knowledge for Climate Research Programme KvK
Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
Foundation of the Faculty of Sciences of Lisbon University 
FFCUL
Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute SMHI
Swedish Environmental Protection Agency SEPA
The Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural 
Sciences and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey 
TUBITAK
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs DEFRA

achieved  if  joint  research  funding  is  put  into 
practice  and  its  results  transferred  in  effective 
ways.  CIRCLE-2  aims  to  further  reinforce  the 
coordination and cooperation between national 
and regional climate research programmes.

It is CIRCLE-2’s intention to contribute to these 
efforts along three complementary ways:

•	 Support  a  common  research  agenda  and 
joint programming foresight activities (WP 
DESIGN)  helping  to  structure  a  common 
language  and 
for  policy 
framework 
relevant Adaptation research;

•	

research 

Adaptation 

Fund 
though 
transnational  joint  calls  and  other  joint 
activities  (WP  FUND)  contributing  to  a 
durable  cooperation  between  European 
climate  research  programmes  and  their 
funders;

•	 Make  available  existing  knowledge  on 
Adaptation  and  foster  the  production 
of  research  along  identified  needs  (WP 
SHARE)  contributing  to  the  development 
of a European knowledge base on Climate 
Change. 

Vision of the CIRCLE ERA-NET:

•	

•	

•	

To  coordinate  European 
transnational 
research  funding  on  Climate  Change 
Impacts,  Vulnerability  and  Adaptation 
(CCIVA)  and  to  facilitate  the  transfer  of 
research  outcomes  that  European  and 
national  decision  makers  need  to  design 
effective 
efficient 
Adaptation initiatives and strategies.

economically 

yet 

To share experiences and lessons learnt on 
CCIVA research funding and management 
and  on  the  development  of  national  and 
regional Adaptation practices.

non-European 

To  encourage  international  cooperation 
and 
with 
organisations as well as the involvement of 
countries with less diverse CCIVA research 
programmes.

countries 

•	

Facilitate  cooperation  among  Europe’s 
national  and 
research 
programmes and their funders/managers.

regional  CCIVA 

•	 Promote  a  common  strategic  agenda 
on  relevant  CCIVA  research  areas  and 
coordinate  it  with  European  framework 
programmes, policies and objectives.

•	 Design and Fund joint initiatives and joint 
calls  for  transnational  CCIVA  research 
proposals on identified knowledge gaps or 
needs.

Consortium

The  CIRCLE-2  consortium  consists  of  20 
organisations  from  17  different  countries. 
Together  with  the  contributing  partners  the 
consortium  consists  of  34  organisations  from 
23 countries. Contributing partners are:  Basque 
Environmental Performance Agency - Ministry of 
Environment  and  Land  Planning  -  Government 
of  the  Basque  Country  IHOBE  (Spain  (Basque 
Country));  Austrian Federal Ministry of Science 
and Research BMWF (Austria);  Belgian Federal 
Science Policy Office BELSPO (Belgium);  Italian 
Ministry for the Environment and Land and Sea 
IMELS (Italy); Federal Office for the Environment 
(Switzerland);  Latvian  Academy  of 
FOEN 
Sciences  LAS  (Latvia);  Ministry  of  Environment 
-  National  Meteorological  Administration  - 
Climatic  Research  Group  METEO-Ro  (Romania); 
Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF 
(Germany);  Environment  Agency  EA    (United 
Kingdom); National Institute of Meteorology and 
Hydrology  of  Bulgarian  Academy  of  Sciences 
NIMH_BAS  (Bulgaria);    Research  Council  of 
Norway  RCN    (Norway);  Coordination  Unit  for 
Research in Climate Change Adaptation, Aarhus 
University AU-KFT (Denmark); Galician Innovation 
Agency  -  Galician  Ministry  of  Economy  and 
Industry  -  Galician  Government  XUNTA  (Spain 
(Galicia));  The  Federal  Environment  Agency 
(Umweltbundesamt) UBA-D (Germany)

Objectives of the CIRCLE ERA-NET:

•	

Establish  a 
research  funding  network 
oriented towards Climate Change Impacts, 
(CCIVA) 
Vulnerability  and  Adaptation 
policy-relevant questions.

Mapping and scoping activities

The  CIRCLE-2  ERA-NET  works  on  the  following 
mapping and scoping activities:

98

•	

Task  3.3  –  ‘CIRCLE-2  strategic  analysis 
of  climate  adaptation 
research-policy 
landscape in Europe’. To map all potential 
research  performers  organizations 
in 
Europe on Climate Change Adaptation.

budget  of  EUR  1.65  million.  These  projects 
involve  research  bodies  from  France,  Italy, 
Portugal, Spain, Israel, Morocco, Tunisia, Croatia, 
and Albania. All funded projects are monitored 
and assessed over the course of their duration.

•	 Climate  Adaptation 

Infobase 
This 

(http://
infobase.circle-era.eu/). 
InfoBase 
includes  research  and  applied  projects 
funded  from  2005  onwards,  at  national 
and  local  levels,  as  well  as  transnational 
projects funded by CIRCLE-2.

•	 Workshops 

(http://www.circle-era.eu/np4/
workshops).  All  the  workshops  organized 
within  CIRCLE-2, 
it  presentations  and 
outputs.

•	 Climate  Adaptation  Research  Agenda 
(CARA) 
(http://www.circle-era.eu/np4/
CARA).  Provide  European,  national  and 
sub-national  actors  involved  in  climate 
research  with  a  common 
adaptation 
independent strategic view from CIRCLE-2 
partners and contributing partners.

Joint calls

First call 2007

This first CIRCLE pilot joint call within the ERA-
Net CIRCLE was launched, in order to establish 
transnational collaborative research projects on 
Climate  Change  Impact  in  a  specific  area,  the 
(CIRCLE-2  MEDiterranean) 
MEDITERRANEAN 
region  focusing  on  “Integrated  Coastal  Zones 
and Water Management”.

A  prerequisite  of  the  MEDiterranean  Call 
was  that  research  proposals  had  to  include 
researchers  from  the  funding  countries,  but 
also  had  to  include  one  associate  research 
institution  belonging  to  other  countries  sharing 
Mediterranean  coastline.  The  five  CIRCLE-2 
MEDiterranean partners agreed to pay not only 
for  their  own  national  researchers,  but  also 
for  researchers  of  non  EU  countries.  Funding 
pledges initially summed up to EUR 2.15 million.
Sixteen proposals were received, representing a 
request of EUR 3.46 million. Institutions applied 
from  many  countries  including  Tunisia,  Egypt, 
Greece, Albania, Croatia, Turkey and Morocco.
Finally  eight  projects  were  selected  for  a  total 

99

Three meetings were scheduled:

•	

•	

The kick-off meeting took place in Rome in 
November  2008,  to  introduce  all  projects 
and  researchers,  and  build  a  community 
dedicated to the call topic

The  mid-term  meeting  was  hosted  in 
Portugal in November 2009, to review the 
mid-term report submitted by the research 
teams

•	 A final meeting to be held in 21-23 March 
of 2011, where research teams will present 
the results of their research

Projects funded:

1.  ACIDBIV - The integrated impacts of marine 
acidification, temperature and precipitation 
changes  on  bivalve  coastal  biodiversity 
and  fisheries:  how  to  adapt?  Coordinator: 
CCMAR  (Portugal).  Participating  countries: 
Spain, Italy, Portugal and Tunisia

2.  AQUIMED - Participatory design of adaptive 
strategies 
groundwater  management 
and instruments in Mediterranean coastal 
water  scarce  areas  as  a  response  to 
climate 
change.  Coordinator:  CIRAD 
(France).  Participating  countries:  Portugal, 
France and Morocco

3.  CANTICO - Climate and local ANthropogenic 
drivers  and 
impacts  for  the  TunisIan 
COastal  area.  Coordinator:  CMCC  (Italy). 
Participating 
Italy, 
Tunisia and Israel

countries:  France, 

4.  CLIMWAT  -  Assessing  and  managing 
the  impact  of  climate  change  on  coastal 
groundwater  resources  and  dependent 
ecosystems. Coordinator:  CVRM (Portugal). 
Participating countries: Spain, Portugal and 
Morocco

5. 

INTERMED - The Impact of climate change 
on  Mediterranean  intertidal  communities: 
Losses 
integrity 
in  coastal  ecosystem 
and  services.  Coordinator:    University  of 
Palermo 
(Italy).  Participating  countries: 
Croatia, Israel and Italy

6.  MEDCODYN  -  Climate  change  impacts 
in  transitional  water  systems 
in  the 
Mediterranean.  Coordinator:    Università 
Participating 
(Italy). 
di 
countries:France, Morocco and Italy

Sienna 

7.  CLIMBIOMEDNET 

-  Climate 

change 
influence  on  biodiversity,  goods  and 
lagoons. 
of  Mediterranean 
services 
Coordinator: 
  Université  Montpellier 
(France).  Participating  countries:  France, 
Italy, Spain, Albania and Tunisia

8.  WaterKnow 

- 

Integrated  Water 
Management  in  Coastal  Drainage  Basins: 
challenges  and  adaptation  strategies 
within  the  framework  of  climate  change. 
Coordinator:    CIRSA  (Italy).  Participating 
countries: 
Italy,  France,  Portugal  and 
Morocco

Second call 2007

The  aim  of  this  CIRCLE-2  NORDic  call  was  to 
enhance  Nordic  research  cooperation  in  the 
areas specified below.

The main objective of this call was to increase 
knowledge  of  options,  premises  and  barriers 
for  climate  change  adaptation,  including  the 
relationship between adaptation and mitigation.
The  theme  for  project  proposals  was  research 
on  consequences  of  climate  change  for  policy 
making  in  important  sectors  in  the  Nordic 
countries, e.g.,

•	 What  are  the  synergies  and  trade-offs 
between  adaptation  and  mitigation  to 
climate change in policy making?

•	 How do the Nordic countries compare and 
differ  with  respect  to  adaptation  needs 
and implementation ability?

The  funding  organisations  of  the  call  were: 
the  Academy  of  Finland,  the  Research  Council 
of  Norway  and  the  Swedish  Environmental 
Protection Agency.

The  call  had  a  total  maximum  budget  of  EUR 
400  000,  with  a  maximum  of  EUR  100  000  - 
200 000 from each funding organisation.

100

Projects funded:

1.  CARAVAN  -  Climate  change:  A  Regional 
Assessment of Vulnerability and Adaptive 
countries. 
capacity 
Coordinator:  Finnish  Environment  Institute 
(Finland).  Participating  countries:  Sweden, 
Finland and Norway

the  Nordic 

for 

2.  CAREPOL  -  Climate  Change  adaptation  in 
Norway, Sweden and Finland - Do research, 
policy  and  practice  meet?  Coordinator: 
Finnish  Meteorological  Institute  (Finland). 
Participating  countries:  Sweden,  Finland 
and Norway

3.  COMMUNITY RESPONSE - Climate change, 
response  and  multilevel 
community 
Stockholm 
governance. 
Environment 
(Sweden). 
Participating  countries:  Sweden,  Finland 
and Norway

Coordinator: 
institute 

Third call 2009

The  aim  of  the  CIRCLE-2  MOUNTain  call  is 
to  increase  knowledge  of  options,  premises 
and  barriers  for  climate  change  impacts  and 
adaptation  including  the  relationship  between 
adaptation  and  mitigation 
in  mountainous 
areas.  Special  emphasis  should  be  laid  on  the 
involvement of decision makers/developers and 
relevant stakeholders.

The  funding  organisations  of  the  call  are:  the 
Federal  Ministry  of  Science  and  Research, 
Austria, 
the  Ministry  of  Ecology,  Energy, 
Sustainable  Development  and  Sea,  France, 
the  Mariolopoulos-Kanaginis  Foundation  of 
Environmental Sciences, Greece, the Ministry of 
Environment and Water, Hungary, the Ministry of 
Science and Innovation, Spain, The Scientific and 
Technological  Research  Council  of  Turkey  and 
The Swedish Research Council for Environment, 
Agricultural Sciences and Spatial Planning.

The  theme  for  project  proposals  was  climate 
change  impacts  (natural  and  anthropogenic 
factors)  and  response  options  in  mountainous 
areas  including  effects  on  /inter  alia/,  water 
stability, 
resources, 
and 
agriculture, 
biodiversity.

infrastructure, 
tourism, 

health 

public 

slope 

The funders have made funding pledges of up 
to EUR 2.12 million.

Fourth call 2013

Under the topic “Adaptation to Climate Change 
from  a  natural  and  social  science  perspective: 
Water in coastal Mediterranean areas”, CIRCLE-2 
have launched a call with the aim of encourage 
scientific  cooperation  between  social  and 
natural scientists in order to find novel solutions 
for  transnational  water-related  climate  change 
adaptation  challenges  in  support  to  public 
policies.

The  funding  countries  of  this  call  are  France, 
Greece,  and  Portugal  and  it  respective  funding 
institutions  were  the  Ministry  for  Ecology, 
Sustainable Development and Energy (MEDDE), 
Mariolopoulos-Kanaginis  Foundation  for  the 
Environmental  Sciences  (MKF)  and  Foundation 
for  Science  and  Technology  (FCT),  with  a  total 
budget of EUR 6.1 million.

Projects funded:

1.  ADAPT-MED  -  Is  current  decision  making 
‘adapted  to  internalize  adaptation’  into 
policy  making?  Coordinator:  ACTeon 
(France).  Participating  countries:  Portugal, 
France and Greece.

2.  MEMOTRADE  -  Social  memory  of  water-
local 
trades  and  practices: 
related 
knowledge and climate change adaptation. 
Coordinator: 
(Portugal). 
ISCTE-IUL 
Participating  countries:  Portugal,  France 
and Greece

It’s  also  possible  to  read  some  information  in 
french: http://www.circlemontagne.fr/

Projects funded:

1.  ARNICA 

-  Assessment  of  Risks  on 
transportation  Networks  resulting  from 
slope  Instability  and  Climate  change  in 
the  Alps.  Coordinator:  Centre  National 
de  Recherche  Scientifique 
(France). 
Participating  countries:  Austria,  France, 
Switzerland and Italy

2.  EURAS-CLIMPACT  - 

Impact  of  climate 
change  and  related  glacier  hazards  and 
mitigation  strategies 
in  the  European 
Alps,  Swedish  Lapland  and  the  Tien  Shan 
Mountains,  Central  Asia.  Coordinator: 
Department of Environmental Geosciences, 
University of Vienna (Austria). Participating 
countries: Austria, France, Greece, Hungary, 
Spain, Sweden and Turkey

3.  ChangingRISKS  -  Changing  pattern  of 
landslide  risks  as  response  to  global 
changes  in  mountain  areas.  Coordinator: 
Centre  National 
Recherche 
Scientifique  /  Institut  de  Physique  du 
Globe de Strasbourg (France). Participating 
countries: Austria, France, Greece, Hungary, 
Spain, Sweden and Turkey

de 

la 

4.  CAMELEON - CArbon dynamics in Mountain 
Landscape-
analyzing 
Ecosystems: 
scale  Effects  Of  aNthropogenic  changes 
(climate  and  land-use)  -  Laboratoire  des 
Sciences  du  Climat  et  de  l’Environnement 
l’Energie  Atomique 
-  Commissariat  à 
(France) - Austria, France, Greece, Hungary, 
Spain, Sweden and Turkey

101

COFASP 

Strengthening cooperation in 
European research on sustainable 
exploitation of marine resources in 
the seafood chains - ERANET

Objective

Research and innovation are central elements in 
the  Europe  2020  Strategy  and  it  is  recognised 
that  bioeconomy  is  an  important  element  of 
the  Strategy.  DG  RTD  has  issued  a  European 
Strategy  Innovating  for  sustainable  growth:  a 
bioeconomy for Europe paving the way to a more 
innovative,  resource  efficient  and  competitive 
society  that  reconciles  food  security  with  the 
sustainable  use  of  renewable  resources,  while 
ensuring environmental protection. 

COFASP will directly address actions envisaged 
within fisheries, aquaculture and seafood: 

•	

•	

•	

to  enhance  scientific  knowledge  and 
innovation  reinforcing  advice  on  fisheries 
management  supporting  decision  making 
and  strengthening  an  ecosystem-based 
fisheries management as central principle 
of the revised Common Fisheries Policy; 

to  implement  the  EU  Strategy  for  the 
Sustainable  Development  of  Aquaculture 
through 
strategic 
guidelines and implementation of national 
strategic aquaculture plans; and

development 

of 

to promote consumption of safe, nutritious 
and healthy European seafood and ensure 
traceability of seafood from net and cage 
to plate.

Based  on  the  earlier  ERA-NET  MariFish  and 
the  running  ERA-NET  SEAS-ERA,  focusing  on 
capture  fisheries,  aquaculture  and  seafood 
processing  including  distribution  to  consumers 

102102

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2013-02-01
2017-01-31

Project reference

321553

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2012.1.2-13

Title

Contract type 

Total cost
EU contribution

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Strengthening cooperation in European 
research on sustainable exploitation of marine 
resources in the seafood chains – ERA-NET

Coordination (or Networking) Action

€  2 723 939
€  1 999 912

26

Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation 
– Danish Agency for Science, Technology and 
Innovation DASTI, Denmark

Niels Gøtke (coordinator) 
E nigoe@fi.dk
Steffen Syberg Hansen (technical/admin. 
issues) 
E ssh@fi.dk; 
Dennis Lisbjerg (scientific issues) 
E management@cofasp.eu

Website

www.cofasp.eu

Participants
BE

Ministry of Agriculture of the Flemish Community - Institute for Agricultural 
and Fisheries Research EV-ILVO
Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection BMELV
Federal Agency of Agriculture and Food BLE
Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish Agency for Science, 
Technology and Innovation DASTI
International Council for the Exploration of the Sea ICES
Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries - Danish Food Industry Agency 
DAFA
Technical University of Denmark - National Institute of Aquatic Resources 
DTU AQUA
Marine and Food Technological Centre AZTI-Tecnalia
Spanish Institute of Oceanography IEO
Finnish Game and Fisheries Research Institute FGFRI
French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea IFREMER
National Agency for Research ANR
General Secretariat for Research and Technology GSRT
Hellenic Centre for Marine Research HCMR
Icelandic Centre for Research RANNIS
Icelandic Food and Biotech R&D Company MATIS
Marine Institute MI
Institute for Environmental Protection and Research ISPRA
National Research Council CNR
Wageningen UR (University & Research centre) WUR
Research Council of Norway RCN
Royal Ministry of Fisheries And Coastal Affairs FHF
Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development and 
Innovation Funding UEFISCDI
Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs DEFRA
Scottish Ministers Acting Through Marine Scotland SCOTTISH MINISTERS

DE
DE
DK

DK
DK

DK

ES
ES
FI
FR
FR
GR
GR
IS
IS
IE
IT
IT
NL
NO
NO
PT
RO

UK
UK

 
the objectives of COFASP are:

•	

•	

To lay the basis for exploitation according to 
the precautionary principles and to enhance 
innovation  in  and  competitiveness  of  the 
primary  sectors  fisheries  and  aquaculture 
as well as subsequent seafood processing 
and distribution to the consumer

the 

science, 

information 
To  define 
and  data  necessary  to  underpin  the 
revision  of  the  CFP  and  to  ensure  its 
successful  implementation  by  designing 
research 
complementary 
programs  and  outlining  monitoring  and 
information/data sharing systems needed.

national 

Consortium

COFASP  has  26  partners  from  15  European 
countries.

aquaculture and sea food processing. The output 
from the final WP1 workshop together with the 
outcomes  from  WP2,  WP3  and  WP4,  will  be 
used to finalize the paper on common strategy 
(to be concluded by month 40 = July 2016). 

The Common Strategy is envisioned to be a big 
tool box which the COFASP consortium will use 
to streamline input when needed.

During the lifetime of the ERA-NET the Common 
Strategy will be used in several ways to provide 
strategic input from the COFASP consortium.

One of the most important tools to be developed 
for  the  Common  Strategy  is  the  Strategic 
Research Agenda, which is expected to have a 
big impact on national research programmes as 
well  as  on  the  future  research  programmes  of 
the EU-Commission.

Mapping and scoping activities

A Common Strategy will be developed catering 
for  the  future  opportunities  and  necessities  of 
cooperation in research in the fields of fisheries, 

Joint calls

Three calls are expected to be launched end of 
2013, month 18 (September 2014) and month 
30 (September 2015).

103

CORE Organic II 

Coordination of European 
Transnational Research in Organic 
Food and Farming Systems

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To      

2010-03-01
2013-08-31

Follow-on ERA-NET

CORE Organic Plus

Project reference

249667

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2009.1.4-09

Title

Coordination of European Transnational 
Research in Organic Food and Farming 
Systems

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  1 607 082
€     999 976

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

26

International Centre for Research in Organic 
Food Systems ICROFS-AU, Denmark

Niels Halberg (coordination)
Ulla Sonne Bertelsen (project management)  
T  +45 87 15 77 16
E Ulla.Bertelsen@icrofs.org

www.coreorganic2.org

AT

BE

BE

CH

CH

CZ

DE

DE

DK

Ministry of Life - Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and 
Water Management BMLFUW

Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research ILVO

Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Flemish Authorities DLV

Research Institute of Organic Agriculture FiBL

Federal Office for Agriculture FOAG

Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic MZE

Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection BMELV

Federal Agency of Agriculture and Food BLE

Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries - Danish Food Industry Agency 
DAFA

DK

International Centre for Research in Organic Food Systems ICROFS

EE

ES

FI

FR

FR

IE

IT

LT

LU

LV

NL

NO

SE

SI

TR

Ministry of Agriculture EVPM

National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food Research INIA

Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 

French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA

Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry MAAF

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food DAFF

Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF

Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Lithuania – Rural Development 
Department ZUM

National Research Fund FNR

Latvian State Institute of Agrarian Economics LSIAE

Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ

Research Council of Norway RCN

Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences and Spatial 
Planning FORMAS

Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food MAFF

Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Affairs - General Directorate of 
Agricultural Research GDAR

UK

Department for Environment, Food And Rural Affairs DEFRA

Objective

Organic  agriculture  and  food  markets  have 
grown  considerably  and  organic  agriculture 
addresses  important  challenges  of  European 
agriculture,  such  as  sustainable  production  of 
high quality food, reducing dependency on high 
energy  inputs,  improving  environmental  and 
nature conservation, climate change adaptation, 
animal  welfare  and  rural  livelihoods.  Organic 
farming  and  food  systems  still  have  a  big 
potential for innovation and improved solutions. 
Research  activities  will  be  important  for  this. 
Coordinated  transnational  research  has  the 
potential to create a less fragmented research 
area in this fast growing sector. 

CORE  Organic  II  builds  on  the  outcome  of  the 
first  CORE  Organic  to  aim  at  an  effective  and 
sustainable transnational research programme. 
It will identify common research priorities for the 
organic  sector  where  a  transnational  approach 
will  give  added  value,  launch  at  least  two 
transnational  calls,  initiate  research  projects, 
organize  project  monitoring  and  dissemination 
of results, and consider funding models. 

CORE Organic II will also develop all components 
to continue the transnational research activities 
beyond  the  ERA-NET.  The  results  of  CORE 
Organic  II  will  be  a  strong  and  sustainable 
network  of  funding  bodies,  all  components  for 
the  effective  continuation  of  collaboration,  a 
series of on-going research projects and a plan 
to support dissemination. The expected benefits 
for Europe will be to reinforce its leading status 

104104

and excellence in organic research, enhance the 
European  research  area  on  organic  agriculture, 
increase the efficiency in use of organic research 
funds  and  improve  the  impact  of  research  on 
the organic sector.

Consortium

The CORE Organic II consortium consists of 26 
partners from 21 different countries.

Mapping and scoping activities

The following mapping activities are included in 
the project:

•	

•	

•	

existing  research  funding  structures  for 
organic research in partner countries.

current  national  legal  basis  for  research 
funding 

channels for dissemination of transnational 
research results

The  outcome  from  point  1  consist  of  a)  an 
analysis  of  the  national  research  priorities  in 
organic  farming  and  food  systems,  b)  a  list  of 
links  to  all  organic  research  activities  in  the 
21  partner  countries,  c)  a  list  of  the  national 
research gaps ranked according to the national 
priorities  and  d)  a  compact  portrait  of  the 
status-quo of organic farming and food research 
in each partner country.

Before a real common pot call can be launched, 
it  is  necessary  to  identify  legal,  political  or 
management  barriers  to  the  real  common  pot 
funding  models.  The  mapping  explored  priority 
on funding models, legal structure, responsibility 
for financial decisions etc. 

The impact of the ERA-NET is hampered if the 
research results are not reaching the end-users. 
The mapping in point 3 is with the aim to make 
a net-work of dissemination hubs for exchange 
and further utilisation of both transnational and 
national research results. 

Joint calls

First call 2010

The first call was launched in September 2010 
and  had  a  budget  of  about  EUR  9.2  million 
divided  into  three  thematic  research  areas. 
Projects  are  running  from  autumn  2011  to 
autumn 2014.

Thematic  research  area:  Cropping:  Designing 
robust and productive cropping systems at field, 
farm and landscape level.

Projects funded:

1.  BICOPOLL  -  Targeted  bio-control  and 
pollination  enhancement.  Coordinator: 
University  of  Helsinki,  Department  of 
Agricultural Sciences (Finland). Participating 
countries: Finland, Germany, Estonia, Italy, 
Slovenia, Turkey, Belgium.

2.  BIO-INCROP 

- 

Innovative 

cropping 
techniques to increase soil health in organic 
fruit  tree  crops.  Coordinator:  Agricultural 
(Italy).  Participating 
Research  Council 
countries:  Italy,  Spain,  Germany,  Austria, 
Switzerland, Turkey.

3. 

InterVeg 
-  Enhancing  multifunctional 
benefits  of  cover  crops  –  vegetables 
intercropping.  Coordinator:  Agricultural 
Research  Council  -  Research  centre  for 
the  soil  plant  system  (CRA-RPS)  (Italy). 
Italy,  Germany, 
Participating  countries: 
Denmark, Slovenia. 

4.  Softpest multitrap - Semio-chemical traps 
for  management  of  weevil  and  plant 
bug  in  organic  strawberry  and  raspberry. 
Coordinator:  Bioforsk  -  Organic  Food  and 
Farming  Division  (Norway).  Participating 
countries:  United  Kingdom,  Sweden, 
Norway, Denmark, Switzerland, Latvia.  

5.  TILMAN-ORG 

systems.  Coordinator: 

tillage  and 
-  Reduced 
green  manures  for  sustainable  organic 
cropping 
FiBL 
Research  Institute  of  Organic  Agriculture 
(Switzerland). 
countries: 
France,  Germany, 
The  Netherlands, 
Belgium,  Luxembourg,  United  Kingdom, 
Estonia, Italy, Spain, Austria.

Participating 

6.  Vineman.Org 

- 

Enhancing 

disease 

105

yield 

efficiency, 

management, 
and 
biodiversity in organic European vineyards. 
Coordinator: Università Cattolica del Sacro 
Cuore  (Italy).  Participating  countries:  Italy, 
Austria, Germany, Slovenia, Spain.

Thematic  research  area:  Monogastric:  Robust 
and  competitive  production  systems  for  pigs, 
poultry and fish.

Projects funded: 

7.  HealthyHens  -  Promoting  good  health 
and  welfare  in  European  organic  laying 
hens.  Coordinator:  University  of  Kassel 
(Germany). 
countries: 
Participating 
Germany, Denmark, Italy, United Kingdom, 
The Netherlands, Austria, Sweden, Belgium. 

8. 

ICOPP - Improved contribution of local feed 
to  support  100%  organic  feed  supply  to 
pigs and poultry. Coordinator: University of 
Aarhus  (Denmark).  Participating  countries: 
Denmark, 
The  Netherlands,  United 
Kingdom,  Sweden,  Austria,  Germany, 
Finland, Switzerland, France, Lithuania

9.  ProPIG - Strategies to reduce environmental 
impact  by  improving  health  and  welfare 
of  organic  pigs.  Coordinator:  University 
of  Natural  Resources  and  Applied  Life 
Sciences  (Austria).  Participating  countries: 
Austria, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Italy, 
France, Denmark, Germany, Czech Republic.

research  area:  Quality:  Ensuring 
Thematic 
quality  and  safety  of  organic  food  along  the 
whole chain .

Projects funded: 

10. SafeOrganic - Restrictive use of antibiotics 
in  organic  animal  farming.  Coordinator: 
Technical University of Denmark, National 
Institute,  Denmark.  Participating 
Food 
countries: Italy, France, Sweden, Denmark, 
Czech Republic.

11. AuthenticFood 

-  Fast  methods 

for 
authentication of organic plant based foods. 
Coordinator:  University  of  Copenhagen, 
Faculty  of  Life  Sciences,  Denmark. 
Participating 
Luxembourg, 
countries: 
Italy,  Denmark,  Czech  Republic,  Germany, 
Finland,  France,  The  Netherlands,  United 

106

Kingdom, Lithuania.

Second call 2011

The second call was launched in October 2011 
and  had  a  budget  of  about  EUR  4.9  million 
divided 
into  two  thematic  research  areas. 
Projects are running from Spring 2013 to Spring 
2016.

Thematic 
research  area:  Plant-breeding  - 
Improvement  of  production  efficiency  and 
agricultural biodiversity within cropping systems 
by using eco-compatible breeding techniques

Project funded: 

for 

Activities 

1.  COBRA  -  Coordinating  Organic  plant 
BReeding 
Diversity, 
coordinated  by  The  Organic  Research 
(United  Kingdom).  Participating 
Centre 
countries:  United  Kingdom,  Austria, 
Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, 
(Hungary), 
Italy,  Latvia,  Luxembourg, 
Norway, Slovenia, Switzerland, Turkey. 

Thematic 
development of organic markets

research  area:  Supporting 

the 

Project funded: 

2.  HealthyGrowth  -  Healthy  growth:  From 
niche  to  volume  with  integrity  and  trust 
coordinated  by  Institute  of  Agroecology, 
Aarhus University (Denmark). Participating 
countries:  Denmark,  Austria,  Finland, 
France,  Germany,  Lithuania,  Norway, 
Slovenia, Sweden, Turkey.

Third call 2012

The third call was launched in June 2012 as a 
real common pot call with six countries involved 
and  a  budget  of  EUR  860  000.  The  call  was 
a  one-step  call.  The  selected  project  will  be 
running from June 2013 to May 2016.

Thematic 
research  area:  Sustainable  and 
efficient management of phosphorus and use of 
secondary fertilizers within organic agriculture. 

 
Project funded:

1. 

IMPROVE-P: 
Phosphorus 
IMproved 
Resource  efficiency  in  Organic  agriculture 
Via  recycling  and  Enhanced  biological 
mobilization  coordinated  by  Institute  of 
Crop  Science,  Universität  Hohenheim 
(Germany). 
countries: 
Participating 
Germany,  Austria,  Switzerland,  Denmark, 
Norway, United Kingdom. 

Publication  from  the  projects  can  be  found  at 
www.orgprints.org by browsing European Union, 
CORE Organic and the short name of the project.
COII had a research seminar in November 2011 
to present the 11 projects of the first call and the 
results of the eight CORE Organic pilot projects. 
In May 2013 the second research seminar will 
take place to present the three projects of the 
second and third call, and the results at midterm 
of the first call projects.

107

EMIDA 

Coordination of European Research 
on Emerging and Major Infectious 
Diseases of Livestock

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2008-04-01
2011-12-31

Follow-on ERA-NET

Project reference

Programme 
acronym

ANIHWA

219235

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE-2007-1-3-02

Title

Coordination of European research in the area 
of animal health, including emerging threats, 
infectious diseases and surveillance

Contract type 

Coordination and Support Action 
(Coordinating)

Total cost
EU contribution

€  1 092 514
€     997 218

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

29

Department for Environment, Food and Rural 
Affairs DEFRA, United Kingdom

Contact person

Alex Morrow 
E alex.morrow@defra.gsi.gov.uk

Website

www.emida-era.net

Participants
BE

Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain FASFC

BE

BE

CH

CY

CZ

DE

DE

DE

DE

DE

DK

ES

FI

FR

FR

IE

IL

IT

IT

LT

NL

NL

NO

SE

TR

UK

UK

UK

Veterinary and Agrochemical Research Centre CODA-CERVA

Federal Public Service Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment  FPS-CR

Swiss Federal Veterinary Office SFVO

Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment (Veterinary 
Services) VS

Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic MZE

Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection BMELV

Federal Agency of Agriculture and Food BLE

Jülich Research Centre JUELICH

Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF

Federal Ministry of Health BMG

Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, Danish Food Industry Agency 
DFIA

National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food Research INIA

Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 

French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA

National Agency for Research ANR

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food DAFF

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Israeli Veterinary Services 
and Animal Health IVSAH

Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF

Ministry of Health HM-DVPHNFS

Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Lithuania MAL

Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ

Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority NVWA

Research Council of Norway RCN

Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences and Spatial 
Planning FORMAS

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs TAGEM

Scottish Government SG

Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council BBSRC

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs DEFRA

Objective

The  disease  threats  to  the  livestock  industry 
have  increased  steadily  over  the  past  decades 
as a result of globalisation, evolving pathogens 
and  climate  change.  Responding  to  animal 
disease  threats 
relies  heavily  on  science; 
research  makes  a  significant  contribution  to 
the  development  of  disease  control  policy  and 
the  translation  of  policy,  and  other  drivers  for 
improving  animal  health,  into  practical  effect. 
Although the legislation that underpins policy for 
the control of statutory diseases is determined 
at the EU level, the research that supports policy 
development  and  implementation  is  primarily 
carried  out  at  the  national  level  and  is  largely 
uncoordinated as is the research on other major 
infectious diseases currently affecting livestock 
production.

The aim of the Animal Health ERA-NET was to 
build  on  and  accelerate  the  work  of  the  SCAR 
CWG  in  developing  a  durable  focused  network 
of  national  research  founders  in  Member  and 
Associated  States  of  the  EU  for  the  purpose 
of  sharing  information,  coordinating  activities 
and  working  towards  a  common  research 
agenda and mutual research funding activities. 
The  scope  of  the  project  included  emerging 
and  major  infectious  diseases  of  production 
animals,  including  fish  and  bees  and  including 
those conditions which pose a threat to human 
health but excluding food safety issues relating 
to  livestock  products  and  diseases  of  wildlife 
except where they act as reservoirs of infection 
for humans or production animals.

108108

The  objectives  of  the  ERA-NET  were  delivered 
through the following four work packages:
WP1.  Project 
coordination,  management, 
communication  and  dissemination;  WP2. 
Mapping  and  analysis  of  existing  research 
and  current  needs  and  information  on  the 
commissioning  and  management  of 
joint 
programmes; WP3. Develop, test, evaluate and 
refine instruments (Pilots) and WP4. Developing 
a strategic transnational animal health research 
agenda.

Consortium

The  EMIDA  ERA-NET  consist  of  29  partner 
organisations  from  18  countries  and  four 
observer  organisations  from  three  different 
countries.  Observers  are:  Department  of 
Agriculture  and  Rural  Development  DARD-
AFBI  (United  Kingdom),  Ministry  of  Agriculture, 
Forestry  and  Water  Management,  Veterinary 
Directorate  MPS 
(Croatia),  Welcome  Trust 
(United Kingdom).

Mapping and scoping activities

A  framework  was  established  under  the  CWG 
for  the  capture  of  research  project  information 
and a database developed which is serving the 
needs for the collection of information for both 
EMIDA  and  the  CWG.    Details  of  over  2,100 
projects  have  been  uploaded  to  the  project 
database by the project partners.   To complete 
the  mapping  of  the  research  landscape,  three 
other  databases  of  supporting  information,  in 
the form of publications over the past four years, 
international animal health related patents and 
EC funded animal health related projects, were 
also  developed  using  data  from  international 
scientific  databases.  These  databases,  the 
methodology  behind  them  and  the  associated 
reports on research outputs can be accessed on 
the project website.
A  questionnaire  on  current  management 
practices  relating  to  the  research  programmes 
of the project partners and their perceived needs 
and  priority  topics  of  interest  for  inclusion  in  a 
common  call  was  conducted  and  the  resulting 
report is also available on the project website.

109

Joint calls

First call 2010

The following twelve projects were funded:

1.  OrbiNet  -  Molecular  and  reverse  genetics 
studies  of  orbivirus  transmission,  host 
responses,  epidemiology  and  diagnostic 
systems. Coordinator: Pirbright Laboratory, 
Institute 
(United 
for  Animal  Health 
Kingdom). Participating countries: Denmark, 
Germany,  United  Kingdom,  Switzerland, 
Israel, The Netherlands, France, Belgium

2.  Early  detection  data  -  Improving  early 
detection  of  emerging  vector  borne 
diseases  by  using  existing  production 
and  diagnostic  data.  Coordinator:  Animal 
Health Service Deventer (The Netherlands). 
Participating countries: Belgium, France

3.  LA-MRSA 

- 

Methicillin-resistant 
Staphylococcus aureus lineages in primary 
productions:  multi-host  pathogen,  spill-
over  and  spill-back  between  animals 
Istituto 
and 
Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Regioni 
Lazio  e  Toscana 
(Italy).  Participating 
countries:  Denmark,  Germany,  Belgium, 
Spain, Italy

Coordinator: 

humans? 

4.  TB Alpine Wildlife - Tuberculosis in Alpine 
wildlife  -  Monitoring,  diagnostics  and 
potential control strategies of tuberculosis 
in wild animals in the Alpine provinces of 
Austria,  Germany,  Italy  and  Switzerland. 
Coordinator:  Austrian  Agency  for  Health 
and  Food  Safety  (Austria).  Participating 
countries: 
Italy, 
Switzerland

Germany, 

Austria, 

subspecies 

5.  ParaTBVaccine  -  Development  of  a  novel 
subunit  vaccine  against  Mycobacterium 
avium 
paratuberculosis 
interfere  with  bovine 
that  does  not 
TB  diagnostics.  Coordinator:  National 
Veterinary Institute (Norway). Participating 
countries: United Kingdom, Denmark.

6.  CombatColibacillosis 

- 

Combatting 
colibacillosis - a genomics based approach. 
Coordinator:  University  of  Würzburg, 
Institute  for  Molecular  Infection  Biology 
(Germany). Participating countries: France, 
Italy, Israel

7.  BRSV-DIVA - Development and comparative 
evaluation  of  three  new  generation  BRSV 
DIVA  vaccines  and  a  corresponding  DIVA 
test.  Coordinator:  Swedish  University  of 
Agricultural  Sciences/National  Veterinary 
Institute (Sweden). Participating countries: 
United Kingdom, France, Sweden

8. 

iPUD  -  Integrated  systems  approach  for 
preventing  uterine  disease  in  dairy  cattle. 
Coordinator:  Swansea  University,  Institute 
of Life Science, School of Medicine (United 
Kingdom).  Participating  countries:  France, 
United Kingdom, Germany

9.  MADISPREAD  -  Marek’s  Disease  Virus 
Spread: In and Out of Chicken. Coordinator: 
INRA    Institut  National  de  la  Recherche 
Participating 
(France). 
Agronomique 
countries:  Germany, 
France,  United 
Kingdom

10. Improvements in the diagnosis and control 
of  bovine  mycoplasmosis.  Coordinator: 
Veterinary  Laboratories  Agency  (United 
Kingdom). Participating countries: Germany, 
Israel, Italy

11. HealthyGut  –  Multi-focal  strategies  to 
improve  gut  health  and  reduce  enteritis 
in poultry and pigs. Coordinator: University 
of 
Kingdom). 
Participating countries: Czech Republic, CN, 
Italy, Germany, United Kingdom, France

Nottingham 

(United 

12. PathoFish  -  Control  Flavobacteriaceae 
infections 
farms. 
in  European 
Coordinator:  INRA  (France).  Participating 
countries: 
Finland,  Norway, 
Switzerland, Denmark, Italy

France, 

fish 

Second call 2011

The following fourteen projects were funded:

1.  RiftVectors 

-  Vector  competence  of 
European  mosquitoes  to  Rift  Valley  fever 
virus.  Coordinator:  University  of  Glasgow 
(United  Kingdom).  Participating  countries: 
United Kingdom, Italy, France

2.  VICE  -  Vector-borne  Infections:  risk  based 
and  cost  efficient  surveillance  systems. 
Coordinator:  DTU  –  National  Veterinary 
Institute (Denmark). Participating countries: 
The  Netherlands,  Norway,  Germany, 

110

Belgium, Switzerland, France, Sweden

3.  EMIRO  -  The  significance  of 

for 

rodent 
communities 
the  distribution  of 
Echinococcus multilocularis: ecological and 
experimental  investigations.  Coordinator: 
Swedish 
Agricultural 
Sciences (Sweden). Participating countries: 
Switzerland,  Lithuania,  Finland,  Sweden, 
Denmark

University 

of 

4.  APHAEA  -  Harmonised  approaches 

in 
monitoring  wildlife  population  health  and 
ecology  and  abundance.  Coordinator: 
IREC Universidad de Castilla - La Mancha 
(Spain).  Participating 
Italy, 
Germany,  France,  Sweden,  Switzerland, 
Denmark

countries: 

5.  CamChain  -  Campylobacter  in  chicken 
production: survival, virulence and control. 
Coordinator:  University 
Liverpool 
(United  Kingdom).  Participating  countries: 
Lithuania, United Kingdom, Finland, Austria, 
France, Denmark

of 

6.  CARES - Coping with anthelmintic resistance 
in  ruminants.  Coordinator:  University  of 
Copenhagen 
Participating 
(Denmark). 
countries:  France,  Denmark,  Canada, 
Greece, Ireland, Sweden, Guadeloupe

7.  MINAPIG  -  Evaluation  of  alternative 
strategies  for  raising  pigs  with  minimal 
antimicrobial 
Opportunities 
usage: 
and  constraints.  Coordinator:  SAFOSO 
countries: 
(Switzerland). 
France, 
Sweden,  Belgium,  Germany, 
Denmark, Switzerland

Participating 

8.  GOAT-TSE-FREE  -  Towards  breeding  of 
goats  for  genetically  determined  TSEs 
resistance.  Coordinator:  Central  Veterinary 
Institute 
(The 
Netherlands). Participating countries: Italy, 
France,  Spain,  United  Kingdom,  Greece, 
Germany

of  Wageningen  UR 

9.  DIFAGH 

immune 
-  Development  of 
function and avian gut health. Coordinator: 
University  of  Oxford  (United  Kingdom). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  France, 
Israel, Denmark

10.  MYCOBACTDIAGNOSIS 

-  Development 
of  novel  diagnostic  strategies  for  the 
ante-mortem 
of 
bovine  tuberculosis  and  Johne’s  Disease. 

immunodiagnosis 

Coordinator: Animal Health and Veterinary 
Laboratories  Agency  (United  Kingdom). 
countries: 
Participating 
The 
Netherlands, 
Ireland,  Germany,  United 
Kingdom, Italy

France, 

11.  Brucmel  -  Brucella  melitensis:  biotyping 
and  differential  diagnostic.  Coordinator: 
Sperimentale 
Istituto 
dell’Abruzzo  e  del  Molise  ‘G.  Caporale’ 
(ICT) (Italy). Participating countries: Greece, 
Israel, Italy

Zooprofilattico 

12.  Farmers  WTP  -  Farmers’  willingness  to 
prevent  and  control  disease.  Coordinator: 
Wageningen  University  (The  Netherlands). 

Participating  countries:  United  Kingdom, 
France

13.  MOLTRAQ  -  Molecular  tracing  of  viral 
in  aquaculture.  Coordinator: 
pathogens 
Norwegian  Veterinary  Institute  (Norway). 
Participating  countries:  Denmark,  France, 
Germany, Norway

14.  Epi-SEQ  -  Molecular  epidemiology  of 
epizootic  diseases  using  next  generation 
sequencing 
Coordinator: 
technology. 
Veterinary  and  Agrochemical  Research 
(Belgium). 
Center 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Sweden, 
United Kingdom, Italy

(CODA-CERVA) 

111

ERA-ARD II  

The Agricultural Research for 
Development Dimension of the 
European Research Area

Objective

to 

ERA-ARD II has two strategic objectives: Improving 
the  European  contribution 
International 
Agricultural  Research  (IAR)  by  promoting  joint 
activities and transnational programs in the field of 
Agricultural Research for Development (ARD) and 
Increasing  the  impact  of  European  contributions 
in  achieving  the  Millennium  Development  Goals 
(MDG’s) and to sustainable growth in the poorest 
countries in the world. 

Achievements of ERA-ARD I include: 

•	

•	

•	

•	

providing  a  shared  vision  and  a  strategic 
agenda on ARD in Europe; 

providing  an  analysis  of  collaboration 
models  to  the  implementation  of  joint  and 
transnational activities;

increasing  the 
involvement  of  Southern 
partners  through  the  establishment  of  a 
Southern Advisory Group;

implementing a transnational call focussing 
on Bioenergy. 

The main areas for improvement were: 

•	

•	

Enlargement of the consortium by integrating 
new  partner  countries  (Portugal,  Turkey, 
Finland, etc.);

Expanding  joint  and  transnational  activities 
initiated during ERA-ARD I;

•	 Realising  joint  activities  in  thematic  fields: 
to 

Capacity  development,  also 
climate change;

related 

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To      

2010-10-01
2013-09-30

Project reference

249664

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2009.1.4-08

Title

ERA-NET-Agricultural Research for 
Development - The Agricultural Research for 
Development Dimension of the European 
Research Area

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  1 565 681
€     971 710

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

17

Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ, The 
Netherlands

Patricia Wagenmakers
T +31-707573167/M +31-652717773
E p.s.wagenmakers@minez.nl

www.era-ard.org

AT

BE

CH

DE
DK

ES

Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and 
Water Management BMLFUW
Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and 
Development Cooperation Belgium DGD
Federal Department of Foreign Affairs / Swiss Agency for 
Development and Cooperation – Department for Global 
Cooperation, Global Programme Food Security DEZA
Federal Agency of Agriculture and Food BLE
Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Department for Technical 
Advisory Services MFA - DTAS
National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food 
Research INIA
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 
Institute of research for development IRD
Agricultural Research for Development CIRAD

FI
FR
FR
HU Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development – Department 

IT
LT

for Natural Resources MARD
Overseas Agronomic Institute IAO
Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Lithuania – Rural 
Development Department ZUM
NL Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ
PT
TR Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, General Directorate of 

National Institute of Biological Resources INRB

TR

UK

Agricultural Research MARA/GDAR
Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey 
TUBITAK
Department for International Development – Central Research 
Department DFID

112112

•	

•	

Involvement  of  the  end  users  of  the 
European ARD programmes in the design and 
implementation  of  joint  and  transnational 
activities;

Expend  the  Southern  Advisory  Group  to 
include stakeholders from all continents. 

increase 

The  impact  of  this  ERA-NET  lies  in  supporting 
and  enhancing  the  European  Research  Area  for 
Development. A greater contribution and visibility 
of  Europe  towards  achieving  the  Millennium 
Development  Goals  through  an 
in 
effectiveness  and  efficiency  of  its  research  for 
development programs is being established along 
with the development of a more coherent European 
ARD  and  a  facilitated  access  of  developing 
countries  to  European  ARD  expertise.  The  joint 
call will result in research which will contribute to 
meeting the EU’s commitment towards the United 
Nations Millennium Development Goals.

Consortium

The  ERA-ARD  consortium  consists  of  17 
organisations from 15 different  countries.

2. 

more  appropriate  projects  with  hopefully 
more impact. Involvement of representatives 
from  the  South  has  been  enhanced  by  the 
formation  of  the  Southern  and  Emerging 
economies Advisory Group (SEAG), to provide 
input  from  partners  from  Southern  and 
Emerging economies in the decision-making 
process of the ERA-ARD.

Improved  transparency  in  the  European 
research  landscape  and  practical  tools  for 
improving  contribution  to  MDG’s.  Improving 
transparency in the diversity of the European 
offer comes through the ERA-ARD proposal 
for  a  European  ARD  portal  -  a  portal  of 
portals  –  that  aims  at  the  facilitation 
of  access  to  European  ARD  information, 
expertise  and  collaboration  partners  as 
well  as  the  facilitation  of  interaction  and 
networking  (D1.3  Suggestions  for  concept 
and  development  of  the  European  ARD 
portal  -  a  Portal  of  Portals).  By  building  on 
the  current  ERA-ARD  portal,  this  should  be 
initiated  in  the  near  future.  In  addition,  an 
evaluation  mechanism  called  the  “MDG 
toolbox” has been developed and is able to 
underpin the assessment of relative value of 
various MDG aspects and impact in practice.

Mapping and scoping activities

Building onto the ERA-ARD I project, the ERA-ARD 
II  network  has  implemented  two  major  mapping 
and scoping activities:

Joint calls 

First call 2012

1.  Strengthened  networking  and  consultation.
The ERA-ARD network in itself links funders 
with  a  view  to  greater  contribution  of  the 
European  efforts  towards  achieving  the 
MDGs.  The  network  has  been  successful 
in  generating  mutual  understanding  and 
a  focus  on  priority  themes,  fed  by  various 
consultation  processes  both  in  Europe  and 
in Africa. This included developing the ARD-
Alliance  concept,  the  aim  of  which  is  to 
build on the diversity and experience within 
Europe  and  establish  a  mechanism  for 
forming regional ARD-Alliances around joint 
activities  and  a  common  understanding  of 
priority thematic areas. Its value is mutually 
beneficial  for  the  demand  and  the  supply 
sides: better demand articulation generating 

113

The  theme  of  this  call  was  “Improving  rural 
livelihoods  in  Sub-Saharan  Africa:  Sustainable 
and  climate-smart  intensification  of  agricultural 
production”. The funding partners (Austria, Belgium, 
France,  Germany,  Netherlands  and  Switzerland) 
committed at total of EUR 1.5 million into funding 
six proposals, of the twenty two received. Projects 
were started at the end of 2012 and early 2013. 

Projects funded:

1.  CAMES 

- 

of 

Impacts 

Conservation 
Agriculture  on  Macrofauna  diversity  and 
related  Ecosystem  Services  for  improved 
farmers‘  cropping  systems  and  livelihoods 
in  Highlands  of  Madagascar.  Coordinator: 
IRD (France). Participating countries: France, 
Madagascar

2.  WASSA - Woody Amendments for Soudano-
Sahelian  Agriculture.  Coordinator: 
IRD 
(France). Participating countries: France, The 
Netherlands, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Niger

3.  SEWS  -  Sustainable  Exploitation  of  wild 
silks  in  Sub-Saharan  Africa.  Coordinator: 
University  of  Ghent  (Belgium).  Participating 
countries:  Belgium,  United  Kingdom,  The 
Netherlands, Kenya

4.  SSOPI - Providing sustainable field-to-market 
strategies  on  production 
intensification 
of  selected  key  crops.  Coordinator:  BOKU 
(Austria).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Ethiopia, Kenya, Germany

5.  SIFSISDP  -  Sustainable  integrated  farming 
systems  for  improvement  of  smallholder 
dairy  production  while  optimising  crop 
production  in  milk  shed  areas  of  Malawi 
and Zambia. Coordinator: ART (Switzerland). 
Participating countries: Switzerland, Belgium, 
Malawi

6.  CA-SubSurface-IR 

-  A 

comprehensive 
Analysis  of  Subsurface  Irrigation  in  SSA 
for  an  Optimisation  and  Adaption  of  an 
Environmental  friendly  Irrigation  Practice. 
Coordinator:  Kassel  University  (Germany). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Kenya, 
Algeria

Main  Conclusions  of 
International 
Conference,  held  in  Brussels,  Belgium,  5th 
June 2013

the 

The following has been prepared by the organisers 
as a support to participants and others. It provides 
a brief conclusion for the conference. Conference 
presentations  can  be  found  on  the  ERA-ARD 
Website  at  http://www.era-ard.org/international-
conference/.

100  people  including  policy  makers,  donors, 
programme  managers,  scientists  and  other 
stakeholders. Participants were active both during 
the  sessions  and  during  the  breaks  and  they 
agreed  that  time  is  right  for  improving  linkages 
between  Agricultural  Research  and  Agricultural 
Research for Development. This will contribute to 
greater impact on Global Challenges from the side 
of European Agricultural Research.

There is considerable experience and a multitude 
of ideas on how the impact of AR and ARD can be 
strengthened and it is important to build on this, 
ensuring AR and ARD use a more bottom-up and 
multi-stakeholder approach. 

It  is  recommended  that  the  way  to  link  AR  and 
ARD  successfully  can  be  elaborated  through 
establishing  a  Joint  EIARD  –  SCAR  Strategic 
Working  Group  which  supports  and  strengthens 
collaboration  between  countries,  aiming  at 
improving  efficiency  and  visibility  of  use  of 
research funds.

Alignment  at  global,  regional  and  national  levels 
should be improved and supported by consultation 
with  a  broad  range  of  stakeholders  from  Europe 
and the South, acknowledging that building mutual 
trust  in  sustainable  partnerships  takes  time  and 
is  part  of  the  development  process.  Partnerships 
between Europe and the South will be increasingly 
balanced and of mutual benefit.

instruments  should  be  flexible  and 
Funding 
catalyse existing initiatives, rather than generating 
new initiatives.

Europe  should  support  research  collaboration  in 
sustainable  intensification  of  food  production, 
taking  into  account  the  whole  value  chain  (such 
as IntensAfrica).

The  conference  was  conducted  in  a  positive  and 
constructive  atmosphere  and  attended  by  over 

In  other  words:  We  must  translate  rhetoric  into 
action. The moment is now.

114

ERA-CAPS 

ERA-NET for Coordinating Action in 
Plant Sciences

Objective

Plant sciences face important challenges at the 
European and global scale due to a burgeoning 
world  population  that  requires  sustenance. 
Reliable  production  of  high-quality  and  safe 
food,  feed  and  renewable  Carbon  supplies  for 
green  chemistry,  without  the  use  of  excess 
land, energy, water, pesticides and chemicals is 
therefore essential.

that  we  have 

To  ensure 
the  scientific 
understanding to again revolutionise agricultural 
capabilities  to  deliver  higher  yields  with  lower 
inputs  in  a  changing  climate,  we  have  formed 
a  network  focusing  on  Coordinating  Action  in 
Plant Sciences (ERA-CAPS). This network unites 
the  scientific  and  economic  capabilities  of 
member states and enable the coordination of 
sustainable transnational plant science research 
programmes.

initiated 
(2004-2009)  successfully 
ERA-PG 
a  programme 
the  scientific 
to  structure 
and  technological  basis  for  plant  genomics 
programmes  in  Europe.  This  has  fostered  the 
development  of  the  common  knowledge  base 
necessary 
transnational 
policy  frameworks.  However,  if  transnational 
cooperation  and  resolute  mutual  goals  in  the 
plant  sciences  are  to  be  firmly  embedded 
in  national  policies  and  processes,  these 
foundations  must  be 
strengthened  and 
expanded.

to  build  coherent 

To  bring  this  about  ERA-CAPS  will  pursue  the 

115115

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2011-12-01
2014-11-30

Project reference

291864

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2011.1.1-05

Title

Deepened and enlarged European 
cooperation in the area of Molecular Plant 
Sciences - ERA-NET

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 221 910
€  1 989 658

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

19

Biotechnology and Biological Sciences 
Research Council BBSRC, United Kingdom

Rowan McKibbin (Coordination) 
E rowan.mckibbin@bbsrc.ac.uk
Paul Wiley  (Project management – primary 
contact)
T +44 1793 413379
E paul.wiley@bbsrc.ac.uk

Website

www.eracaps.org

Participants
AT
BE
CA
DE
DK

Austrian Science Fund FWF
National Fund for Scientific Research FRS-FNRS
National Research Council Canada NRC
German Research Foundation DFG
Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish 
Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation DASTI
Estonian Research Council ETAG
Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness MINECO
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA
Hungarian Academy of Sciences HAS
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MOARD
Ministry of Education, University and Research MIUR
Latvian Academy of Sciences LAS
The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research NWO
Research Council of Norway RCN
Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment MBIE
National Centre for Research and Development  NCBiR
Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
Ministry of Education, Science and technological Development 
MPNTR
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council BBSRC

EE
ES
FR
HU
IL
IT
LV
NL
NO
NZ
PL
PT
RS

UK

development  of  a  common  agenda  for  plant 
science  in  Europe  and  create  a  joint  research 
programme.  ERA-CAPS  will  also  facilitate  data 
management,  access  and  sharing  solutions. 
Through  external  engagement  ERA-CAPS  will 
enable interaction between researchers, funders 
and  relevant  European  initiatives,  and  assist 
in  the  systematic  exchange  of  information  to 
facilitate the expansion of the network and the 
involvement of new members and affiliates.

Such  a  network  will  significantly  help  plant 
sciences  address  both  current  and  future 
challenges in food and non-food crop production.

•	

•	

Consortium

The  ERA-CAPS  consortium  consists  of  19 
partners  from  19  countries.  Also  there  are 
seven  observer  organisations:  European  Plant 
Science  Organisation  EPSO  (Europe),  National 
Research  Agency  ANR  (France),  Department 
of  Biotechnology  DBT 
(India),  Ministry  of 
Agricultural,  Food  and  Forestry  Policies  MiPAAF  
(Italy),  Japan  Science  and  Technology  Agency 
JST  (Japan),  Ministry  of  Agriculture,  Forestry 
and  Food  MAFF  (Slovenia),  National  Science 
Foundation NSF (United Stated of America).

Mapping and scoping activities

A  number  of  mapping  and  scoping  activities 
have  been  carried  out  or  are  planned  by  ERA-
CAPS.  The four key activities are as follows:

•	

•	

science  programmes: 
National  plant 
Partner  funding  agencies  were  surveyed 
to establish existing national plant science 
programmes  and 
funding  priorities. 
This  inventory  provided  an  update  to 
information  supplied  by  partners  involved 
in ERA-PG, and established a baseline for 
the new partners.  This identified areas of 
common interest that were used to identify 
topics for the first transnational call.

facilities  and  personnel: 

Key 
  Key 
information  on  plant  scientists  and 
major  facilities  available  in  the  partner 
organisations  will  be  gathered  and 
used  to  populate  the  Meta-Knowledge 

116

Base.    This  will  facilitate  the  formation 
of  collaborations  within  the  plant  science 
community

Existing transnational activities: This survey 
identified the multinational networks ERA-
CAPS partners are involved in, the funding 
mechanisms  and  processes  adopted  in 
these networks, and if they have become 
self-sustaining.  This provides background 
evidence  that  will  enable  ERA-CAPS  to 
become self-sustaining.

Data  sharing  policies:    Partners  were 
surveyed on their organisational or national 
data  sharing  policies.    This  will  feed  into 
the ERA-CAPS objective to develop a data-
sharing policy.   

The results of many of the mapping and scoping 
activities carried out by ERA-CAPS will be used 
to  populate  a  Meta-Knowledge  Base  that  is 
being  developed  as  one  of  the  deliverables  of 
the ERA-NET.

Joint calls

First  call 2012

in 

research 

The  first  ERA-CAPS  call  for  proposals  launched 
in November 2012 and closed in February 2013 
is  entitled:  “Expanding  the  European  Research 
Area in Molecular Plant Sciences”. The first ERA-
CAPS  call  will  fund  high  quality  collaborative 
transnational 
fundamental 
molecular plant science. The expected duration 
of  projects  will  be  three  years.  Sixteen  ERA-
CAPS  partner  organisations  or  ERA-CAPS 
associated organisations from 15 countries are 
participating  in  this  first  call.  By  agreement  of 
the funding organisations involved, the first joint 
call launched by ERA-CAPS was intended to allow 
maximum  engagement  of  the  plant  science 
community  and  was  therefore  broad  in  scope, 
covering  all  areas  of  molecular  plant  science. 
No  specific  topics  were  defined;  however,  the 
following  themes  were  identified  as  being  of 
common interest to several of the participating 
funding  organisations:  Food  Security;  Non-food 
crops; Adaptation to a changing climate; Biotic/
abiotic stresses.

FWF 

INRA 

Fund 

Science 

Funding partners for the first joint call:
Austrian 
(Austria), 
National  Fund  for  Scientific  Research  FRS-
FNRS  (Belgium),  Danish  Agency  for  Science, 
Technology  and  Innovation  DASTI  (Denmark), 
French  National 
for  Agricultural 
Institute 
Research 
(France),  German  Research 
Foundation  DFG  (Germany),  Agriculture  and 
Food Development Authority TEAGASC (Ireland), 
Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine 
DAFM (Ireland), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural 
Development MOARD (Israel), Latvian Academy 
of  Sciences  LAS  (Latvia),  The  Netherlands 
Organisation  for  Scientific  Research  NWO  (The 
Netherlands),  Research  Council  of  Norway  RCN 
(Norway),  Ministry  of  Business,  Innovation  and 
Employment  MBIE  (New  Zealand),  National 
Centre  for  Research  and  Development    NCBiR 
(Poland), Foundation for Science and Technology 

FCT  (Portugal),  Ministry  of  Education,  Science 
and technological Development MPNTR (Serbia), 
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research 
Council  BBSRC 
(United  Kingdom),  National 
Science  Foundation  NSF  (United  States)  (no 
direct 
collaboration 
offered by means of a parallel call) 

contribution; 

financial 

The total budget for the first call is expected to 
be around EUR 20 million.

Second call

The  second  call  is  anticipated  late  2013/early 
2014 and will again be a broad and open call, 
but with themes tailored to fit specific priorities 
of the different ERA-CAPS partners. 

117

ERA-IB-2 

ERA-NET for Industrial 
Biotechnology 2

Objective

The  ERA-NET  Industrial  Biotechnology  2  (ERA-
IB-2)  will  increase  Europe’s  competitiveness 
in  Industrial  Biotechnology  (IB)  by  providing 
long-lasting  collaboration 
a  platform 
and  cooperation  between  national/regional 
programme  owners  and  managers  of  a  large 
number  of  European  countries,  including  new 
Member States and Associated /ICP Countries.

for 

The  key  mission  of  ERA-IB-2  is  to  contribute 
to  a  European  knowledge-based  bioeconomy 
(KBBE)  by  reducing  fragmentation  in  IB  R&D 
funding  and  by  fostering  the  exchange  of 
knowledge  across  borders,  and  to  increase 
cost-effectiveness  by  pooling  resources  and 
optimising mechanisms for joint calls. The KBBE 
is  the  tool  to  achieving  sustainable  economic 
growth in Europe, as it will lead to sustainable, 
environmentally sound industrial processes and 
products  which  substitute  fossil  resources  with 
bio-based (renewable) raw materials.

Industrial  Biotechnology  will  be  one  of  the  key 
technologies  of  this  KBBE,  and  ERA-IB-2  will 
ensure  Europe  makes  full  use  of  her  potential 
by  identifying  IB-related  R&D  needs  through 
stakeholder  dialogue  and  responding  to  these 
needs with coordinated, joint actions (joint calls). 
These calls will lead to greater integration of IB 
R&D actors and activities, and will also improve 
access  to  finance  and  stimulate 
industry 
participation  and  thus  industry  investment  in 
the  lead  market  of  bio-based  products.  As  a 
consequence,  the  limited  resources  of  each 

118118

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2011-12-01
2015-11-30

Project reference

291814

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2011.3.3-01

Title

Deepened and enlarged European 
cooperation in the area of Industrial 
Biotechnology - ERA-NET

Contract type 

Coordination and support action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 251 507
€  1 999 992

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

18

Agency for Renewable Resources FNR, 
Germany

Karen Görner
T +49-3843-6930-162
E k.goerner@fnr.de

www.era-ib.net

BE

Department of Economy, Science and Innovation Flemish 
Government EWI
Agency for Innovation by Science and Technology  IWT
Agency for Renewable Resources FNR
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH
Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
Saxon Ministry of Science and Fine Arts SMWK

BE
DE
DE
DE
DE
DK Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish 

Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation DASTI
Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness MINECO
French Environment and Energy Management Agency ADEME
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MOARD
The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research NWO

ES
FR
IL
NL
NO Research Council of Norway RCN
PL
PT
RO

National Centre for Research and Development  NCBiR
Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development 
and Innovation Funding UEFISCDI
Foundation for Assistance to Small Innovative Enterprises 
FASIE
Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey 
TUBITAK
Technology Strategy Board TSB

RU

TR

UK

country will be used more efficiently.

ERA-IB-2  builds  on  the  success  of  the  FP6 
project ERA-IB and develops the network further, 
into  a  truly  pan-European  approach  to  IB  R&D 
funding which should ultimately lead to a self-
sustained network. ERA-IB-2 will also align with 
other  initiatives  in  the  area  and  e.g.  support 
the  developing  JPIs  by  presenting  to  them  the 
view of the national/regional programmes on IB 
topics.

Consortium

in  the  area  of 

ERA-IB 
is  an  ERA-NET  supported  by  the 
European Community. In the ERA-NET “Towards 
an ERA in Industrial Biotechnology” partners (18) 
and  observers  (7)  from  21  different  countries 
join forces to reduce fragmentation of national 
Industrial 
research  efforts 
Biotechnology.  Within  the  ERA-IB  framework 
two joint calls for proposals resulted in 18 highly 
innovative  European  research  projects  with  a 
total  budget  over  EUR  20  million.  The  seven 
observer organisations are: Ministry of Science, 
Education  and  Sports  MZOS  (Croatia),  Finnish 
Funding  Agency  for  Technology  and  Innovation 
Italian  Technology 
TEKES  (Finland),  Section 
Platform  for  Sustainable  Chemistry  IB  (Italy), 
Latvian  Academy  of  Science  LAS  (Latvia), 
Agency  for  Science,  Innovation  and  Technology 
(Lithuania),  Ministry  of  Higher  Education, 
Science  and  Technology  MHEST  (Slovenia), 
Swedish  Governmental  Agency  for  Innovation 
System VINNOVA (Sweden), Biotechnology and 
Biological  Sciences  Research  Council  BBSRC 
(United Kingdom).

Mapping and scoping activities

Mapping of the European and global IB landscape 
was  done  under  ERA-IB-1.  As  part  of  call 
preparation,  ERA-IB-2  engages  IB  stakeholders 
in  defining  the  R&D  topics  to  be  covered  by  a 
call. In 2012, an online questionnaire was sent 
through  the  national/regional  distribution  lists, 
and  the  results  used  as  a  basis  for  discussion 
at  a  stakeholder  workshop  organised  a  few 
months  later.  The  result  of  this  workshop  was 

a  list  of  topics  used  for  the  3rd  and  4th  joint 
call.  In  preparing  the  5th  call,  this  stakeholder 
consultation process will be repeated.

ERA-IB-2  will  also  work  towards  a  vision  for 
future  European  IB  research  and  work  on  a 
Strategic  Research  Agenda  (SRA).  It  is  planned 
to collaborate with ETP SusChem on this.

Joint calls

Following the first two calls conducted by ERA-
IB under FP6, two more calls were launched by 
ERA-IB-2.

Third call 2012

ERA-IB  launched  its  third  call  for  multilateral 
research projects using industrial biotechnology 
(IB)  at  the  beginning  of  March  2012.  It  is  the 
first  joint  call  under  ERA-IB-2,  but  continuous 
numbering  is  used  for  clarity’s  sake.  The  main 
goal of the call is to bring together academics 
and industrial researchers in the field of IB and 
encourage them to work across borders, thereby 
contributing  to  the  entire  value  chain.  Setting 
up  partnerships  should  lead  to  joint  research 
and  development  activities,  through  which 
sustainable  alternatives  to  petroleum-based 
products can be realised. 

The  total  budget  is  approximately  EUR  18 
million.

Projects funded:

1.  POAP  -  Production  of  Organic  Acids 
for  Polyester  Synthesis.  Coordinator: 
BIOPOLIS,  S.L..  Participating  countries: 
Spain, Germany, Turkey

2.  CESBIC  -  Critical  Enzymes  for  Sustainable 
Biofuels 
from  Cellulose.  Coordinator: 
University  of  York.  Participating  countries: 
United Kingdom, France, Denmark

3.  MySterI  -  Novel  industrial  bioprocesses 
for  production  of  key  valuable  steroid 
precursors  from  phytosterol.  Coordinator: 
INBIOTEC.  Participating  countries:  Spain, 
Russia, United Kingdom, Norway, Germany

4.  THERMOGENE 
for 
enzymes 

-  Novel 
thermostable 
industrial  biotechnology. 

119

Forschungszentrum  Jülich.  Participating 
countries:  Germany,  Spain,  Denmark, 
United Kingdom, Norway

12.  MICROTOOLS  -  MICROscale  downstream 
processing  TOOLbox  for  Screening  and 
process  development.  Coordinator:  DTU. 
Participating  countries:  Denmark,  United  
Kingdom, Romania

Fourth call 2013

On  1  February  2013,  ERA-IB-2  launched  its 
fourth joint call for multilateral research projects 
using industrial biotechnology (IB). 

For  the  purposes  of  this  fourth  call,  a  number 
of  partners  in  the  ERA-NET  EuroTransBio  (ETB) 
participated  in  the  network’s  actions.  ETB  has 
been active since 2004 as part of the ERA-NET 
scheme  and  calls  have  been  launched  since 
2006.  This  joint  action  of  ERA-IB-2  and  ETB 
widened the possible partner base for the call, 
as  ETB  brought  in  additional  countries  and  its 
established  close  connection  to  the  European 
SME  landscape.  Until  26th  April  2013,  45  pre-
proposals  were  submitted  to  the  central  Call 
Secretariat.  These  pre-proposals  were  checked 
for  their  eligibility  for  funding  by  the  national/
regional funding bodies, and their scientific and 
technological quality was evaluated by a panel 
of independent experts, with the 18 best being 
invited to hand in full proposals. 

All submitted full proposals were evaluated by 
the international expert panel, and 12 proposals 
were recommended for funding by the national/
regional  funding  bodies.  Contract  negotiations 
with  these  consortia  are  currently  under  way, 
and  the  projects  are  expected  to  start  in  early 
2014.

5. 

Coordinator: 
Exeter. 
University 
Participating  countries:  United  Kingdom, 
Norway, Germany, Russia

of 

FIBERFUEL  -  Improved  cellulosomes  to 
enhance  saccharification  of  industrially-
suitable  lignocellulosic  biomass  residues; 
Coordinator:  CSIC.  Participating  countries: 
Ireland, 
Israel,  France,  Poland, 
Spain, 
Germany

6.  HyPerIn - Integrative Approach to Promote 
Hydroxylations  with  Novel  P450  Enzymes 
Industrial  Processes;  Coordinator: 
for 
CLECTA.  Participating  countries:  Germany, 
United Kingdom, Norway, Belgium, Poland

7.  CONTIbugs 

-  Overcoming  metabolic 
stochasticity  and  population  dynamics 
in  microbial  cell  factories.  Coordinator: 
TU  Dortmund.  Participating  countries: 
Germany, Spain, Denmark, Israel

8.  PRODuCE 

- 

Tailor-made 

expression 
in  protease  activity 
hosts  depleted 
for 
recombinant  protein  production. 
Coordinator:  IME.  Participating  countries: 
Germany, United Kingdom, Portugal

9.  Cellulect  -  A  Synthetic  Biology  Platform 
for  the  Optimization  of  Enzymic  Biomass 
Processing.  Coordinator:  University  of 
Edinburgh.  Participating  countries:  United 
Kingdom, Germany, France

10.  REACTIF 

-  Rational  Engineering  of 
Advanced  Clostridia  for  Transformational 
Fermentation. 
in 
Improvements 
Coordinator: 
Ltd. 
Green 
Participating  countries:  United  Kingdom, 
Norway, Germany

Biologics 

11.  SCILS  -  Systematic  consideration  of 
inhomogeneity  at 
scale: 
towards  a  stringent  development  of 
Coordinator: 
industrial 

bioprocesses. 

large 

the 

120

ERA-MBT

MARINEBIOTECH

Objective

Objectives  of  the  Marine  Biotechnology  ERA-
NET ( ERA-MBT) are:

•	 Set  up  cooperation 

•	 Avoid 

and 

tools  and  pool 
resources  to  undertake  joint  funding  of 
transnational  projects  for  collaborative 
research  at  a  European  scale  and  further 
increase the level of coordination between 
national funding bodies in Europe.
duplication 

ensure 
complementarities with relevant on-going 
and new efforts.
Take  into  account  specific  marine  biotech 
research/knowledge needs of other actors, 
platforms  and  initiatives  and  provide  a 
means  for  better  cohesion  and  alignment 
of  objectives  and  actions  where  this  is 
needed and give added value (i.e. identify 
and fill the gaps).
Establish  interactions  with  related  ERA-
NETs, ETPs and other initiatives across the 
marine and other applicable sectors. 
Identify  hurdles  and  stimulate  industrial 
uptake  and  developments  from  Marine 
Biotechnology.

•	

•	

•	

•	

•	 Aim to identify and support activities which 
will be most effective, where the return on 
investment  does  not  solely  have  to  be  in 
monetary terms.  
Take into account global trends and identify 
areas  where  Europe  could  benefit  from 
collaborating  with  international  initiatives 
and partners.
Ensure  proper  attention  to  developing  a 
European  Marine  Biotech  Communication 

•	

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
to     

2014-01-01
2017-12-31

Project reference

604814

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2013.3.2.-01

Title

Marine biotechnology ERA-NET

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  1 999 838
€  2 000 000

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

20

The Research Council of Norway RCN, Norway

Steinar Bergseth
T +47 22037323
E stb@rcn.no

www.marinebiotech.eu

Agency for Innovation by Science and Technology  IWT
Flanders Marine Institute VLIZ
Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH

BE
BE
DE
DE
DK Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish 

Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation DASTI
Technical University of Denmark DTU
Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness MINECO
National Centre for Scientific Research CNRS
Marine Institute MI
Icelandic Food and Biotech R&D Company MATIS
Icelandic Centre for Research RANNIS
National Research Council CNR
New Caledonia Economic Development Agency and Innovation 
and Technology Park ADECAL TECHNOPOLE
Innovation Norway IN
Research Council of Norway RCN
Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, 
Development and Innovation Funding UEFISCDI
Region Västra Götland SU-DART
Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural 
Sciences and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport MESCS

DK
ES
FR
IE
IS
IS
IT
NC

NO
NO
PT
RO

SE
SE

SI

121121

Strategy;  the  European  Marine  Biotech 
portal  www.marinebiotech.eu  will  be 
developed towards being a single point of 
entry for those who are not in the founding 
ERA-MBT consortium.

Overarching objectives for ERA-MBT are to:

•	 Make 

important  contributions  towards 
meeting the ‘Grand Challenges’ of the 21st 
century  and  the  development  of  greener, 
smarter  economies 
that  are  central 
components of the Europe 2020 Strategy.
•	 Be  a  strong  driver  for  the  development 
of  the  European  bioeconomy  as  laid  out 
in  “Innovating  for  sustainable  growth:  A 
bioeconomy for Europe”, and in the OECD 
report “The Bioeconomy to 2030: designing 
a policy agenda”.

•	 Assist European countries to fulfil regional 
strategies  for  economic  support  of  the 
European periphery by providing the means 
for  coordinated  science-  and  technology-
based progress.

Consortium

The  ERA-MBT  consortium  consist  of  20 
organisations from 14 countries.

Mapping and scoping activities

For  an  enabling  and  horizontally  relevant 
technology  like  marine  biotech,  it  is  important 
to  identify  technological  development  needs, 
gaps  and  complementarities  between  national 
and  ERA-activities.  Workshops  with  relevant 
national  contact  persons  (scientific  as  well  as 
administrative)  will  be  organised  to  identify 
these  and  ensure  marine  biotech  development 
through relevant joint calls, where also industries 
are involved. 
Industry 

relevant  marine  biotech  activities 

relevant  courses 

identified  by  European  and 
international 
stakeholders,  strategies  and  programs,  will 
be  mapped  to  identify  needs  and  develop 
marine  biotech  for  beneficial  and  sustainable 
industrial  use.  Results  will  be  aggregated  and 
disseminated  to  increase  the  awareness  in 
industrial environments about potentials within 
marine biotechnology. A stakeholder conference 
will be planned.
A  mapping  of 
(master 
programmes, doctoral schools, summer schools, 
hands-on trainings, online courses) will be done, 
in order to make a listing of training possibilities 
within Europe.  
Opportunities  for  career  development  will  be 
enhanced through a web-based communication 
forum,  which  will  support  student  and 
scientist  contacts,  provide  a  career  forum 
for  marine  biotechnology 
researchers,  and 
be  a  communication  channel  with  potential 
employers, including the industry.
In  order  to  obtain  sustainability,  benefits  and 
risks will be analysed, and assessments of the 
potential impacts and unintended consequences 
considered.  Stakeholders  will  be  engaged  in 
dialogues  to  obtain  a  mutual  understanding 
of  sustainability  and  risk  issues,  and  work  for 
beneficial  solutions.  IPR/IPP  issues,  responsible 
research and innovation (RRI) and ethical issues 
(ELSA)  will  be  addressed  through  a  workshop 
and in the funded projects. 

All  information  will  be  accessible  through  the 
marine biotech online portal at 
www.marinebiotech.eu.

Joint calls

Three  joint  calls  and  common  calls  with  other 
activities,  will  be  planned  with  topics  decided 
between the partners, and after discussions with 
stakeholders, relevant ERA-NETs and other ERA 
activities and projects.

122

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2012-01-01 
2014-12-31

Project reference

291728

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2011.3.6-06

Title

Synthetic Biology  ERA-NET

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 350 282
€  1 997 022

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

16

Jülich Research Centre JUELICH, Germany

Annette Kremser
T +49 2461 61 3213
E a.kremser@fz-juelich.de

www.erasynbio.eu

AT
CH

DE
DE
DK

ES
FI
FR
FR
GR
LV
NL
NO
PT
SI
UK

Austrian Research Promotion Agency FFG
Federal Department of Economic Affairs FDEA  - Commission 
for Technology and Innovation KTI  
Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH
Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish 
Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation DASTI
Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness MINECO
Academy of Finland AKA
National Centre for Scientific Research CNRS
National Agency for Research ANR
General Secretariat for Research and Technology GSRT
Latvian Academy of Sciences LAS
The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research NWO
Research Council of Norway RCN
Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport MESCS
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council BBSRC

ERASynBio 

Development and Coordination of 
Synthetic Biology in the European 
Research Area

Objective

Synthetic biology is an emerging and promising 
research  area  with  the  potential  to  have  a 
strong  impact  on  innovation  and  technological 
progress  that  is  beneficial  for  the  economy 
and  for  society  as  a  whole.  It  is  an  area  at 
intersection  of  engineering,  bioscience, 
the 
chemistry,  and 
information  technology.  The 
central  idea  of  ERASynBio  is  to  promote  the 
robust  development  of  synthetic  biology  by 
structuring and coordinating national efforts and 
investment.  It  develops  a  white  paper  (WP1), 
which  supports  the  emergence  of  national 
synthetic  biology  programmes  and  which  lays 
the  ground  for  transnational  funding  activities 
via  joint  calls  in  the  project  (WP6).  ERASynBio 
interdisciplinary 
stimulates  and  tackles  the 
nature  and  early  stage  of  the  field  by  offering 
training  and  educational  possibilities  (WP4). 
It  provides  extensive  dialogue  options  (WP1-
5)  and  exchange  fora  (WP3)  for  the  scientific 
community.  Close 
collaboration  between 
academia  and  industry  aiming  to  fertilize  the 
innovation  process  occurs  on  several  levels 
(WP1,  WP3,  WP6).  To  adhere  to  ethical,  legal 
and  societal  aspects  as  well  as  to  technical 
issues  like  standardisation  and  infrastructure 
development  ERASynBio  traces  and  integrates 
the  ongoing  work  and  research  on  these 
framework  conditions  and  integrates  them  in 
the white paper (WP2 and WP5). It is a challenge  
to  successfully  coordinate  the  newly  emerging 
activities in this field and thus an aim to create 
the ERA of synthetic biology in parallel with the 
development of the scientific community. 

123123

Consortium

Joint calls

The  ERASynBio  consortium  consists  of  16 
governmental  funding  bodies  from  12  EC 
Member  States  (Austria,  Denmark,  Finland, 
France,  Germany,  Greece,  Latvia,  Netherlands, 
Portugal,  Spain,  Slovenia,  UK)  and 
two 
Associated Countries (Norway and Switzerland). 
All of these 16 partners are key players in their 
national research systems and are successfully 
running  and/or  planning  national 
funding 
initiatives  in  the  field  of  Synthetic  Biology 
implemented either as dedicated activities or as 
integrated part within their national programme 
(i.e.  as  sub-programme,  action  line,  thematic 
priority, etc.). The ERASynBio consortium has one 
observer,  the  National  Science  Foundation  NSF 
(United States).

Mapping and scoping activities

•	 Analysis  of  the  current  Synthetic  Biology 

Scientific Landscape

•	 Development  of  a  Strategic  Research 

Agenda “White Paper”

•	

International benchmarking

•	 Activity  catalogue  of  effective  public 

dialogue measures

•	 Position  statements  on  governance  and 

intellectual property rights

•	 Position statement on educational needs

•	 Position 

statement 

on 

data 

and 

infrastructure needs

•	

•	

Tackling  questions  of 
interdisciplinarity 
and  community  building  via  different 
workshops,  awards  and  public  relation 
measures

Tackling  questions  of 
via 
summer schools and support of the iGEM 
competition

training 

First call 2013 
The  1st  ERASynBio  call  was  launched  in  May 
2013 and is open until the 26th of August 2013. 
It  is  entitled:  “Building  Capacity  in  Synthetic 
Biology”.  The  challenge  for  ERASynBio  is  to 
strengthen the research community in Synthetic 
Biology, and to organise the further development 
in  a  coordinated  and  socially  responsible  and 
sustainable  way.  The  1st  joint  call  provides  a 
powerful  tool  to  encourage  interdisciplinary 
collaborations,  to  facilitate  a  European  and 
world-wide  network  and  to  establish  and 
strengthen the scientific community in Synthetic 
Biology.  The  1st  joint  call  allows  researchers 
to  identify  new  opportunities  and  directions 
in  the  field  of  Synthetic  Biology.  It  provides  an 
evolving line of European transnational projects 
and  facilitates  the  identification  of  barriers  in 
Synthetic Biology and needs of the stakeholders. 

Twelve organisations from 12 countries including 
the ERASynBio observer NSF (United States) will 
participate in the 1st joint call. Expected volume: 
EUR 15 million. The call aims at funding research 
proposals  in  the  field  of  Synthetic  Biology, 
which  can  be  described  as  a  multidisciplinary 
approach  at  the  intersection  of  life  sciences, 
engineering  and  information  technology.  The 
1st  joint  call  addresses  broad  research  areas 
within  Synthetic  Biology,  based  on  a  clear 
definition: “ERASynBio defines Synthetic Biology 
as the engineering of biology: the deliberate (re)
design and construction of novel biological and 
biologically based parts, devices and systems to 
perform new functions for useful purposes, that 
draws on principles elucidated from biology and 
engineering.”

Second call 2014
The  2nd  call  “Enhancing  Synthetic  Biology 
through  strategic  action”  scheduled  for  2014 
will be based on the white paper.

124

ERASysAPP 

Systems Biology Applications

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2013-01-01
2015-12-31

Project reference

321567

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2012.3.6-01

Title

ERA-NET for Applied Systems Biology

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 278 362
€  1 999 862

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

16

Jülich Research Centre JUELICH, Germany

Petra Schulte  
E petra.schulte@fz-juelich.de

www.erasysapp.eu

CH

CY
DE
DE
EE
ES
FR
IS
LU
LV
NL

NO
RO

RO
SE
SE

Swiss National Science Foundation SNSF (represented by 
SystemsX.ch)
Research Promotion Foundation RPF
Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH
Estonian Research Council ETAG
Institute of Health Carlos III, ISCIII
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA
Icelandic Centre for Research RANNIS
National Research Fund FNR
Latvian Academy of Sciences LAS
The Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and 
Development ZonMw
Research Council of Norway RCN
Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development 
and Innovation Funding UEFISCDI
National Authority for Scientific Research ANCS
Swedish Research Council VR
Västra Götaland Regional Council VGR

Objective

The  main  objective  of  the  ERANET  proposal 
Systems  Biology  Applications  ERASysAPP 
(app  =  application  =  translational  systems 
biology)  is  to  promote  multidimensional  and 
complementary European systems biology (SB) 
projects,  programmes,  and  research  initiatives 
on  a  number  of  selected  research  topics.  Inter 
initiate,  execute  and 
alia,  ERASysAPP  will 
monitor  a  number  of  joint  transnational  calls 
on  systems  biology  research  projects  with  a 
particular  focus  on  applications  or  in  other 
words  so  called  translational  systems  biology 
research approaches (application-oriented and/
or industry-relevant). 

The  joint  call  proposals  and  their  respective 
topics  will  be  on  applied  aspects  of  complex 
biological  processes  in  microorganisms,  plants, 
and animals. As common feature, all addressed 
proposal  topics  will  tackle  biological  and 
physiological  processes  of  common  interest  in 
the field of life sciences and biotechnology.

In order to reach our ambitious goals, ERASysAPP 
has  been  outlined  to  initiate  novel  activities 
and  impulses  for  SB  in  the  ERA.  Taking  past 
successful  developments  and  achievements 
into account, ERASysAPP will be able to continue 
and  build  on  work,  which  has  been  performed 
by the previously funded successful ERANET on 
SB,  ERASysBio  and  its  spin-offs  ERASysBio+, 
SysMO  and  SysMO2  (www.erasysbio.net).  This 
is advantageous, since it allows for the efficient 
use  of  past  experiences  and  tangible  results 

125125

of ERASysBio and will guarantee for maximum 
synergistic effects. 

Joint calls

Although  building  on  the  improvements  of 
ERASysBio, ERASysAPP will provide a bundle of 
novel aspects, ideas, activities and sustainable 
new  features 
towards  new 
to  push  SB 
challenges and horizons. Apart from setting up 
joint  transnational  calls  and  giving  impulses 
for  industry  to  apply  more  SB  approaches, 
ERASysAPP  will  focus  on  horizontal  topics 
such  as 
improved  data  management  and 
sharing,  training  and  networking  with  national, 
transnational,  and  EU  SB  initiatives  as  well  as 
programmes outside the ERA.

Consortium

A total of 16 funding agencies/partners from 13 
countries  cooperate  within  the  novel  ERA-NET 
for Applied Systems Biology ERASysAPP. 

Mapping and scoping activities

Different WPs of ERASysAPP will provide mapping 
and scoping activities in a broad variety of fields 
and  topics  of  SB.  These  ERASysAPP  activities 
being  predominantly  performed  by  WPs  5  and 
6  will  include  the  assembly  of  inventories  of 
R&D organisations acting in SB in ERA Member 
States  as  well  as  Associated  States,  of  EU 
and  national  initiatives  related  to  SB  research 
and  of  innovative  companies  in  the  field  of 
SB.  Moreover,  ERASysAPP  will  publish  a  report 
on  the  needs  and  gaps  of  European  SB  and  it 
will  update  and  improve  the  current  strategic 
research agenda on European SB. Another major 
task of ERASysAPP will be to gather information 
on  necessary  developments  and  decisions  in 
data management related issues of SB. 

Please visit the ERASysAPP website:
www.erasysapp.eu for further information.

In  total,  the  ERASysAPP  consortium  will  set  up 
three  separate  joint  transnational  translational 
and thus applied systems biology calls according 
to  the  DoW.  The  call  secretariat,  which  will  be 
set up by the Spanish partner ISCIII, will handle 
and process the calls according to the Steering 
Committees 
(SC)  decisions  on  a  variable 
geometry basis.
The call topics will cover and address (at least 
in  part)  the  thematic  fields  of  the  predecessor 
its  spin-offs  as 
ERA-NET  ERASysBIO  and 
well  as  novel  topics  in  green,  red  and  grey 
biotechnology. Hence, there will be no or hardly 
any limitation on the selection of test organisms 
making  sure  that  ERASysAPP  funding  will  go 
for  the  best  scientific  ideas.  However,  the  fact 
that  ERASysAPP  will  fund  translational  and 
applied  SB  does  not  means  that  ERASysAPP 
will  fund  SB  in  the  clinical  and  strictly  applied 
medical area. Translational just means to go for 
a useful purpose. Hence, the terms applied and 
translational are almost of equal meaning.
As a major objective, the ERASysAPP consortium 
and its respective evaluation boards will enforce 
the  selection  and  funding  of  those  projects, 
which apply a native systems biology approach. 
This  means  that  successful  projects  (as  a 
mandatory  prerequisite)  will  have  to  include 
distinct  modelling  approach  aspects  and  WPs, 
which  reflect  and  impact  on  the  experiments 
performed  within  the  project.  This  attitude  is 
thought  to  ensure  the  benefits  of  the  systems 
biology iterative cycle of experiments, analysis, 
evaluation and modelling to create mathematical 
models (to be proved or disproved) to describe 
biological  process  of  different  scales  and  on 
different organisational levels of an organism.

The  first  call  is  schedule  to  be  announced  in 
November  2013.  Please  visit  the  ERASysAPP 
website  www.erasysapp.eu 
further 
information.

for 

126

ETB-PRO 

EUROpean programme for 
TRANSnational R&D&I cooperations 
of BIOtech SMEs

Objective

ETB-PRO will reduce the fragmentation of ERA and 
support  high  quality  R&D&I  project  cooperation 
of European biotech SMEs by building on success 
factors of the predecessor project and establish 
a  sustainable  joint  program  with  high  funding 
impact.  This  will  be  done  in  two  steps  thereby 
using four calls with a funding volume of EUR 35 
million each as an implementation tool.

through 

First  step:  Integration.  ETB-PRO  will  broaden 
the network through including at least five new 
partners  into  the  current  network  of  European 
biotech  key  players,  thereby  arranging  for 
variable  geometry.  A  particular  focus  will  be 
on remaining key players and on CEE countries. 
ETB-PRO  will  actively  avoid  duplication  of 
efforts 
targeted  cooperation  with 
other  EU  programs  and  position  the  program 
through  unique  combination  of 
features 
to  provide  complementarities  to  other  EU 
funding  instruments.  ETB-PRO  will  start  joint 
programming,  seek  for  compatibility  among 
participating national programs, and implement 
the most suitable solutions when operating two 
joint calls. Immediate Impact: ETB-PRO bottom-
up biotech program will enrich the ERA funding 
landscape for the benefit of European high-tech 
SMEs seeking a gateway to ERA or focusing on 
specific  bilateral  cooperation.  ETB-PRO  pilot 
program will become a sound basis to venture 
a global approach for international cooperation.

step:  Sustainability.  ETB-PRO  will 
Second 
strengthen  the  operational  efficiency  of  the 

127127

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2009-01-01
2013-12-31

Project reference

235368

Programme 
acronym

FP7-COORDINATION

Topic identifier

ERANET.2008.1

Title

ERA-NET proposals of a horizontal nature

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  3 648 567
€  3 166 533

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

15 (initially), 13 (currently)

Federal Ministry of Economy, Family and 
Youth BMWFJ,  Austria

Christian Listabarth
T +43 57755 1701
E christian.listabarth@ffg.at

www.eurotransbio.eu

AT
AT
BE
BE
DE
DE
ES

ES
ES
ES

Federal Ministry of Economy, Family and Youth BMWFJ 
Austrian Research Promotion Agency FFG
Agency for Innovation by Science and Technology  IWT
Public Service of Wallonia DGOEER
Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH
Basque Government (Ministry of Economic Development and 
Competitiveness)
Basque Innovation Agency INNOBASQUE
Catalan Company Support Agency
Department of Rural Development, Industry, Employment, and 
Environment of the Government of Navarra NAVARRA (since 
2011)
Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation TEKES
Oseo Innovation OSEO (left 2010)

FI
FR
HU National Innovation Office NIH
IT
IT

Ministry of Economic Development MSE
Italian Institute for Industrial Promotion IPI (integrated into 
MSE 2010)

NL Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ (left 2011)

program  through  streamlining  procedures  and 
optimizing  processes,  and  test  and  improve 
operational  performance  in  two  more  calls  by 
implementing  well  defined  and  cost-efficient 
tools and processes. These applications and know-
how  will  be  transferred  into  the  agencies  daily 
routine before the launch of ETB-PRO sustainable 
joint  program.  Long-term  impact:  ETB-PRO  will 
complement the ERA funding landscape through 
making optimal use of national/regional resources, 
and  durably  strengthen  competitiveness  of  the 
European biotechnology.

Consortium

The  consortium  of  ETB-PRO  originally  consisted 
of 15 organisations from seven countries and four 
regions  (Austria,  Belgium  (Flanders,  Wallonia), 
Finland,  France,  Germany,  Hungary,  Italy,  Spain 
(Basque Country, Catalonia) and The Netherlands,  
and  changed  over  time.  Currently  it  holds  13 
organisations  from  10  European  countries  and 
regions  plus  three  non-contractual  partners 
adding  two  more  EU  regions  (Andalucia  and 
Alsace) and Russia to the calls. The organisation 
names  are:  Madrid’s  Institute  of  Development 
IMADE  (2009-2010)  (Spain),  Department  of 
Rural  Development,  Industry,  Employment,  and 
Environment  of  the  Government  of  Navarra 
NAVARRA 
(Spain),  Agency  for 
Innovation  and  Development  of  Andalucia 
IDEA  (since  2011)  (Spain),  Regional  Council  of 
Alsace CRA (since2011) (France), Israeli Industry 
Centre  for  R&D  MATIMOP  (2010-2011)  (Israel), 
Foundation  for  Assistance  to  Small  Innovative 
Enterprises FASIE (since 2012) (Russia).

(2010-2011) 

developed, call administration was simplified by 
establishing a centralized call office (ETB office). 
A  joint  database  for  applications,  projects  and 
project outcomes was implemented in order to 
ease  operational  activities.  New  participants 
inform  about  their  program  through  answering 
a questionnaire and can easily adapt to the well 
documented processes.

Basic elements of the self-sustaining call design 
are  (i)  a  bottom  up  approach  towards  the  call 
topics (biotechnology applications, no thematic 
priorities), (ii) a strong focus on the target group 
(SMEs and their strategic partners, i.e. research 
organisations),  (iii)  a  one-step  call  procedure, 
(iv) administration of the calls by a centralized 
ETB office, (v) operation of proposal submission, 
evaluation  and  project  monitoring  based  on 
a  joint  database,  (vi)  a  fixed  timeline,  and  (vii) 
funding through a virtual common pot.

Joint calls

launched  four  transnational  calls 
ETB-PRO 
(2009,  2010,  2011,  2012)  with  a  generic 
call  title  “Funding  of  Industrial  R&D  Projects 
in  Biotechnology”.  The  topic  of  the  call  was 
bottom-up and allowed for all sectors of modern 
biotechnology. The calls aimed at transnational 
cooperation projects between biotech SMEs and 
their  strategic  partners  (RTOs,  universities  and 
large  companies).  Projects  were  funded  by  the 
national/regional  funding  agencies  using  the 
virtual common pot model.

First call 2009

Mapping and scoping activities

Based on the settings of the procedure for joint 
calls, the experiences gained in the predecessor 
project,  and  building  on  the  individual  designs 
of  13  different  national/regional 
funding 
further  developed 
programs,  EuroTransBio 
the  call  procedure  and  established  fixed  call 
settings  in  order  to  optimize  efforts  and  to 
continue the launch of calls in a self-sustaining 
way.  Call  settings  were  concisely  described, 
a  set  of  standardized  call  documents  was 

The  following  countries/regions  participated  in 
the ETB call (2009): Austria, Belgium (Flanders, 
Wallonia),  Finland,  France,  Germany,  Hungary, 
Italy, Spain (Basque Country, Catalonia, Madrid) 
and the Netherlands. 

There  were  53  proposals  submitted  and  21 
selected for funding. The projects amounted to 
a total of EUR 36 million project costs of which 
EUR 20 million were requested from public funds 
(the companies had to co-fund the projects up 
to 50% from their own resources).

128

Projects funded:

1.  BioSteCell  -  Biosensor  for  Stem  Cells 
detection  and  extraction.  Coordinator: 
Participating 
Novaetech 
countries: Germany, Italy

(Italy). 

srl 

for 

2.  Glycams 
platform 
Coordinator: 
Netherlands). 
France, The Netherlands

-  Glycosylation  optimisation 
proteins. 
(The 
countries: 

DUCARES 
Participating 

therapeutic 

B.V. 

3.  PURADVEC - Development of a production 
process  with  CIM  monoliths  for  HCV 
and  Malaria  vaccines  based  on  chimp 
Adenovirus vectors. Coordinator:  OKAIROS 
(Italy). Participating countries: Austria, Italy

4.  BIOALGAL - Biological compounds obtained 
by  microalgal 
extraction 
processes. Coordinator: Tecnoalimenti ScpA 
(Italy).  Participating  countries:  Catalonia 
(Spain), Italy

innovative 

5.  AnCaBoR - Anticancer Bone Reconstruction 
with  Poly-Cyclodextrins  Functionalized 
Porous 
Local 
Chemotherapy.  Coordinator:    ONCOVET, 
Veterinary  Oncology  Center 
(France). 
Participating countries: France, Germany

Bioceramics 

for 

6.  SPRAI  -  Surface  Plasmon  Resonance 
biosensors for pathogens detection of Agro-
food  Interest.  Coordinator:    BIOTECGEN 
SRL  (Italy).  Participating  countries:  Madrid 
(Spain), Italy

7.  MITRANZEN-B  -  MIDGE®-based  Hepatitis 
B  Vaccine, 
formulated  with  SAINT® 
transfection  reagent  and  administered  by 
ZENEO®  device.  Coordinator:    MOLOGEN 
(Germany).  Participating  countries: 
AG 
Germany, The Netherlands

8.  ESSENCE  -  Embryonic  Stem  cell-derived 
progeny for in vitro Screening of Electrically 
active Neuronal Cell networks. Coordinator:  
ETT  srl 
(Italy).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, Italy

9.  BioSF 

-  Biocatalyzed 

synthesis  of 
fragrances.  Coordinator:    BICT  sr  (Italy). 
Participating countries: France, Italy

10. Mycocon - Development of a bioassay for 
mycotoxin  detection  in  animal  feeds  and 
tissues  and  identification  of  detoxifying 
enzymes. Coordinator:  EUCODIS Bioscience 

129

(Austria).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Germany

11. FLU-SECURE - Development of heterologous 
for 
prime-boost  vaccination  strategies 
pandemic influenza based on two innovative 
platform 
Coordinator:  
Mucosis BV (The Netherlands). Participating 
countries: Italy, The Netherlands

technologies. 

12. WHF Project - The development of a novel 
Wound  Healing  Formulation  for  advanced 
wound 
Coordinator:  
A-Skin  Nederland  B.V  (The  Netherlands). 
Participating countries: Flanders (Belgium), 
The Netherlands

management. 

13. TARGETING  NHRs  -  Targeting  nuclear 
hormone  receptors  with  novel  fragment-
based  strategies.  Coordinator:    Graffinity 
Pharmaceuticals 
(Germany). 
Participating countries: France, Germany

GmbH 

14. ARiBCA  -  Prediction  of  superficial  bladder 
cancer 
recurrence  and  aggressiveness 
using  methylation  and  RNA-expression 
profiles.  Coordinator: 
  MDX  health 
(Belgium).  Participating  countries:  The 
Netherlands, Wallonia (Belgium)

15. BioDualDelivery 

-  Biopolymer  based 
medical  implants  for  local  and  systemic 
drug  delivery  including  tissue  engineering 
of  cartilage.  Coordinator:    EMCM  BV  (The 
Netherlands). 
countries: 
Germany, The Netherlands

Participating 

16. ProTuMa  -  Novel  protein  markers  for 
tumor diagnosis and therapy.  Coordinator:  
Externautics  SpA 
(Italy).  Participating 
countries: Italy, The Netherlands

17. Hollowkit 

-  Optimized  biodegradable 
tubular  bioprosthesis  made  of  chitosan 
for  the  repair  of  esophageal  defects. 
Coordinator: 
(Belgium). 
Participating countries: Germany, Wallonia 
(Belgium)

KitoZyme 

18. ChemBiDD - Targeted chemical biology for 
drug  discovery.  Coordinator:  Biomedicum 
(Finland).  Participating 
Genomics  Ltd 
countries: Germany, Finland

19. AbComCID  -  Development  of  antibody 
combination 
chronic 
therapy 
inflammatory diseases. Coordinator:  Merus 
(The  Netherlands).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, The Netherlands

for 

 
 
20. NITDBOP  -  NON 

INVASIVE  TARGETED 
PROTEINS. 
DELIVERY 
Coordinator: 
(Spain). 
Participating  countries:  Catalonia  (Spain), 
The Netherlands

BASED 
  Arquebio  S.L. 

ON 

21. PharmaYeast 

- 

Identification 
Target 
for 
Increased  Biopharmaceutical  Yields 
in  Humanized  Glycoengineered  Yeast. 
Coordinator: 
(France). 
Participating countries: France, Germany

  Glycode  SAS 

Second call 2010

The  following  countries/regions  participated  in 
the ETB call (2010): Austria, Belgium (Flanders, 
Wallonia),  Finland,  France,  Germany,  Hungary, 
Italy, Spain (Basque Country, Catalonia, Madrid) 
and the Netherlands. 

There  were  34  proposals  submitted  and  18 
selected  for  funding  (one  project  was  stopped 
after  a  positive  funding  decision).  The  projects 
amounted  to  a  total  of  EUR  34  million  project 
costs  of  which  EUR  20  million  were  requested 
from public funds (the companies had to co-fund 
the projects up to 50% from their own resources).

Projects funded:

1.  CYPchip  -  Development  of  a  novel  CYP 
macroarray for the assessment of individual 
  Coordinator:  
to  drugs. 
susceptibility 
(Germany). 
GmbH 
PharmGenomics 
Participating countries: Germany, Wallonia 
(Belgium)

2.  BIOMOS 

-  NEW  BIOTECHNOLOGICAL 
APPLICATIONS  IN  MOSQUITO  CONTROL. 
Coordinator: 
  CENTRO  AGRICOLTURA 
AMBIENTE  “G.NICOLI”  (Italy).  Participating 
countries: Hungary, Italy 

3.  HLA-Monitor 

-  Diagnostic  application 
for  precise  detection  of  HLA  antibodies 
in  transplantation  patients.  Coordinator:  
Imusyn  GmbH  &  Co.  KG 
(Germany). 
Participating  countries:  France,  Germany, 
Wallonia (Belgium) 

4.  ORYPRO 

-  Fighting  Prostate  Cancer: 
Development  of  Monoclonal  Antibodies 
against  new  targets.  Coordinator:    Oryzon 
Genomics 
Participating 
countries: Catalonia (Spain), The Netherlands

(Spain). 

S.A. 

130

5.  B4AD 

- 

statistics 

Bayesian 

and 
Bioinformatics for Biomarker validation using 
Biobanks  in  Alzheimer’s  Disease  (B4AD). 
Coordinator:    PamGene  International  BV 
(The  Netherlands).  Participating  countries: 
The Netherlands, Wallonia (Belgium)

6.  Mitomodels  -  Models  for  Alzheimer’s  and 
related diseases drug development based 
on  the  mitochondrial  cascade  hypothesis. 
Coordinator:  JSW  Life  Sciences  GmbH 
(Austria).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Germany

7. 

molecular 

IPRP  -  Improving  Porcine  Reproductive 
Performance: 
markers 
(refrigerated  semen)  and  post-CAI  with 
frozen/thawed 
-  Coordinator:  
sperm 
(Spain).  Participating 
IMPORT-VET  S.A 
countries: Catalonia (Spain), France

8.  OLNORME 

II 

-  Nutraceuticals 

and 
pharmaceuticals derived from plant extracts 
as therapeutic approaches to inflammatory 
diseases.  Coordinator:    Genfit  SA  (France). 
Participating countries: France, Germany

9.  TREN - Fluorescent molecular beacons for 
quantitative  in  situ  detection  of  specific 
protein  targets.  Coordinator:    Trenzyme 
GmbH  (Germany).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, Italy

10. ALDORIGHT - Efficient production of novel 
chiral  actives  through  improved  industrial 
aldolases. Coordinator:  BIOGLANE, S.L.N.E. 
(Spain).  Participating  countries:  Catalonia 
(Spain), Germany

11. ANEUDIA  -  Development  of  novel  non-
invasive  diagnostics 
for  aneurysms. 
Coordinator:    Skyline  Diagnostics  B.V  (The 
Netherlands). 
countries: 
France, Germany, The Netherlands

Participating 

12. NCML-Project  -  New  compact  medical 
laser  for  use  with  ELANA  technique. 
Coordinator:    Elana  bv  (The  Netherlands). 
Participating  countries:  France,  Germany, 
The Netherlands

13. NVACTB - Novel Vaccination Strategies for 
Tuberculosis.  Coordinator:    FIT  Biotech  Oy 
(Finland).  Participating  countries:  Finland, 
The Netherlands

14. IRIS 

- 

Integrated 

computational 
environment  for  high  throughput  RNA 
Coordinator:  
screening. 
interference 

INTEGROMICS,  S.L.  (Spain).  Participating 
countries: Germany, Madrid (Spain)

estrogens..  Coordinator:  Biodiversity  Spa 
(Italy). Participating countries: Finland, Italy

15. STEMEXP  -  Development  of  innovative 
strategies for ex-vivo expansion of human 
haematopoietic  stem  cells.  Coordinator:  
Ca.Re.Bios 
Participating 
countries: Germany, Italy

(Italy). 

s.r.l. 

16. ArgiFun  -  Discovery  of  new  inhibitors  of 
arginyl-tRNA  synthetases  for  antifungal 
treatment. Coordinator:  Omnia Molecular, 
S.L. Spain). Participating countries: Basque 
Country  (Spain),  Catalonia  (Spain),  The 
Netherlands 

17. SUENO  -  Research  on  novel  bio-signal 
for 
technologies  &  methodologies 
extraction 
unsupervised, 
of 
biomarkers. 
Coordinator: Starlab Barcelona SL (Spain). 
Participating  countries:  Austria,  Catalonia 
(Spain)

electrophysiological 

automatic 

Third call 2011 

The  following  countries/regions  participated  in 
the ETB call (2011): Austria, Belgium (Flanders, 
Wallonia),  Finland,  Germany,  Israel,  Italy,  Spain 
(Basque  Country,  Catalonia,  Navarra)  and  the 
Netherlands. 

There  were  42  proposals  submitted  and  15 
selected for funding. The projects amounted to 
a total of EUR 27 million project costs of which 
EUR 15 million were requested from public funds 
(the companies had to co-fund the projects up 
to 50% from their own resources).

Projects funded:

1.  EES - Development of a novel extremolyte-
based eye spray for patients suffering from 
various ophthalmic conditions. Coordinator:  
Bitop AG (Germany). Participating countries: 
Germany, The Netherlands

2.  COLCAB  -  Production  of  novel  diagnostic 
and therapeutic antibodies directed against 
colon  cancer  stem  cells.  Coordinator:  
EXIRIS  srl  (Italy).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, Italy

3.  ERIC - Innovative 2D and 3D in vitro models 
for  the  pharmacotoxicological  analysis  of 

131

4.  BERTA  -  BERberine  new  derivatives  as 
anti-Tumour  Agents  for  cancer  therapy 
-  Coordinator:  Naxospharma  srl  (Italy). 
Participating  countries:  Catalonia  (Spain), 
Italy

5.  NEUROTOX - in vitro alternative assay for 
neurotoxicity  evaluation  and  prediction. 
Coordinator:    ETT  S.r.l.  (Italy).  Participating 
countries: Germany, Italy

- 
FROM 
DEVELOPMENT 

BIOTECHNOLOGICAL 
6.  Surfest-Biotech 
AND 
FATS 
PROCESSES 
OF 
NOVEL 
OILS 
ENVIRONMENTALLY 
ADDED-VALUE 
SURFACTANTS  AND  ESTERS.  Coordinator:  
Industrias Suescun SAU (Spain). Participating 
countries: Germany, Navarra (Spain)

7.  LAURA  -  BIOCONJUGATES  for  Oncology. 
(Italy). 

  ADRIACELL  SpA 
Coordinator: 
Participating countries: Austria, Italy

8.  FORECAST - Development of an integrated 
strategy  for  a  high  throughput  process 
development  platform  on  a  micro  scale 
format.  Coordinator:    m2p-labs  GmbH 
countries: 
Participating 
(Germany). 
Catalonia 
(Belgium), 
(Spain),  Flanders 
Germany, Wallonia (Belgium)

9.  ZOOBIOTECH 

- 

APPLICATION 

OF 
GREENBIOTECH FORMULATION BASED ON 
EXTRACTS  DERIVING  FROM  VEGETABLE 
CULTURES. 
MERISTEMATIC 
Coordinator:    I.R.B.  Istituto  di  ricerche 
biotecnologiche  S.p.A  (Italy).  Participating 
countries: Catalonia (Spain), Italy

CELL 

10. CHAT  -  Development  of  a  diagnostic 
test  to  assess  Chlamydia  trachomatis-
associated  tubal  damage  in  subfertile 
women.  Coordinator:    Microbiome  Ltd. 
(The  Netherlands).  Participating  countries: 
Basque Country (Spain), The Netherlands

11. Small Mol Act - Small molecule approach 
for angiostatic cancer therapy. Coordinator: 
Netherlands). 
SomantiX 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  The 
Netherlands

(The 

BV 

12. AD-CBB - Alzheimer’s Disease Drug Discovery. 
  Crossbeta  Biosciences  BV 
Coordinator: 
(The  Netherlands).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, The Netherlands

13. FAST-SEQ  -  Focused  Analysis  of  Solid 
Tumor  material  by  single  molecule 
SEQuencing.  Coordinator:    ServiceXS  B.V. 
(The  Netherlands).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, The Netherlands

14. ELANA  KEYHOLE  -  ELANA  Technique 
application onto human coronary arteries. 
Coordinator:    Elana  bv  (The  Netherlands). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  The 
Netherlands

15. NOBITAN  -  Novel  biofocused  targeting 
of  nucleoside  analogues  with  cyclic  RGD 
peptides  as  enhanced  anticancer  therapy. 
Coordinator:  Institut  Univ.  de  Ciència  i 
Tecnologia,  S.A. 
(Spain).  Participating 
countries: Catalonia (Spain), Germany

SpA    (Italy).  Participating  countries:  Italy, 
Germany

4.  ALLERGOTYPE 

-  DEVELOPMENT  AND 
VALIDATION OF DNA BASED PROTOTYPES 
FOR DETECTION OF ALLERGENIC SPECIES. 
Coordinator:  Lifelinelab (Italy). Participating 
countries: Italy, Germany

5.  Serpin - Novel serpin for the treatment of 
hepatitis C. Coordinator:  Applied research 
using Omic Sciences  (Spain). Participating 
countries: Catalonia (Spain), Finland

6.  OPTISOLV  -  Development,  optimization 
and 
solvent 
scale-up  of  biological 
production.  Coordinator:    ARGUS  Umwelt-
biotechnologie 
(Germany). 
GmbH 
Participating countries: Germany, Italy

Fourth call 2012

The  following  countries/regions  participated  in 
the ETB call (2012): Austria, Belgium (Flanders, 
Wallonia),  Finland,  France  (Alsace),  Germany, 
Italy,  Spain 
(Andalusia,  Basque  Country, 
Catalonia, Navarra). 

There  were  21  proposals  submitted  and  nine 
selected  for  funding.  The  projects  amounted 
to  a  total  of  EUR  14  million  project  costs  of 
which  nine million euros were requested from 
public funds (the companies had to co-fund the 
projects up to 50% from their own resources).

Projects funded:

immunocapture 

1.  DIACAN-NANO  -  New  cancer  diagnostic 
/ 
assays  based  on 
tumor-derived 
characterization 
exosomes  using  nanotech 
solutions. 
Coordinator:    Exosomics  Siena  SpA  (Italy). 
Participating  countries: 
Italy,  Navarra 
(Spain)

of 

2.  Re.Mark.RareDis  -  Advanced  chemical 
technologies  and  predictive  experimental 
models leading to new treatments against 
  Minoryx 
rare  diseases.  Coordinator: 
Therapeutics  S.L. 
(Spain).  Participating 
countries: Catalonia (Spain), Italy 

3.  NeuroSafe    -  Development  of  a  human 
integrated  in  vitro  Neurotoxicity  Safety 
Platform (NeuroSafe). Coordinator:  Axxam 

132

7.  PHARMA-FUN 

-  New  Waste  Water 
removal. 
Treatment  Unit 
Coordinator: 
(Spain). 
Participating  countries:  Navarra  (Spain),  
Wallonia (Belgium)

for  PPCPs 
IDIFARMA 

8.  EIFFEL  -  Early  invasive  fungal  infection 
detection  with  Terahertz  sensor  systems. 
Coordinator:  ANTERAL (Spain). Participating 
countries: Navarra (Spain), Germany

9.  WispATDrug  -  Lead  optimization 
orally 

for 
innovative, 
bioavailable  wide 
spectrum  antitumor  drugs.  Coordinator:  
(Spain).  Participating 
Argon  Pharma 
countries:  Catalonia 
(Spain),  Germany, 
Finland

10. BIMoT  -  Advanced  biomaterial  testing  by 
continuous  monitoring  of  tissue/implant 
interactions  using  an  impl.  microsensor 
device.  Coordinator: 
(France). 
Participating  countries:  Alsace  (France), 
Germany

  PROTiP 

11. ASCaffolds - Autologous Stem Cell Enriched 
Scaffolds  for  Soft  Tissue  Regeneration. 
Coordinator:  MBP (Germany). Participating 
countries: Germany, Flanders (Belgium)

Fifth call 2013

The  following  countries/regions  participated  in 
the ETB call (2013): Austria, Belgium (Flanders, 
Wallonia),  Finland,  France  (Alsace),  Germany, 
Russia  and  Spain  (Andalusia,  Basque  Country, 
Catalonia, Navarra). 

 
 
infarction 

in  acute  myocardial 
(AMI) 
patients.  Coordinator:  Firalis  SAS  (France). 
Participating  countries:  Alsace  (France), 
Germany

7.  HTScreenTECH - Biotechnological platform 
for “in silico” and “in vitro” High Throughput 
Screening of Muscarinic Receptors ligands. 
Coordinator: IMG PHARMA BIOTECH (Spain). 
Participating  countries:  Basque  Country 
(Spain),  Catalonia 
(Spain),  Wallonia 
(Belgium)

8.  Plurivax  -  Development  of  a  VLP  based 
vaccine  platform  and  stable  formulation 
especially suited for veterinary applications. 
Coordinator:  ARTES  Biotechnology  GmbH 
(Germany). 
countries: 
Participating 
Germany, Flanders (Belgium)

9.  PEPEX  -  Novel  eukaryotic  expression 
systems  for  food  enzymes.  Coordinator: 
(Russia).  Participating  countries: 
TRIS 
Russia, Germany

10. HYGIENZYM 

- 

Biobased 

Sanitizing 
Detergents  for  Domestic  and  Industrial 
Coordinator: 
Laundry 
Proquimia  S.A. 
(Spain).  Participating 
countries: Catalonia (Spain), Germany

Applications. 

Sixth call 2014

The  following  countries/regions  participate  in 
the ETB call (2014): Austria, Belgium (Flanders, 
Wallonia),  Finland,  France  (Alsace),  Germany, 
Italy,  Russia  and  Spain  (Andalusia,  Basque 
Country). 

The call has been launched in 1st October 2013, 
deadline  for  proposal  submission  is  January 
31st, 2014.

There  were  30  proposals  submitted  and  10 
selected for funding. The projects amounted to a 
total of EUR 18 million project costs of which 11 
million euros were requested from public funds 
(the companies had to co-fund the projects up 
to 50% from their own resources).

Projects funded:

1.  PREDICSEED  -  an 

innovative  kit  for 
PREDICting  SEED  quality.  Coordinator: 
Antibody  BCN  S.L.  (Spain).  Participating 
countries: Catalonia (Spain), Germany

2.  CryNaPhot  -  Crystalline  Nanoparticles 
from Chlorin Derivatives – a New Concept 
in  Biophotonics  for  Cancer  Diagnosis  and 
Therapy.  Coordinator:  Biolitec  Research 
GmbH (Germany).   Participating countries: 
Germany, Russia

3.  Heat  DDeliver  -  Heat  and  and  Drug 
Delivery  nanosystem  with  active  tumor 
targeting  features.  Coordinator:  IDIFARMA 
DESARROLLO  FARMACEUTICO,  S.L.(Spain). 
Participating  countries:  Navarra  (Spain), 
Basque Country (Spain), Germany

for 

4.  LUNGCADIA  -  An  integrated  knowledge 
framework 
curation  and  high-
throughput  clinical  variant  interpretation 
in somatic oncology. Coordinator: BIOBASE 
GmbH  (Germany).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, Flanders (Belgium)

5.  BIOSAFOOD  -  Lactic  acid  bacteria  and 
other  microorganisms  antagonists  as 
preservatives 
in  minimally  processed 
fruit  and  vegetables.  Coordinator:  DOMCA 
(Spain).  Participating  countries:  Andalusia 
(Spain), Russia

6.  CardioSave - Development of a novel early 
stage  prognostic  test  for  clinical  outcome 

133

EUPHRESCO II 

European Phytosanitary Research 
Coordination II

Objective

The  Community  Plant  Health  Regime  (CPHR) 
aims to prevent the introduction, establishment 
and  spread  of  regulated  and  quarantine  plant 
pests.  These  pests  pose  increasing  risks  to 
European  agriculture,  horticulture, 
forestry 
and  the  environment.  This  is  due  to  increased 
globalisation  of  trade  (volume  and  diversity), 
but  is  exacerbated  by  climate  change  and  EU 
expansion (increased pathways). In comparison, 
resources  for  national  plant  health  inspection 
services,  science  programmes  and  research 
are  declining.  For  this  reason,  the  EUPHRESCO 
Phytosanitary  ERA-NET  was  established 
in 
2006,  with  the  full  support  of  the  EU  Council 
Working Party of Chief Officers of Plant Health 
Services. It aimed to better coordinate national, 
transnational  and  EU-funded  research  in  direct 
support  of  the  CPHR  (EU  policy,  inspection 
services and science capability). 

The  EUPHRESCO-I  Project  ended  in  2010;  this 
new  EUPHRESCO-II  project  will  deepen  and 
enlarge  the  previously  successful  cooperation 
between  research  programmes.  EUPHRESCO-II 
will: 

•	 Strengthen  the  basis  for,  and  result  in, 
long-term,  durable 

a  self-sustainable, 
network;

•	 Deepen the cooperation through continued 
transnational 
that  optimises 
research 
limited  resources,  supports  other  plant 
coordination 
health 
mechanisms,  and  further  develops  a 
culture of collaboration;

initiatives 

and 

134134

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2011-01-01
2014-03-31

Project reference

Programme acronym

266505

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2010.1.2-06

Title

Contract type 

Total cost
EU contribution

Deepened and enlarged cooperation 
between phytosanitary (statutory plant 
health) research programmes - ERA-NET

Coordination (or networking) actions

€  1 290 732
€     999 997

Number of participants

31

Coordinator

Contact person

Department for Environment, Food & 
Rural Affairs, Food and Environment 
Research Agency (DEFRA-FERA), United 
Kingdom

Alan Inman; T +44 (0)1904 455346; E 
alan.inman@defra.gsi.gov.uk

Website

www.euphresco.org

Participants
AT

Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water 
Management BMLFUW
Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety AGES
Federal Public Service Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment  FPS
Walloon Agricultural Research Centre CRA-W
Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research ILVO
Agriculture Academy AA
Federal Office for Agriculture FOAG
Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic MZE
Julius Kuhn Institute JKI
Federal Agency of Agriculture and Food BLE
Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish Agency for Science, 
Technology and Innovation DASTI
Ministry of Agriculture, Research and Development Department MARDD
National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food Research INIA
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA
Ministry of Agriculture and Fishery, General Food Directorate MAP-DGAL
Benaki Phytopathological Institute BPI
Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine DAFM
Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF
Agricultural Research Council CRA
Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Lithuania ZUM
Netherlands Plant Protection Service NPPS
Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ
National Institution of Agricultural Research and Veterinary INIAV
All-Russian Plant Quarantine Centre FGU VNIIKR
Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food MAFF
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, General Directorate of Agricultural 
Research MARA/GDAR
Institute of Plant Protection of National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of 
Ukraine IPP NAAS
Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, Food and Environment 
Research Agency DEFRA-FERA
Scottish Government, Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture SASA
Forestry Commissioners Research Agency FC

AT
BE
BE
BE
BG
CH
CZ
DE
DE
DK

EE
ES
FI
FR
FR
GR
IE
IT
IT
LT
NL
NL
PT
RU
SI
TR

UA

UK

UK
UK

•	 Deepen  the  cooperation  by 

improving 

processes and tools and reducing barriers;

•	

Enlarging  the  network  (31  partners,  plus 
14 observers) to increase its critical mass, 
address more regional or sector-based (e.g. 
forestry  plant  health)  issues  and  increase 
opportunities for international cooperation 
with  non-European  countries  that  are 
either  the  source  of  quarantine  pests  or 
share similar pest problems. 

Overall,  EUPHRESCO 
II  will  enhance  the 
that  supports 
European  Research  Area 
the  CPHR.  It  will  directly  support  EU  policy, 
operations and science capability by providing 
rapid and customised answers  to challenges 
caused by quarantine plant pests.

Consortium

two 

The  EUPHRESCO  Network  has  expanded  from 
23  partners  in  17  countries  (2006-2010)  to 
31  partners  in  22  countries  with  12  European 
international 
observer  countries  and 
observers. Its partners are leading organisations 
involved with funding phytosanitary research in 
Europe.  Observers  are:  Ministry  of  Agriculture, 
(Estonia), 
Plant  Health  Department  EVPM 
Ministry  of  Rural  Development  and  Food, 
Department  of  Phytosanitary  Control  (Greece), 
Ministry  of  Agriculture  and  Rural  Development, 
Department  for  Plant  Protection  and  Soil 
Conservation  (Hungary),  Ministry  of  Agriculture 
ZUM  (Lithuania),  Plant  Health  Department, 
Ministry  of  Rural  Affairs  and  the  Environment 
(Malta),  Direccao  Geral  de  Porteccao  das 
Culturas DGPC (Portugal).

Mapping and scoping activities

and 

EUPHRESCO-I  undertook  a  comprehensive 
mapping  and  analysis,  available  from  the 
EUPHRESCO  website.  There  is  no  systematic 
in 
analysis 
mapping 
EUPHRESCO-II,  other  than  annual  updating  of 
national  research  programme’s  funding  levels 
and  research  projects  (current  and  planned). 
The  latter  is  specifically  intended  to  help 
inform the annual rounds of topic identification 

undertaken 

within EUPHRESCO-II, from which transnational 
research  projects  emerge.      EUPHRESCO-II 
aims to undertake three annual rounds of topic 
identification.  These  have  been  completed  for 
2011 and 2012.

Joint calls

First call 2011

In  2011,  there  were  no  competitive 
joint 
calls,  but  10  individual  transnational  research 
projects were directly commissioned via a non-
competitive funding mechanism.

Projects funded:

1.  CEP - Current and emerging Phytophthoras 
-  research  supporting  risk  assessment 
and  risk  management.  Coordinator:  FERA 
(United  Kingdom).  Participating  countries: 
Belgium,  Estonia,  Ireland,  Italy,  Norway, 
Portugal, Spain, The Netherlands.

2.  PCN  -  Use  of  novel  molecular  methods 
to  understand  population  diversity  and 
its  implications  on  disease  management 
resistant  potato 
through  the  use  of 
varieties.  Coordinator:  SASA 
(United 
Kingdom). Participating countries: Belgium, 
Poland, The Netherlands, Ukraine.

3.  MELOID  -  Development  and  validation  of 
innovative diagnostic tools for identification 
of  Meloidogyne  enterolobii    in  support  of 
integrated  plant  protection  strategies. 
Coordinator: 
(Switzerland). 
Agroscope 
Participating countries: Belgium, Germany, 
Italy,  The  Netherlands,  Turkey, 
France, 
United Kingdom.

4.  SENDO 

for 
-  Diagnostic  methods 
Synchytrium 
especially 
endobioticum, 
for  pathotype  identification.  Coordinator: 
NVWA 
(The  Netherlands).  Participating 
countries:  Belgium,  Bulgaria,  Germany, 
Ireland,  Latvia,  Russia,  Ukraine,  United 
Kingdom.

5.  DEP2  -  Assessment  of  the  risk  posed  by 
ornamentals and tomato seeds infected by 
Pospiviroids to tomato crops and evaluation 
of Pospiviroid detection protocols for seed 
testing  in  tomato.  Coordinator:  Walloon 

135

Agricultural  Research  Centre 
(CRA-W) 
(Belgium).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Estonia, France, Italy, Latvia, Slovenia. 

solanacearum  and 

6.  PHYLIB  -  Epidemiology  and  diagnosis  of 
potato  phytoplasmas  and  Candidatus 
Liberibacter 
their 
contribution to risk management in potato 
and other crops. Coordinator: SASA (United 
Kingdom).  Participating countries: Belgium, 
Canada,  France,  Hungary,  Spain,  Turkey, 
The Netherlands

7.  GRAFDEPI  -  Epidemiological  studies  on 
reservoir  hosts  and  potential  vectors  of 
Grapevine  flavescence  dorée  (GFD)  and 
validation of different diagnostic procedures 
for GFD. Coordinator: Agricultural Research 
Council - Plant Pathology Research Centre 
(CRA-PAV)  (Italy).  Participating  countries: 
Austria, Belgium, Portugal, Serbia, Slovenia, 
Spain, Switzerland, Turkey.

8.  APOPHYT 

- 

of 

factors 
Evaluation 
determining distribution, impact, detection 
and characterisation of apple proliferation 
and  other  fruit  tree  phytoplasmoses  in 
the  European  Community.  Coordinator: 
  Participating 
Agroscope 

(Switzerland). 

countries: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, 
Germany, Italy, Norway. 

9.  PHYTFIRE  -  Phytosanitary  diagnostic,  on-
site  detection  and  epidemiology  tools 
for  fire  blight.  Coordinator:  Agroscope 
(Switzerland). 
  Participating  countries: 
Austria, Estonia, Germany, Latvia, Portugal, 
Russia,  Spain,  Turkey,  The  Netherlands, 
Ukraine.

10.  DROSKII - Damage potential of Drosophila 
suzukii and development of phytosanitary 
measures.  Coordinator:  Research  Council 
for  Agriculture  –  Research  Centre  for 
Agrobiology  and  Pedology  (CRA  –  ABP) 
(Italy).  Participating  countries:  Austria, 
Germany, Switzerland, United Kingdom.

Second call 2012

In 2012, 17 topics have been identified, which 
will  be  taken  forward  by  individual  funding 
consortia from EUPHRESCO-II partners. Of these 
topics, two will be taken forward competitively 
(one via a virtual common pot call and one by a 
real common pot call); 15 topics will be directly 
commissioned projects.

136

FORESTERRA 

Enhancing FOrest RESearch in the 
MediTERRAnean through improved 
coordination and integration

FoRes ERRA

Objective

Forest  research  in  the  Mediterranean  region  is 
currently  handicapped  by  its  fragmentation, 
its  limited  means,  and  occasional  outdating 
and  isolation.  In  addition,  the  low  benefits 
that  Mediterranean  forests  provide  to  forest-
based industries - compared to other European 
forests - make it difficult to attract interest and 
funds  from  the  private  sector.  For  this  reason, 
new  ways  to  overcome  this  situation  must  be 
implemented  through  research  partnerships, 
networking,  capacity  building,  higher  education 
programmes,  knowledge  transfer  and  lifelong 
learning. Such activities should take advantage 
of existing initiatives like the Forest Based Sector 
Technology  Platform  (FTP),  the  Mediterranean 
Regional Office of the European Forest Institute 
(EFIMED) and the Mediterranean Forest Research 
Agenda (MFRA) developed jointly by the FTP and 
EFIMED.

Mediterranean 
forest  ecosystems  provide 
multiple  goods  and  services  that  are  crucial 
to  the  socioeconomic  development  of  the 
Mediterranean regions rural areas as well as to 
the welfare of its urban populations. Advancing 
scientific  knowledge  and  fostering  innovation 
is  essential,  then,  to  ensure  the  sustainable 
management  of  Mediterranean  forests  and  to 
build  a  knowledge-based  bioeconomy  in  the 
region. 

The  countries  of  the  Mediterranean  basin,  as 
well  as  those  of  other  Mediterranean  Climate 
Areas,  face  similar  challenges  regarding  the 

137137

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2012-01-01
2015-12-31

Project reference

291832

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2011.1.2-08

Title

Forest Research in the Mediterranean Region  
ERA-NET - Mandatory ICPC (Mediterranean 
partner countries)

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 467 435
€  1 997 795

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

16

Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness 
MINECO, Spain

David González Martínez  (Coordination)
Victoria Sanz  (Project management)
T +34916037723
E foresterra@mineco.es

www.foresterra.eu

BG
DZ
ES
FR
FR
GR
HR
IT
IT
MA

PT
SI
TR

TN

Executive Forestry Agency EFA
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development INRF
Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness MINECO
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA
Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry MAAF
Ministry of Environment Energy and Climate Change MEEC
Ministry of Science, Education and Sports MZOS
Agricultural Research Council CRA
Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF
High Commission for Water and Forests and the Fight Against 
Desertification HCEFLCD
Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food MAFF
Ministry of Forest and Water Affairs, Southwest Anatolia Forest 
Research Institute SAFRI
Institution for Agricultural Research and Higher Education 
IRESA
European Forest Institute EFIMED

INT
INT Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Zaragoza / International 

Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies IAMZ-
CIHEAM

sustainability  of  forest  ecosystems  and  the 
delivery of crucial goods and services that they 
provide  in  a  context  of  rapid  global  changes. 
Therefore, it is of critical importance to reinforce 
scientific cooperation on Mediterranean forests 
through a transnational EU-Mediterranean ERA-
NET,  which  also  builds  new  transcontinental 
cooperation  among  Mediterranean  Climate 
Areas  (California,  Australia,  South  Africa,  Chile) 
in order to reduce fragmentation and maximise 
the impact of research activities.

Consortium

FORESTERRA has 16 partners from 12 countries.

Mapping and scoping activities

it  has 
In  the  framework  of  FORESTERRA, 
been  developed  an  activity  of  mapping  and 
characterizing  the  existing  forestry  funding 
programmes  and  forestry  research  capacities 
of the countries participating in the consortium, 

which  brought  together  12  Mediterranean 
countries.

The  mapping  survey  was  performed  using 
two  procedures:  i)  dedicated  questionnaires 
addressed  to  funding  bodies  and  scientific 
organisations  and  ii)  ad-hoc  poster  session 
aimed at exchanging information and validating 
the  preliminary  results,  attended  by  delegates 
from participating countries. 

Funding, 
research 
research  capacities  and 
lines  were  characterized  in  order  to  identify 
complementarities,  overlaps,  gaps,  strengths 
and  weaknesses  in  forest  research  in  order  to 
provide  strategic  guidance  to  the  FORESTERRA 
network  for  future  cooperation  and  forest 
research coordination activities.

Joint calls

A call for proposals is planned for 2014 including 
large  collaborative  projects  and  networking 
actions.

138

ICT-AGRI 

Coordination of ICT and Robotics 
in Agriculture and Related 
Environmental Issues

Objective

and 

complementary 

This horizontal ERA-NET proposal is cutting across 
several themes in the Cooperation Programme: 
Theme  2  (Food,  Agriculture  and  Fisheries,  and 
(Information  and 
Biotechnology),  Theme  3 
Communication  Technologies)  and  Theme  6 
(Environment  including  Climate  Change).  The 
overall strategic objective - also beyond the time 
frame of the ERA-NET proposal - is a contribution 
to increase quality, effectiveness and efficiency 
of  national 
research  programmes  within 
Information  and  Communication  Technology 
(ICT) and Robotics for a competitive, sustainable 
and  environmentally  friendly  agriculture.  The 
goal  of  the  ERA-NET  is  to  enable  the  creation 
of a European-facing open network of mutually 
research 
accessible 
programmes  which  are  able  to  respond  to  the 
rapidly developing needs of common European 
policy drivers. In the pursuit of this goal the ERA-
NET  will  review  existing  research  and  future 
needs,  develop  instruments  and  procedures 
for  transnational  funding  activities,  create  a 
strategic  transnational  research  agenda  and 
programme  and  establish  linkages  to  related 
networks and disciplines. The ERA-NET will work 
closely together with the Collaborative Working 
Group in this research area. The aim is to support 
the application of ICT and Robotics in the creation 
of  environmentally  efficient  agro-technologies 
as a solution to an efficient implementation of 
new  EU  policies  on  mitigation  and  adaptation 
of  climate  changes,  environmental  regulations 
and  legislation,  traceability,  food  safety,  agro-
environmental and rural developments.

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From 
To      

2009-05-01
2014-03-31

Follow-on ERA-NET

ICT-AGRI-2

Project reference

235460

Programme 
acronym

FP7-COORDINATION

Topic identifier

ERANET.2008.1

Title

ERA-NET proposals of a horizontal nature

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 973 772
€  2 237 008

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

19

Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries - 
Danish Agrifish Agency DAFA, Denmark

Niels Gøtke
T +45 7231 8396
E nigoe@fi.dk

www.ict-agri.eu

BE Ministry of Agriculture of the Flemish Community - Institute for 

CH
DE

Agricultural and Fisheries Research EV-ILV
Swiss Federal Office for Agriculture FOAG
Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection 
BMELV
Federal Agency of Agriculture and Food BLE

DE
DK Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish 

Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation DASTI
Danish Ministry of the Environment DEPA

DK
DK Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries - Danish Agrifish 

ES
FI
FR

GR
IE
IL
IT
LV
MT
NL
TR

TR

Agency DAFA
Regional Development Agency of Murcia INFO MURCIA
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 
National Research Institute of Science and Technology for 
Environment and Agriculture IRSTEA
Greek Research and Technology Network GRNET
Agriculture and Food Development Authority TEAGASC
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MOARD
Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF
Latvian Academy of Sciences LAS
Council for Science & Technology MCST
Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research TNO
Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Affairs - General Directorate 
of Agricultural Research GDAR
Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey 
TUBITAK

139139

The  ERA-NET  will  contribute  significantly  to 
the  European  Research  Area  by  improving 
the  coherence  and  coordination  of  ICT-AGRI 
research  programmes  across  Europe  and  the 
development of joint research calls at an early 
date. It will also bring added value and leverage 
to  the  extensive  research  effort  undertaken  by 
Member States’ own initiatives ensuring that the 
research undertaken is the best and also gives 
the best value for money.

Consortium

(Italy),  Cities  on 

(Germany),  National 

The 
ICT-AGRI  consortium  consists  of  19 
organisations  from  15  countries.  Furthermore 
there  are  11  observer  organisations:  Leibniz-
Institute  for  Agricultural  Engineering  Potsdam-
Bornim  ATB 
Institute 
for  Agricultural  Research 
INRA  DARESE 
(France),  Food  and  Agriculture  Organisation 
of  the  United  Nations  FAO  (Italy),  Region  of 
Industry,  Handicraft,  Building 
Lombardy  DG 
and  Cooperation 
Internet 
Association  COIA  (Poland),  Romanian  Academy 
of  Agricultural  and  Forestry  Sciences  ASAS 
(Romania),  Soil  Science  and  Conservation 
Research  Institute  SSCRI  (Slovakia),  Institute 
of  Agricultural  Technology  of  Castilla  y  Leon 
ITACyL  (Spain),  LEITAT  Technological  Center 
LEITAT (Spain), Swedish Institute of Agricultural 
and  Environmental  Engineering  JTI  (Sweden), 
Federal  Department  for  Economic  Affairs  DEA 
Institute 
(Switzerland),  Agricultural  Research 
ARI  (Cyprus),  Wageningen  UR  (University  and 
Research  Centre)  WUR  (The  Netherlands).  Also 
there are three associated partners: Department 
for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs DEFRA 
(United Kingdom), The French National Research 
Agency ANR (France), Department of Agriculture, 
Food and the Marine DAFM (Ireland).

ERA-NET  mapping  activities  as  well  as  to  the 
activities  connected  with  the  calls.  The  MKB, 
which is open source, has already been adopted 
by several other ERA-NETs. To learn more about 
the MKB please follow this link: http://db-ictagri.
eu/usr/Home.php

Based on basic information about stakeholders 
and  facilities  retrieved  from  the  MKB  and 
contributions  from  the  ICT-AGRI  partners  a 
Country  Report  was  developed.  The  Country 
Report  includes  information  on  the  funding 
structure,  research  programmes  and  research 
institutes  in  15  countries  involved  in  the  ERA-
NET  ICT-AGRI.  The  Country  Report  was  printed 
in 2010.

A  Strategic  Research  Agenda  (SRA)  has  been 
developed. The SRA has:

•	

identified  future  challenges  for  European 
agriculture; 

•	 distilled  objectives  and  solution  domains 
based  on  ICT  and  robotic  technologies  as 
they apply in primary agriculture; 

•	 determined further research and innovation 

(R&I) requirements; 

•	

created  a  vision  for  ICT  and  robotics  in 
agriculture; and 

•	 developed 

recommendations 

for  SRA 

implementation. 

The SRA is intended to serve as a reference for 
future  planning  of  R&I  at  both  European  and 
national  level.  The  SRA  was  printed  in  January 
2013  and  is  available  from  the  website  www.
ict-agri.eu.

Joint calls

First call 2010

Mapping and scoping activities

During the lifetime of ICT-AGRI the following was 
achieved in the area of mapping and scoping:

A  database  tool,  now  known  as  the  Meta 
Knowledge  Base  (MKB),  was  developed.  This 
database has been invaluable in regard to the 

The first ICT-AGRI call had the title: “Integrated 
ICT and automation for sustainable agricultural 
production”.

The  aim  of  this  joint  call  was  to  enable  joint 
transnational 
research  projects  based  on 
complementarities  and  sharing  of  expertise 
within  ICT  and  Robotics  in  Agriculture.  Projects 

140

were  expected  to  apply  a  systems  approach 
addressing farm level integration of information 
technology, 
technology, 
communication 
automation and robotics. Projects had to have a 
clear European added value by being carried out 
on a transnational level. Applicants were invited 
to submit proposals in one of two categories:

•	 A broad approach by combining existing or 
new  software  and  hardware  products  to 
demonstrate a system meeting important 
challenges  within  a  specific  application 
area 

•	 A narrow approach by focusing on specific 
importance  for  the 

elements  of  vital 
functioning of integrated systems. 

The first ICT-AGRI call had a budget of EUR 2.5 
million.  The  call  was  launched:  15  April  2010. 
The  following  countries  contributed  to  the  call: 
Denmark,  Belgium,  Finland,  France,  Germany, 
Greece, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Switzerland, Turkey, 
The  Netherlands,  Ireland,  Spain.  In  total  44 
proposals were submitted, of which seven were 
funded.

Denmark-AU, Aarhus University (Denmark). 
Participating 
Denmark, 
Switzerland, Finland, Germany, Netherlands

countries: 

5.  GeoWebAgri - Geospatial ICT infrastructure 
for  agricultural  machines  and  FMIS  in 
planning and operation of precision farming. 
Coordinator:  Aalto,  Aalto-korkeakoulus 
(operating  as  Aalto  University)  (Finland). 
Participating  countries:  Finland,  Germany, 
Denmark

6.  QUAD-AV 

Agricultural 

-  Ambient  Awareness 

for 
Vehicles. 
Autonomous 
Coordinator: Danish Technological Institute 
(Denmark). 
countries: 
Participating 
Denmark, France, Germany, Italy

7.  3D-Mosaic - Advanced Monitoring of Tree 
Crops  for  Optimized  Management  -  How 
to  Cope  With  Variability  in  Soil  and  Plant 
Properties?  Coordinator:  ATB,  Leibniz 
for  Agricultural  Engineering 
Institute 
PotsdamBornim 
(Germany). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Israel, 
Denmark, Turkey, Italy, Switzerland, Spain

(ATB) 

Projects funded:

Second call 2012

1.  STRATOS  -  Open  System  for  TRAcTOrs’ 
autonomouS  Operations.  Coordinator: 
UNIMOR,  University  of  Modena  e  Reggio 
(Italy).  Participating  countries:  Latvia, 
Switzerland, Italy, Israel, Belgium

2.  ROBOFARM  - 

robotic  and 
Integrated 
software platform as a support system for 
farm level business decisions. Coordinator: 
DEIAGR, Alma Mater Studiorum-University 
of Bologna - Dept. of Agricultural Economics 
(Italy).  Participating 
and  Engineering 
countries: Italy, Denmark, Greece, Turkey

3.  PIGWISE  -  Optimizing  performance  and 
welfare  of  fattening  pigs  using  High 
Frequent  Radio  Frequency  Identification 
(HF  RFID)  and  synergistic  control  on 
individual level. Coordinator: GAUG, Georg-
August-Universität  Göttingen  (Germany). 
Participating countries: Germany, Denmark, 
Italy, Belgium

4.  Predictor  -  Preparing  for  the  EU  Soil 
Framework  Directive  by  optimal  use 
Information  and  Communication 
of 
Technology  across  Europe.  Coordinator: 

The  ICT-AGRI  2nd  Call  aimed  at  utilizing  ICT 
in  primary  agriculture  for 
and  automation 
sustainable use of natural resources, reduction of 
agriculture’s environmental footprint, mitigation 
of climate change while securing farm economy 
and  good  working  conditions,  food  supply, 
quality and security, and animal welfare. The call 
focus was on innovations in the use of ICT and 
automation in primary agriculture. Projects were 
expected  to  develop  and  demonstrate  feasible 
solutions with proven effects towards a greener 
European  agriculture.  Projects  could  include 
a  combination  of  Research  and  Technological 
Development (RTD) and Demonstration. Project 
consortia were expected to be formed by public 
research  organisations,  public  services  as  well 
as commercial enterprises across Europe. 

Topics were:

•	 Open Farm Management Systems

•	

•	

Enabling farming based on ICT and robotic 
machines

Transfer of Knowledge and Solutions

141

•	

Interactions  between  farmers  and  public 
services based on ICT and automation 

Germany,  Turkey,  Switzerland,  Greece, 
United Kingdom, Italy, Denmark

4.  GrassBots  -  User-centric  adoption  of 
sustainable farming operation involving ICT 
and robotics. Participating countries: Case: 
Grassland harvesting operations for biogas 
and bio refinery plants. Coordinator: Aarhus 
University,  Department  of  Engineering, 
ENG  (Denmark).  Participating  countries: 
Denmark, United Kingdom, Finland, 

5. 

6. 

through 

i-LEED  -  Advanced  cattle  feeding  on 
innovative  pasture 
pasture 
management. Coordinator: Bavarian State 
Research  Center  for  Agriculture,  Institute 
for  Agricultural  Engineering  and  Animal 
Participating 
(Germany). 
Husbandry 
countries: Germany, France, Turkey

ICTGRAZINGTOOLS  -  Use  of  ICT  tools  to 
capture  grass  data  and  optimize  grazing 
  Teagasc 
management.  Coordinator: 
(Ireland).  Participating  countries:  Ireland, 
United Kingdom, France

7.  FarmFUSE  -  Fusion  of  multi-source  and 
multi-sensor  information  on  soil  and  crop 
for  optimised  crop  production  system. 
Coordinator: Cranfield University, School of 
Applied  Sciences,  Environmental  Science 
and  Technology  Department,  National 
Soil Resources Institute (United Kingdom). 
Participating  countries:  United  Kingdom, 
Greece, Germany, Turkey

Coordinator:  University 

8.  DairyICT  -  ICT  in  large  and  small  dairy 
systems. 
of 
Copenhagen, Faculty of Health and Medical 
Sciences,  Department  of  Veterinary 
Clinical  and  Animal  Sciences  (Denmark). 
Denmark, 
Participating 
Switzerland, United Kingdom, France, Italy, 
Ireland

countries: 

•	 Retrieval  of  knowledge  from  agriculture 
farm 

based  on  empirical  data 
management systems

in 

•	 Applicants were invited to submit proposals 
to  a  least  one  topic,  but  were  allowed  to 
apply to several topics.

The second ICT-AGRI call had a budget of EUR 6.2 
million. The call was launched: March 23rd 2012. 
The  following  countries  contributed  to  the  call: 
Denmark,  Belgium,  Finland,  France,  Germany, 
Greece, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Switzerland, Turkey, 
The Netherlands, Ireland, Spain, United Kingdom. 
In total 29 proposals were submitted, of which 
eight were funded.

Projects funded:

1. 

-  Application  of 

information 
ITApic 
in  Precision  Apiculture. 
technologies 
Coordinator: 
of 
Latvian 
Agriculture,  Biosystems  Group,  Faculty 
of 
(Latvia). 
Participating  countries:  Latvia,  Turkey, 
Germany, Denmark

Information 

technology 

University 

2.  SILF - Smart Integrated Livestock Farming: 
integrating  user-centric  & 
ICT-based 
decision  support  platforms.  Coordinator: 
Aarhus 
of 
Engineering,  ENG  (Denmark).  Participating 
countries:  Denmark,  Greece, 
Ireland, 
Belgium, Finland

Department 

University, 

techniques 

3.  USER-PA  -  USability  of  Environmentally 
sound  and  Reliable 
in 
Precision Agriculture. Coordinator: Dept. of 
Sensing,  Information  and  Mechanization 
Engineering, 
Institute  of  Agricultural 
Engineering,  ARO,  The  Volcani  Center 
Israel, 
(Israel).  Participating  countries: 

142

ICT-AGRI-2 

Information and Communication 
Technologies and Robotics for 
Sustainable Agriculture

Objective

The  principal  objective  of  ICT-AGRI-2  is  to 
contribute  to  the  development  of  an  eco-
efficient,  resource-efficient  and  competitive 
agriculture through an enhanced and improved 
use of ICT and robotics.

ICT-AGRI-2  will  pursue  this  objective  within 
the  framework  of  related  European  initiatives 
including  Horizon  2020,  European  Innovation 
Partnership 
“Agricultural  Productivity  and 
Sustainability”,  Common  Agricultural  Policy, 
Public-Private 
Platforms, 
Technological 
Partnerships,  Joint  Programming 
Initiatives 
and  ERA-NETs.  ICT-AGRI-2  can  be  seen  as  an 
extension, with respect to implementation, to the 
Joint Programming Initiative FACCE  (Agriculture, 
Food Security and Climate Change).

Equally important is the outreach to the public 
and  private  stakeholders  engaged  in  ICT  and 
robotics in agriculture: Research and innovation 
funding  agencies,  research  and  development 
organisations  and  enterprises,  advisory  and 
extension services and other providers of ICT to 
farmers,  public  services  in  environmental  and 
agricultural administration, SMEs in rural areas, 
farmers, food chains, agricultural supply chains 
and  consumers.  The  use  of  ICT  and  robotics 
in  internal  farm  operations  and  in  external 
farm  business  relations  is  growing  fast,  and 
compatible  systems  are  becoming  increasingly 
critical  for  achieving  the  full  potential  of  the 
technology.

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2014-01-01
2017-12-31

Project reference

618123

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2013.1.4-04

Title

Information and Communication Technologies 
and Robotics for Sustainable Agriculture

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 239 740
€  1 997 106

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

22

Ministry of Science, Technology and 
Innovation – Danish Agency for Science, 
Technology and Innovation DASTI Denmark

Niels Gøtke
T +45 7231 8396
E nigoe@fi.dk

www.ict-agri.eu

BE Ministry of Agriculture of the Flemish Community - Institute for 

BE
CH
DE

Agricultural and Fisheries Research EV-ILVO
Agency for Innovation by Science and Technology  IWT
Federal Office for Agriculture FOAG
Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection 
BMELV
Federal Agency of Agriculture and Food BLE

DE
DK Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish 

Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation DASTI
DK Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries - Danish Agrifish 

ES
ES
FI
FR

Agency DAFA
Regional Development Agency of Murcia INFO MURCIA
Technological Corporation of Andalusia CTA
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 
National Research Institute of Science and Technology for 
Environment and Agriculture IRSTEA
Greek Research and Technology Network GRNET
Agriculture and Food Development Authority TEAGASC
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MOARD
Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF
Aleksandras Stulginskis University ASU
Latvian Academy of Sciences LAS

GR
IE
IL
IT
LT
LV
NL Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ
NL
NL Wageningen UR (University and Research Centre) WUR-DLO
TR Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Affairs - General Directorate 

Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research TNO

of Agricultural Research GDAR
Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey 
TUBITAK
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

TR

UK

143143

The present proposal is based on the on-going 
ERA-NET ICT-AGRI (Coordination of ICT and Ro-
botics in Agriculture and Related Environmental 
Issues).  Nearly  all  participants  continue 
in 
ICT-AGRI-2  and  new  participants  strengthen 
the  representation  of  important  agricultural 
countries.  The  results,  experience,  tools  and 
goodwill achieved in ICT-AGRI 
are thus available for ICT-AGRI-2. 

A  significant  achievement  of  the  first  ICT-AGRI 
is  the  Strategic  Research  Agenda  published  in 
December  2012.  The  SRA  identifies  research 
and innovation requirements for ICT and robotics 
in  agriculture  and  provides  recommendations 
for  the  implementation  of  the  SRA.  Similar 
in  the  Strategic 
recommendations  appears 
Research  Agenda 
the  FP7  project 
from 
agriXchange.  A  major  goal  for  ICT-AGRI-2  is 
to  facilitate  the  implementation  of  the  SRA 
through  appropriately  structured  mapping  and 
analysis  of  on-going  research  and  innovation 
followed  by  application  of  transnational  joint 
calls and other coordination actions on topics of 
mutual interests. 

through  mapping 

and 
ICT-AGRI-2  will, 
consultation,  maintain  extensive 
relations 
with  stakeholders  representing  the  complete 
chain  from  research  to  application.    It  will 
promote  transnational  collaboration  and  seek 
critical  mass  by  inviting  national  research  and 
innovation  programmes 
(including  public-
private  partnerships)  to  participate  in  joint 
calls. ICT-AGRI will also mobilise expertise from 
SMEs  through  network  activities.  ICT-AGRI-2 

will  collaborate  with  other  ERA-NETs  and  the 
JPIs in order to share good practise and, where 
appropriate, conduct common joint calls.

Consortium

The  ICT-AGRI-2  consortium  consists  of  23 
organisations from 16 countries. 

Mapping and scoping activities

ICT-AGRI-2 will carry out an extensive mapping 
and analysis of research  and innovation  needs 
and opportunities. This will be done in a structured 
manner  on  the  basis  of  recommendations  in 
the  Strategic  Research  Agenda.  The  mapping 
and  analysis  will  -  after  consultation  with  the 
stakeholders  -  be  delivered  in  the  form  of  an 
action  plan  targeted  for  implementing  joint 
calls. It is also expected that this mapping and 
analysis will be highly relevant for national and 
European research and innovation programmes.

Joint calls

The  development  of  actions  plans  and 
transnational  joint  calls  will  be  repeated  three 
times  in  an  annual  cycle.  The  timing  of  the 
cycle is planned so that an annual consultation 
workshop  with  stakeholders  will  be  held  at  a 
relevant conference. The annual announcement 
of calls will happen at the end of the year.

144

PreSto GMO ERA-NET 

Preparatory steps towards a GMO 
research ERA-NET

Objective

The  objective  of  the  PreSto  GMO  ERA-NET 
project is to clearly map out the steps needed 
to  create  and  successfully  implement  an  ERA-
NET that will coordinate transnational research 
on the effects of genetically modified organisms 
(GMOs)  in  the  areas  of  human  and  animal 
health, the environment, and techno- economics 
and  societies.  The  focus  of  the  ERA-NET  will 
be  on  GMOs  intentionally  released  into  the 
environment  and/or  used  immediately  in  feed 
and  food  applications.  PreSto  GMO  ERA-NET 
brings together ministries, agencies, and funding 
bodies from different Members States and the 
scientific community to jointly prepare a strategic 
plan and roadmap for the implementation of the 
ERA-NET. In addition, the ERA-NET will explicitly 
take into account the wider views of a diversity 
of  stakeholders  and  end-users 
(e.g.  non-
governmental  organisations,  industry,  farmers). 
This  is  intended  to  strengthen  ownership  of 
the  ERA-NET  among  stakeholders  in  order  to 
encourage  participation  of  different  scientific 
communities  in  the  future  joint  transnational 
calls,  to  enhance  collaboration  between  actors 
and  to  increase  the  accountability  of  research 
trajectories and outcomes.

The results of the project will form the basis for 
a robust ERA-NET proposal. In achieving this the 
project  work  will  (1)  promote  the  accessibility 
of  existing  scientific  information  to  interested 
stakeholders  and  end-users,  (2)  lead  to  the 
harmonisation  of  research  requirements  and 
capacity building within Europe, (3) complement 

145145

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From 
To

2013-09-01
2015-08-31

Project reference

612739

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2013.3.5-02

Title

Preparatory steps towards a GMO research 
ERA-NET - PreSto GMO ERA-NET

Contract type 

Coordination and Support Action 
(coordinating action)

Total cost
EU contribution

€  1 199 110
€     996 739

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

22

Jülich Research Centre, Germany

Stefan Rauschen
T +49 228 3821 1696 
E s.rauschen@fz-juelich.de

not available yet

Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and 
Water Management BMLFUW
University of Klagenfurt UNIKLU
Agrobioinstitute ABI 
Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and 
Research EAER
The Crop Research Institute CRI/VURV
Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH FZJ
Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
Julius Kühn Institute, Federal Research Centre for Cultivated 
Plants JKI 
Genius science & communication GmbH GENIUS 
Center for Research in Agricultural Genomics CRAG
French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational 
Health & Safety ANSES
The French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA 
Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and 
Sustainable Economic Development ENEA
Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore UCSC
University of Parma UNIPR 

IT
IT
NL Wageningen UR (University & Research centre) WUR
PL

The Plant Breeding and Acclimatization Institute, National 
Research Institute IHAR 
The Swedish Research Council FORMAS
The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey 
TUBITAK
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
FERA/DEFRA
University of Newcastle upon Tyne UNEW
The University of Nottingham UNOTT 

AT

AT
BG
CH

CZ
DE
DE
DE

DE
ES
FR

FR
IT

SE
TR

UK

UK
UK

international  developments, 
(4)  contribute 
to  a  more  efficient  use  of  research  funds 
internationally  and  (5)  identify  how  strategic 
collaboration  can  be  used  to  respond  to  these 
future  research  and  training  needs  through 
enhancement of durable partnerships.

Consortium

research 

recognized  expertise 

technical,  economic, 

leading  European 
researchers  with  a 

The  PreSto  GMO  ERA-NET  consortium  consists 
of 
institutes 
longstanding  and 
and 
internationally 
in  the 
different  fields  of  research  on  the  effects  of 
GMOs  (i.e.  environmental,  human  and  animal 
social)  and 
health, 
other  relevant  issues  (e.g.  legal,  ethical)  and 
Member  States’  funding  bodies,  programme 
owners  and  managers,  and  agencies  who 
have  successfully  devised,  organised  and  run 
national  programmes  on  the  effects  of  GMOs 
in  different  scientific  areas  or  are  concerned 
with  these  effects  in  their  day-to-day  duties 
and  responsibilities.  This  unique  combination 
of  dedicated  partners  with  complementary 
institutional  and  scientific  backgrounds  and 
experiences  will  be  exceptionally  capable  of 
achieving  the  project  objectives.  The  research 
institutes  and  the  scientists  represented  in 
the  consortium  combine  amongst  them  long-
standing  expertise  and  scientific  excellence 
in  a  variety  of  areas  relevant  for  the  project, 
having worked and collaborated in a multitude 
of relevant EU projects.

The  consortium  combines  relevant  expertise 
and  institutional  support  from  13  European 
countries, 
including  new  Member  States 
(Poland,  Czech  Republic,  Bulgaria),  Turkey  (as 
a candidate) and Switzerland as an associated 
country. The Member States feature those with 
large  agricultural  sectors  (France,  Germany, 
Poland, Spain, Italy, United Kingdom, Turkey), as 
well as states with strong forestry (Sweden), and 
fisheries/aquaculture (United Kingdom) sectors. 

Mapping and scoping activities 

Work Package 1 “Mapping research programmes 
and capacities” will be a collective stock taking 
exercise  that  will  lead  to  the  identification 
of  complementarities  between  activities  at 
Member  States  and  international  level  and  of 
inherent research gaps. Current and anticipated 
future  developments  will  be  analysed  in  Work 
Package  2  “Horizon  scanning  of  emerging  GM 
applications”.  Subsequently,  all  information  is 
collated in Work Package 3 “Prioritising research 
needs”  developing  a  prioritisation  framework 
for  future  research  activities  in  this  field.  The 
views  of  a  broad  array  of  stakeholders  will  be 
taken into account here, to make sure that the 
contents  of  the  future  joint  transnational  calls 
of  the  ERA-NET  will  be  widely  acceptable  to 
the  diversity  of  stakeholders,  end-users  and 
potential applicants.

146

RURAGRI 

Facing sustainability: 
New relationships between rural 
areas and agriculture in Europe

Objective

RURAGRI aims to improve coordination between 
on-going  and  future  European,  national  and 
regional  research  programmes  dealing  with 
the  new  relationships  between  rural  areas 
and  agriculture  in  Europe  and  the  challenge 
of  sustainability.  While  the  challenges  and 
issues  are  mostly  common,  and  despite  of 
the  historical  coordination  at  the  EU  level  for 
agricultural  and  rural  development  policies, 
research  on  agriculture  and  rural  development 
is  mostly  carried  out  at  a  national  level  and 
remains  fragmented.  Research  funding  bodies 
(24 partners) from 20 European member states 
and  associated  countries  have  decided  to  set 
up  an  ERA-NET  in  order  to  develop  a  lasting 
focused  network  that  will  identify  and  open 
new  research  fields.  They  will  work  towards 
a  common  research  agenda  and  coordinated 
research  funding  to  enhance  coordination  of 
research  in  the  field  of  agriculture  and  rural 
development.

Throughout Europe, the strong urban movement 
leads  to  increased  requirement  for  improved 
connectivity  between  urban  and  rural  areas. 
The geographic, economic and human dynamics 
of  all  European  rural  areas  is  increasingly 
influenced  by  urban  development,  i.e.  urban  or 
semi-urban  economic  activities,  infrastructures 
and  habitat,  patterns  of  human  and 
material  flows,  etc.  Observing,  analysing  and 
characterising  how  spatial  dynamics  triggered 
by urban development are changing agriculture 
is crucial to understanding the spatial dimension 

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To      

2009-10-01
2013-09-30

Project reference

235175

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE-2008.1.4.10

Title

Agriculture and sustainable development in a 
rural development context

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  1 208 730
€     999 565

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

23

French National Institute for Agricultural 
Research INRA, France

Egizio Valceschini
T +33 6 07 01 51 65
E egizio.valceschini@paris.inra.fr 

www.ruragri-era.net

AT

Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water 
Management BMLFUW
Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research ILVO
Federal Office for Agriculture FOAG

BE
CH
CY Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment 

MOA
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH
DE
DE
Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
DK Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries - Danish Food 

ES

Industry Agency DAFA
National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food 
Research INIA

Hungarian Academy of Sciences HAS
Institute of Economics Hungarian Academy of Sciences IEHAS
Agriculture and Food Development Authority TEAGASC
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MOARD
Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF
Latvian Academy of Sciences LAS

FR Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry MAAF
HU
HU
IE
IL
IT
LV
NL Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ
NL Wageningen UR (University & Research centre) WUR
SE

Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural 
Sciences and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology MHEST

SI
TR Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Affairs - General Directorate 

LT
PL
UK

of Agricultural Research GDAR
Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Lithuania ZUM
Institute of Pomology and Floriculture IO
Scottish Government - Rural and Environment Science and 
Analytical Services Division SG-RESAS

147147

of sustainable development, within the diverse 
EU regions and between them at the European 
scale.  The  multiple  functions  expected  from  a 
sustainable  European  agriculture  have  to  cope 
with these changes. 

A European approach will enhance understanding 
the  institutional  and  governance  approaches 
that will allow addressing these new challenges. 
In a context of deep modification of agricultural 
and  rural  development  policies  at  a  European 
scale, research on such topical issues is crucial 
to support decision-making processes.

Consortium

RURAGRI  consists  of  24  partners  from  20 
European  member  states  and  associated 
countries.

Mapping and scoping activities

The  mapping  exercise  of  RURAGRI  was  mainly 
performed to understand:

•	

•	

•	

the  principle  funding  mechanisms  in  the 
partner countries;

the core expertise and the strengths of the 
partners involved in RURAGRI; and

the main interests in future joint activities 
and thematic topics of RURAGRI partners.

20  country  reports  have  been  elaborated 
for  internal  purpose.  They  are  available  on 
the  RURAGRI  internal  Website.  In  addition,  a 
synthesis  report  of  the  mapping  has  been 
published in 2011.

Joint calls

First call 2012

The  first  call  for  applications  for  transnational 
research linking agricultural, rural and sustainable 
development  aspects  has  been 
launched  
in  September  2012  among  16  countries 
(deadline  of  submission  of  proposals  was  end 
of  November  2012).  The  overall  objective  of 

RURAGRI is to achieve a better understanding of 
the implications of evolving or new interactions 
between  agriculture  and  other  land  uses  in 
order to support sustainable development. The 
changes in spatial processes triggered by urban 
development point to an urgent need of analysis 
at  the  European  scale  which  addresses  a  set 
of  challenges  influencing  future  development 
of  rural  areas  in  Europe.  The  current  economic 
crisis  puts  our  societies  and  rural  areas  under 
additional,  severe  strain  and  increases  the 
urgency  with  which  these  issues  need  to  be 
confronted. Based on this understanding of rural 
potential the following three cross cutting issues 
are identified as core reference to any research 
in the field of RURAGRI:

Diversity. 
Rural  areas 
in  Europe  are  highly  socially, 
culturally,  environmentally  and  economically 
diverse.  Accepting  that  rural  areas  are  highly 
diverse  demands 
long  established, 
that 
simplistic approaches and viewpoints have to be 
overcome in order to understand the nature of 
rural development and to address place-specific 
challenges and potentials.

Rural-urban relationships.
 Strengthening linkages between urban and rural 
areas  is  key  to  enhance  territorial  cohesion  at 
EU,  national  and  regional  scales.  The  complex 
nature  and  role  of  linkages  in  supporting 
sustainable  agricultural  and  rural  development 
can  only  be  fully  understood  by  considering 
these  within 
spatial/regional 
their  wider 
perspective  and  integrated  into  networks  or 
circuits  of  capital,  knowledge,  material  flows 
and social development.

Governance. 
Innovations in governance are considered to be 
crucial  to  enable  current  and  future  transition 
of  rural  areas  in  order  to  achieve  balanced 
regional  development.  Successfully  combining 
the  cross  cutting  themes  with  the  perspective 
of  spatial  differentiation  outlined  above  will 
require  trans-disciplinary  research  proposals 
that  clearly  demonstrate  a  capacity  tackling 
one or more of the research questions outlined 
in  the  next  section.  Project  proposals  will  have 
to describe their relevance with regard to these 
cross-cutting issues, as well as in relation to the 

148

2.  TASTE    -  Towards  A  Smart  Rural  Europe. 
Coordinator: 
(France). 
Participating  countries:  France,  Sweden, 
Italy, Austria

AgroParisTech 

3.  MERIT  -  Merit  Based 

Income 

Land  Management 

from 
Sustainable 
in 
Mountain  Farming.  Coordinator:  Umwelt 
(Germany). Participating countries: France, 
Austria, Germany, Italy, Switzerland

between 

Trade-offs 

4.  TRUSTEE  -  Towards  RUral  Synergies 
and 
Economic 
development  and  Ecosystem  services. 
Coordinator:  INRA  (France).  Participating 
countries: France, Germany, Sweden, Italy, 
Austria, Latvia, Ireland, Spain

5.  RETHINK  -  Rethinking  the  links  between 
farm  modernization,  rural  development 
and  resilience  in  a  world  of  increasing 
demands and finite resources. Coordinator: 
Frankfurt  University  (France).  Participating 
countries: 
France,  Germany,  Austria, 
Belgium,  Switzerland,  Denmark,  Spain, 
Ireland, 
Italy,  Lithuania,  Latvia, 
Israel, 
Sweden, Turkey

spatial differentiation. In this regard the spatial 
typologies might be used as reference, but any 
other  meaningful  spatial  classification  method 
will  be  welcome,  if  properly  argued.  Moreover 
information  on  the  trans-disciplinary  research 
methods proposed will be required.

In  addition,  it  was  agreed  that  all  RURAGRI 
Research  projects  will  integrate  at  least  two 
of  the  following  three 
research  priorities: 
Ecosystem  Services/Public  Goods,  Socio-
Economic  Development,  Land  Use  and  Land 
Management.

There were 33 proposals submitted of which 27 
could be included in the scientific valuation. Five 
proposals of the RURAGRI call were approved to 
be funded in this ERA-NET.

Projects funded:

1.  MULTAGRI  -  Rural  development  through 
governance of multifunctional agricultural 
land-use.  Coordinator:  Lund  University 
(Sweden).  Participating  countries:  France, 
Germany,  Sweden,  Italy,  Austria,  Latvia, 
Ireland, Spain

149

SEAS-ERA 

Towards integrated European 
marine research strategy and 
programmes

Objective

SEAS-ERA  aims  at  embracing  marine  and 
maritime  research  in  its  entirety,  overarching 
the  previous  initiatives  which  only  targeted  a 
given area or basin and, therefore, constituting 
a stable and durable structure for empowering 
and  strengthening  marine  research  all  across 
Europe. The main objectives to be attained are 
the following: 
•	

Improve cooperation and coordination and 
promote harmonisation of national/regional 
research programmes to strengthen them, 
bridging  possible  gaps  and  avoiding 
duplications. 
significantly 
This  will 
contribute to the setting up of a European 
Marine  and  Maritime  Research  Agenda.  In 
this  point  SEAS-ERA  is  mainly  aimed  at 
developing  a  stable  European  overarching 
operational structure for implementing this 
Agenda.
Foster  synergies  at  regional  and  pan-
European 
level,  mobilising  competitive 
and non-competitive funds for research in 
a more coordinated way, through common 
programs  and  joint  calls,  so  as  to  reach 
a  critical  mass  to  address  major  cross-
thematic  marine  and  maritime  research 
challenges.  Moreover,  SEAS-ERA  will  be 
a  step  forward 
towards  achievement 
of  the  Joint  Programming  concept  that 
promotes the efficiency of funding returns 
by  avoiding  fragmentation  and  enhancing 
cooperation  between  Member  States 
research programmes.
Propose a plan for a better and sustainable 

•	

•	

150150

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2010-05-01
2014-04-30

Project reference

249552

Programme 
acronym

FP7-ENVIRONMENT

Topic identifier

ENV.2009.2.2.1.2

Title

Towards integrated European marine 
research strategy and programmes

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 398 711
€  1 999 927

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

21

Ministry of Economy and Innovation MINECO, 
Spain

Beatriz Morales-Nin 
T +34 971610201
E beatriz@imedea.uib-csic.es

www.seas-era.eu

Federal Public Planning Service Science Policy BELSPO

Jülich Research Centre JUELICH
Ministry of Economy and Innovation MINECO
National Agency for Research ANR
Marine Board - European Science Foundation MB-ESF
French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea IFREMER
Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation SRNSF
General Secretariat for Research and Technology GSRT
Icelandic Centre for Research RANNIS
Marine Institute MI
Ministry of Education, University and Research MIUR
Council for Science and Technology MCST
The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research NWO

BE
BG Ministry of Education, Youth and Science MEYS
DE
ES
FR
FR
FR
GE
GR
IS
IE
IT
MT
NL
NO Research Council of Norway RCN
PT
RO

Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development 
and Innovation Funding UEFISCDI
Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey 
TUBITAK
Kyiv State Center for Scientific, Technical and Economic 
Information KyivCSTEI
Natural Environment Research Council NERC
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs DEFRA

TR

UA

UK
UK

developing 

use  of  the  existing  Marine  Research 
Infrastructures 
a 
(MRIs), 
coherent  vision,  in  line  with  the  actions 
undertaken within the Capacity Programme 
(ESFRI  opportunity  list).  The  key  issue 
to  be  addressed  in  SEAS-ERA  is  how  to 
set  up  scientific  joint  programs  while 
implementing a regular process for access 
to these MRIs. Other issues to be addressed 
are  the  sharing  of  a  common  vision,  e.g. 
an 
infrastructure  strategy  for  marine 
research  among  the  Member  States  and 
other  countries,  fostering  technological 
development  to 
improve  MRIs  quality 
and  service,  developing  a  cooperation 
frame  work  and  a  funding  tool  box  for 
investments,  and  developing  a 
shared 
methodology  for  the  use  of 
industry 
infrastructures by public research.
Reduce imbalances among regions through 
human  capacity  building.  An  important 
issue to be taken into account is the need 
to  assist  countries  in  building  institutional 
and organisational capacity through human 
resources  for  the  development  of  ocean-
related activities in order to improve science 
development  and  its  utilization  in  Europe. 
To this end, the project will devote special 
attention to set-up a pan-European training 
and mobility strategy for human resources. 
When possible, links with other cooperative 
capacity  building  programmes  in  the  field 
of  coastal  and  ocean  management  will 
(i.e.  TRAIN-SEA-COAST 
be  developed 
Programme) so as to gain synergies.
Enhance public awareness towards marine 
and  maritime  scientific  and  policy  issues 
in Europe. The partners will be encouraged 
to  profile  SEAS-ERA  nationally,  regionally 
and  pan-European,  where  appropriate. 
SEAS-ERA  will  have  a  strong  commitment 
to  translate  the  RTD  activities  into  social, 
economic  and  cultural  benefits.  Outreach 
activities  should  become  a  means  to 
engage  stakeholders  beyond  the  R&D 
community.  SEAS-ERA  will  emphasise  the 
particular  importance  for  the  consortium 
to  enhance  public  awareness  and 
understanding the role of science in marine 
and maritime policy. Overall, this will form a 
core element of the dissemination strategy.

•	

•	

In summary, SEAS-ERA will constitute a platform 
for  developing  a  European  integrated  policy 
oriented  structure  to  promote  knowledge  and 
expertise in any sea related area; the overarching 
element of SEAS-ERA, its ambition to embrace 
the  whole  spectrum  of  marine  and  maritime 
research, makes it an open forum for knowledge 
sharing, a real arena where all the sea related 
knowledge can meet.

Consortium

The  SEAS-ERA  consortium  consists  of  21 
organisations from 18 different countries. Since 
the  beginning  SEAS-ERA  has  a  close  relation 
with cooperating member BONUS as a parallel 
initiative.  Hence, 
the  strategic  partnership 
between  SEAS-ERA  and  BONUS  will  complete 
the  pan-European  dimension  of  the  emerging 
marine  ERA,  as  with  this  partnership  all  four 
European  marine  regions  would  be  embraced. 
Furthermore there are two third parties involved 
in  the  SEAS-ERA  consortium.  The  National 
Research Council CNR (Italy) will assist MIUR and 
the European Centre for Information on Marine 
Science and Technology EurOcean (Portugal) will 
assist FCT.

Mapping and scoping activities

The following mapping activities are included in 
the project:

•	

•	

•	

Identification and prioritisation of emergent 
disciplinary  and  interdisciplinary  marine 
scientific  issues  of  European  strategic 
importance. 

Initiation of analysis and studies in support 
of the regional and pan-European Research 
Strategies at the research-technology and 
research-policy interfaces. 

Develop  a  Strategic  Research  Plan,  and 
establish  a  pan-European  strategic  forum 
for Marine Research Funding Organisations 
and  science  end-users,  in  adherence  with 
the  concept  of  defragmentation  of  the 
European Research Area.

151

- 

Invasive 

seaweeds 
impacts  and 

in 
INVASIVES 
rising  temperatures: 
risk 
assessments.  Coordinator:  University  of 
Bergen  (Norway).  Participating  countries: 
Portugal, France, Belgium, Iceland, Norway 

4.  MERMAID  -  Marine  environmental  targets 
linked  to  regional  management  schemes 
based  on  indicators  developed  for  the 
Coordinator: 
Mediterranean. 
Hellenic 
Centre 
for  Marine  Research,  HCMR 
(Greece).  Participating  countries:  France, 
Turkey, Greece

the 

5.  CIGESMED - Coralligenous based indicators 
to  evaluate  and  monitor 
“good 
ecological  status”  of  the  Mediterranean 
coastal  waters. 
CNRS 
Délégation  Provence  et  Corse  (France). 
Participating  countries:  Turkey,  France, 
Greece

Coordinator: 

Joint calls 

3. 

Five  transnational  collaborative  R&D  projects 
were selected for funding based on a centralized 
international  peer-review  assessment 
of 
proposals and within the possibilities of national 
budgets.  The  total  public  funding  was  EUR  4 
265 799.

Projects funded:

1.  SEAMAN  -  Spatially  resolved  ecosystem 
models  and  their  application  to  marine 
management.  Coordinator:  University  of 
Bergen  (Norway).  Participating  countries: 
Norway, France, Iceland, Greece 

2.  EMoSEM - Ecosystem models as support to 
eutrophication  management  in  the  North 
Atlantic Ocean. Coordinator: RBINS-MUMM 
(Belgium). Participating countries: Belgium, 
France, Portugal

152

SUMFOREST
(under negotiation) 

Tackling the Challenges in the 
Implementation of Sustainable and 
Multifunctional Forestry Through 
Enhanced Research Coordination 
for Policy Decisions

Objective

SUMFOREST  will  be  instrumental  creating  a 
European forest research area that comprises:

•	 Well-coordinated 

research 

European, 

national 
and  regional  research  programmes  and 
priorities  that  are  needed  to  ensure  the 
coherence  of  European,  national  and 
programmes  and 
regional 
priorities  on  issues  of  a  generic  nature, 
and of European interest based on shared 
foresight  exercises.  Such  coordination  will 
avoid  unnecessary  duplication  of  effort 
and will facilitate the allocation of freed-up 
resources to strategic transnational issues 
that go beyond the capacities of individual 
countries.  Transnational  cooperation 
is 
considered the most appropriate response 
to  the  physical  challenges  confronting 
European  forests,  and  an  efficient  use  of 
national and regional resources. 

•	

Effectively 
research 
coordinated 
institutions  and  centres  of  excellence 
are  crucial 
the  complex 
to  address 
interdisciplinary and cross-sectorial nature 
of  emerging  forestry  challenges.  Many 
European  forest  research  institutions  lack 
critical mass and have difficulties meeting 
current  expectations  with  the  resources 
available.  Therefore,  some  concentration 
and  specialization  is  necessary  to  permit 
the emergence of European forest centres 
of  excellence  which  are  competitive 
on  a  global  scale.  At  the  same  time, 
more  coordination  and  integration  (this 

153153

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

end 2013
end 2017

Project reference

not available yet

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2013.1.4-01

Title

Sustainable Forest management and 
Multifunctional Forestry ERA-NET

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 194 528 (according to proposal)
€  2 000 000 (expected)

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

Proposal stage: 23 full partners, 9 observers 
and 16 stakeholders

Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, 
Environment and Water Management 
BMLFUW, Austria

Martin Greimel 
E martin.greimel@lebensministerium.at

not available yet

AT

CH
DE

DE
ES

FI
FR
GR
IE
IT
LT
LV
MK

NO
PL
SE

SI
SI
SK

UK
INT
INT

Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and 
Water Management BMLFUW
Federal Office for the Environment FOEN
Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection 
BMELV
Federal Agency of Agriculture and Food BLE
National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food 
Research INIA
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 
Ecofor
Democritus University of Thrace DUTH
Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine DAFM
Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF
Ministry of Environment AM
Latvian Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Science LAAFS
Ss. Cyril and Methodius University of Skopje - Faculty of 
Forestry UKiM
Research Council of Norway RCN
Forest Research Institute IBL
Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural 
Sciences and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport MESCS
Slovenian Ministry of Agriculture and the Environment MKO
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Slovak 
Republic MPRV SR
Forestry Commissioners Research Agency FC
European Forest Institute EFI
Nordic Forest Research Cooperation Committee SNS

Areas,  Forestry  and  Fisheries  vTU  (Germany), 
Swiss  Federal  Institute  for  Forest,  Snow  and 
Landscape  Research  WSL  (Switzerland),  and 
five observers from Russia: St. Petersburg State 
Forest  Technical  University  FTA,  Volga  State 
University of Technology VOLGA TECH, Moscow 
State  Forest  University  MSFU,  Voronezh  State 
Forest  Technical  Academy,  Northern  Research 
Institute of Forestry (Arkhangelsk).

Mapping and scoping activities 

The project starts with mapping and information 
exchange  to  improve  mutual  knowledge  of 
existing  European,  national  and 
regional 
programmes  and  capacities.  Although  there 
have  been  some  attempts  to  map  relevant 
research programmes and capacities (e.g. WWN 
in  the  6th  and  7th  Framework  Programme, 
Trees4future,  Star  Colibri,  FORESTERRA)  those 
only  have  depicted  a  small  part  of  the  entire 
forest  related  research  activities.  SUMFOREST 
will as much as possible draw on those results 
where it is relevant to SFM and multifunctional 
forestry,  but  it  may  also  need  some  additional 
new  quantitative  and/or  qualitative  mapping 
activities.  Moreover  the  project  will  map  those 
European  and  national  policies  that  affect  the 
forest  sector.  Again  SUMFOREST  will  utilise 
existing data (e.g. ThinkForest, COST E51).

The next step will be the analysis of the collected 
data  and  the  definition  of  common  strategic 
activities  in  order  to  form  scientific  networks 
and enough critical mass of research capacities 
to  effectively  avoid  overlaps  and  promote 
synergies  among  existing  capacities.  This 
process will also contribute to the identification 
of scientific areas (opportunities and gaps) that 
require  transnational  funding.  Moreover,  the 
policy-related  part  of  the  project  will  detect 
inconsistencies  and  contradictory  policies,  as 
well as deliver input towards new national and 
European  policy  and  implementation  activities 
(e.g. EU Forest strategy, national implementation 
of FLEGT and REDD(+)).

includes  mobility  of  researchers)  among 
institutions is required to address complex 
interdisciplinary questions. 

•	

of 

large-scale 

Joint research facilities and Pan-European 
networks 
research 
infrastructures  with 
long-term  funding. 
Those are required in key topics (information 
and  monitoring  of  forest  disturbances, 
genomics,  impacts  of  climate  change, 
forest policy and markets analysis, etc.) to 
ensure  that  European  forest  research  has 
the  right  data  at  the  right  scale  to  be  at 
the  frontier  of  knowledge,  and  is  able  to 
address  emerging  challenges  and  policy 
issues in an efficient manner. Due to high 
costs  and  the  transnational  relevance  of 
many  questions,  it  makes  sense  to  share 
and jointly plan these infrastructures.

•	 Strengthened 

for 

fostering 

science-policy-practice 
interaction  is  crucial  for  sound  policy-
making  and 
innovation 
within  the  forest-based  sector.  Speeding 
up  the  spread  and  integration  of  forest-
related  knowledge  to  the  general  public 
will permit the development of innovative 
products  and  services,  turning  challenges 
into business opportunities. In this context, 
new  instruments  and  dynamic  processes 
need  to  be  established  to  foster  a  fluent 
science-policy 
Therefore 
SUMFOREST  will  seek  close  relations  to 
the  “ThinkForest  Forum”  with  the  aim  to 
strengthen  communication,  collaboration 
and  partnership  building  between  policy 
makers  in  the  EU  (Member  countries,  EU 
Parliament,  Commission,  etc.)  and  the 
science community. 

dialogue. 

Consortium

The  SUMFOREST  consortium  consist  of  23  full 
partners,  nine  observers  and  16  stakeholders. 
The observers are: University of Sarajevo, Faculty 
of  Forestry  (Bosnia  Herzegovina),  Wageningen 
UR  (University  and  Research  Centre)  Forest 
Ecology  and  Forest  Management  group  WUR 
(The Netherlands), Johann Heinrich von Thünen 
Institute;  Federal  Research  Institute  for  Rural 

154

Joint calls 

As  almost  half  of  the  partners  of  SUMFOREST 
have never participated in any ERA-NET before 
there  need  to  be  many  activities  to  create  a 
mutual  understanding  and  trust  between  the 
partners.  Therefore  SUMFOREST  will  organise 
two  joint  calls  one  of  them  dedicated  to  the 
collaboration with Russia. 

155

SUSFOOD 

Sustainable Food Production and 
Consumption

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2011-12-01
2014-11-30

Project reference

291766

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2011.2.6-02

Title

ERA-NET on sustainable food production and 
consumption

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  2 327 438
€  1 999 320

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

25

French National Institute for Agricultural 
Research INRA, France

Marie Russel
E Marie.Russel@paris.inra.fr

www.susfood-era.net

BE

DE

DE

DE

DK

DK

EE

ES

ES

ES

FI

FI

FR

FR

FR

IT

NL

NO

RO

PL

SE

SI

TR

UK

UK

Ministry of Agriculture of the Flemish Community - Institute for 
Agricultural and Fisheries Research EV-ILVO
Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection 
BMELV
Federal Agency of Agriculture and Food BLE

Jülich Research Centre JUELICH

Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish Agency for 
Science, Technology and Innovation DASTI
University of Copenhagen UCPH

Ministry of Agriculture EVPM

Basque Foundation for Agro-Food Safety ELIKA

National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food Research 
INIA
Regional Development Agency of Murcia INFO MURCIA

Agrifood Research Finland MTT

Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 

Association of Technical Coordination for Food Industry ACTIA

National Agency for Research ANR

French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA

Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF

Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ

Research Council of Norway RCN

Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development and 
Innovation Funding UEFISCDI
National Centre for Research and Development  NCBiR

Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences 
and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Ministry of Education, Science and Sport MIZS

Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Affairs - General Directorate of 
Agricultural Research GDAR
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
DEFRA
The Technology Strategy Board TSB

Objective

Susfood  is  the  acronym  for  SUStainable  FOOD 
production  and  consumption.  Susfood  defines 
sustainability in the food area as a food system 
that supports food security, makes optimal use 
of  natural  and  human  resources  and  respects 
biodiversity  and  ecosystems  for  present  and 
future generations, which is culturally acceptable 
and  accessible,  environmentally  sound  and 
economically fair and viable, and which provides 
the consumer with nutritionally adequate, safe, 
healthy and affordable food.

As  an  ERA-NET,  Susfood  aims  at  increasing 
cooperation and synergy between the European 
partners  and  at  defining  common  future 
perspectives in sustainable food production and 
consumption and will set up a European strategic 
research  agenda.  In  addition,  Susfood  aims 
at  enhancing  collaboration  and  coordination 
research 
between  national  and 
programmes.  Thanks  to  the  identification  of 
research priorities, gaps and opportunities, and 
a  study  of  future  research  needs,  Susfood  will 
have positive impacts on European research. By 
means  of  two  open  calls  (in  2013  and  2014), 
sustainability  oriented  food  chain  projects  will 
be  supported,  in  order  to  allow  the  European 
research  area  to  be  in  the  lead  in  sustainable 
food production, supply and consumption.

regional 

Susfood  includes  the  entire  food  supply  chain 
with  main  focus  on  food  chain  sustainability 
beyond  the  farm  gate.  It  will  cover  processing, 
packaging,  transport,  retailing,  food  services, 

156156

storage  and  consumer  activities.  Susfood 
promotes  a  multi-disciplinary  approach  from 
biology to food engineering and social sciences 
and tends towards the following socio-economic 
goals:

•	

•	

•	

•	

•	

To develop sustainable food systems from 
production to consumption.

To  Increase  food  production  sustainability 
while reducing waste in food supply chain 
and limiting environmental damages.

To  improve  quality  of  life  by  improving 
food quality in a sustainable way and the 
resilience of the food supply chain.

To encourage consumers to act in a more 
sustainable way.

To improve competitiveness and economic 
growth in the European food industry with 
special attention to SMEs.

researchers  from 

encourages 
research 
institutes,  universities  and  industries  to 
post their research projects in the database, 
which is freely accessible and can be found 
on the Susfood website (www.susfood-era.
net). Among the benefits for researchers is 
that the MKB forms a unique platform for 
researchers  to  exchange  information  and 
to expand networks.

•	 Develop a transnational strategic research 
agenda (SRA). Based on identified medium 
to long-term needs the SRA will describe in 
detail the key research priorities within the 
field  of  sustainable  food  production  and 
consumption. The SRA will establish a joint 
agenda  for  European  food  research  and 
will  be  the  foundation  for  transnational 
calls  that  will  deepen  the  cooperation 
between national research programmes. It 
will also be a useful tool for building long-
term transnational collaboration.

Consortium

•	

The SUSFOOD consortium consists of a network 
of 25 partners from 16 European countries. For 
the  first  call,  SUSFOOD  benefitted  from  the 
funding of three external organisations: Agency 
for  Innovation  by  Science  and  Technology  IWT 
(Belgium),    Federal  Ministry  of  Education  and 
Research BMBF (Germany) and Daniel and Nina 
Carasso  Foundation  DNCF  (France  and  Spain). 
For  them  is  the  status  of  Associated  Partners 
created.

Launch  Transnational  Calls.  Two  calls  for 
research  proposals  will  be  implemented. 
At first, the demonstration of the feasibility 
of  joint  activities  in  some  areas  relevant 
to  the  project  is  needed.  This  will  be 
achieved  by  developing 
instruments, 
mechanisms  and  processes  needed  to 
implement transnational funding activities, 
like  call  procedures,  documents  and  also 
a  call  secretariat.  The  first  call  has  been 
launched  in  February  2013.  The  second 
call is expected in January 2014.

Mapping and scoping activities

Joint calls

To  achieve  these  points,  the  consortium  has 
developed an efficient framework with concrete 
actions.

•	 Construct  an  overview  of  the  existing 
research.  An  overview  of  the  existing 
research will be achieved by means of an 
open web based archive, named the Meta 
Knowledge Base (MKB). The analysis of the 
current  research  will  enable  formulating 
synergies,  gaps  and  overlaps  in  European 
research  and  will  form  the  basis  for 
formulating future research needs. Finally, 
the  process  will  result  in  the  supporting 
of corresponding research topics. Susfood 

157

First call 2013

The first Call for proposals started on February 
2013.

The first call is divided into two sections: 

•	

•	

“Research”: Project consortia are expected 
to be formed by research organisations

and 

Innovation”: 

“Research 
Project 
consortia  are  expected  to  be  formed 
by  research  organisations  and  industry 
(enterprises) 

Project  consortia  should  apply  to  one  of  the 
three thematic call topics:

external  costs  of 
to  optimize 
environmental,  health  and  social  impact 
and economic efficiency.

food 

research 

•	 Role  of  knowledge  exchange,  translation 
of 
information 
into 
management  and  sharing  ;  the  need  for 
harmonised EU databases, accessibility by 
SMEs to innovation and new solutions.

use; 

Second call 2014

The  second  Call  for  proposals  will  start  on 
January 2014.

The call follows a two-steps procedure, 98 pre-
proposals  were  submitted,  but  seven  were  in-
eligible  .  There  were  35  eligible  pre-proposals 
on  topic  1  (resource  efficiency),  30  on  topic 
2  (innovation),  and  26  on  topic  3  (consumer 
behaviour).  out  of  these  91  eligible  pre-
proposals  26  have  been  accepted  to  the  full 
proposal stage with deadline October 1, 2013. 
Projects will start in 2014.

TOPIC  I.  Improving  input,  waste  and  side  flow 
strategies  to  increase  resource  efficiency  and 
provide added value in food products and food 
processing, manufacture, reducing input (energy, 
water) in the food chain.
food  processing 
Innovation 
TOPIC 
technologies  and  food  products  to  support  a 
sustainable food chain.
TOPIC III. Understanding consumer behaviour to 
encourage more sustainable food choices.

in 

II. 

Respecting  the  topics  of  the  call,  the  projects 
may be furthermore considered in the context of 
the following cross-cutting issues:

•	 A  whole  food  systems  approach  (system 

governance).

•	

Equity  and  ethics  in  food  production  and 
consumption and access for all consumers 
to a variety of food products.

•	

Localisation  of  activities  and  internalizing 

158

WOODWISDOM-NET 2 

Networking and integration of 
national programmes in the area 
of wood material science and 
engineering in the forest-based 
value chains

Objective

The  overall  objective  of  WW-Net  2  was  to 
promote  the  transformation  of  the  European 
F-BI from a resource-intensive to a value-added 
knowledge-intensive,  innovative  and  globally 
competitive  industry  based  on  the  sustainable 
use  of  renewable  raw  materials.  The  steps  to 
reach the above stated overall objective were:

•	 Creating  and  establishing  a  common 
research  and  funding  platform  for  long-
lasting  cooperation  by  deepening  and 
broadening the cooperation of the national 
inviting 
funding  organizations  and  by 
partners from additional new countries to 
join the platform;

•	 Assisting 

raw  material 

optimisation 
(and  efficient  utilisation  of  raw  material 
properties) in the development of innovative, 
eco-efficient  processes,  products  and 
services along different forest-based value 
chains and thus promoting competitiveness 
of the sector; and

•	 Promoting  the  utilization  of  cutting-edge 
knowledge  for  new  applications  at  the 
cross roads between different technologies 
and  disciplines  -  transformation  of  F-BI 
from  traditional  separate  value  chain 
industry to optimized multiple value chains 
industry  which  addresses  to  customer 
needs, reduced resource consumption and 
increased value creation.

Besides the overall objective, there were defined 
the following specific objectives:

159159

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2009-03-01 
2012-02-29

Follow-on ERA-NET WoodWisdom-Net+ 

Project reference

NMP2-ER-2009-235066

Programme 
acronym

FP7-NMP

Topic identifier

NMP-2008-4.0-14

Title

ERA-NET on transnational cooperation for 
new innovative products in the forest-based 
value chains

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  1 420 728
€  1 332 960

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

19

Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and 
Innovation TEKES, Finland

Ilmari Absetz
T +358 2950 55837
E ilmari.absetz@tekes.fi
Mika Kallio
E mika.kallio@woodwisdom.net

www.woodwisdom.net

DE
DE
ES

FI
FI
FI

FR
FR

FR

Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH
National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food 
Research INIA
Academy of Finland AKA
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 
The Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation 
TEKES
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA
Ministry of agriculture, the food processing industry and 
forestry/ General Directorate for Agricultural, Agrifood and 
Regional Policies (MAAF/DGPAAT)
Technological Institute for Forest Cellulose, Construction-wood 
and Furniture FCBA

HU Ministry of Rural Development KvVM
IE

National Council for Forest Research and Development 
COFORD
Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF
Latvian Academy of Sciences LAS
Ministry of Agriculture Republic of Latvia ZM

IT
LV
LV
NO Research Council of Norway RCN
SE

Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems 
VINNOVA
Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural 
Sciences and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology MHEST
Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey 
TUBITAK

SE

SI
TR

•	 Broadening,  strengthening,  streamlining 
and  deepening  the  cooperation  at  the 
European  and  national 
levels  within 
the  forest-based  sector  and  with  other 
relevant  sectors.  The  final  goal  is  long-
lasting cooperation.

the 

existing 
research  programme 

•	 Broadening,  deepening,  streamlining  and 
strengthening the joint activities, including 
ongoing 
strengthening 
transnational 
to 
cover  the  whole  innovation  chain  from 
science  to  business  by  launching  new 
calls, reinforcing industry involvement and 
developing management of a transnational 
programme.

•	

Launching  new  calls  (the  goal  was  to 
further  develop  the  WoodWisdom-Net 
Research  Programme  by  launching  two 
joint calls for projects in 2009 (Joint Call 2) 
and 2010 (Joint Call 3)).

Consortium

The  consortium  includes  19  partners  from  12 
countries.

Mapping and scoping activities

WoodWisdom-Net  has  been  very  active 
and  successful  in  tying  together  all  relevant 
stakeholders  of  the  forest-based  sector.  One 
of  the  Work  Packages  “Strategic  Network 
Development”  was  especially  allocated  to  this 
task. The proactive dissemination activities have 
led to good visibility as the programme has been 
actively  present  at  all  important  conferences 
and  meetings  within  the  sector.  As  the  call 
themes  have  very  often  been  interdisciplinary, 
the  network  has  opened  up  to  other  domains 
which proved to be very fruitful and culminated 
in the joint call with another relevant ERA-NET, 
ERA-NET  Bioenergy.  As  a  consequence,  the 
forest-based sector is now better equipped with 
competencies for a successful collaboration with 
other  disciplines  in  larger  projects.  First  efforts 
in using networking instruments like COST have 
been undertaken and should be increased.

160

Joint calls

Following  the  first  call  conducted  by  the 
WoodWisdom-NET  under  FP6,  two  more  calls 
were launched by WW-NET 2.

Second call 2009

The  2nd  joint  call  for  proposals  “Sustainable, 
competitive processing and end-use concepts 
for  forest-based  industries”  was  launched  in 
autumn 2009. Call 2 was focused on applied 
research  and  development  projects  and  the 
themes  and  topics  for  the  call  were  defined 
by the national funding organisations together 
with  industry,  based  on  strategies  described 
in  the  SRA  and  NRAs  of  the  forest  based 
sector. The focused call topics were aimed at 
activating industry partners to participate more 
in the WoodWisdom-Net Research Programme 
and  to  create  closer  interaction  between  the 
research  community  and  applied  product 
development.

This resulted in 38 proposals, involving partners 
from  17  different  countries  and  additional 
associated countries such as Belgium and Brazil. 
After evaluation by an international Expert Panel, 
nine  projects  were  funded  and  these  started 
with a kick-off session at the WoodWisdom-Net 
Programme seminar in Paris in February 2011. 
The  total  volume  of  the  projects  is  over  EUR 
13  million:  public  WW-Net  funding  68%  (  nine 
million euros), industrial funding of the company 
projects  8%  (one  million  euros), 
industrial 
funding  of  research  projects  12%  (EUR  1.5 
million), and research centres’ own funding 12% 
(EUR 1.5 million).

List of selected projects sorted by main research 
area:
Research  area  1.  Improving  the  performance  of 
energy and resource efficient timber construction 
(massive  or 
light-weight,  new  construction 
or  renovation  concepts)  with  new  concepts, 
tools  and  processes  considering  total  building 
performance.

1.  Acuwood  -  Acoustics  in  wooden  buildings 
overview. Coordinator: SP Trätek (Sweden). 
Participating  countries:  Sweden,  Germany, 
Switzerland

2.  ECO2 

-  Wood 

carbon  efficient 
in 
construction  overview.  Coordinator:  Aalto 
University (Finland). Participating countries: 
Finland, Sweden, Germany, Italy, Austria

3.  smartTES 

- 

in 

timber 
Innovation 
construction  for  the  modernisation  of  the 
building  envelope  overview.  Coordinator:  
Technische Universität München (Germany).  
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Finland, 
Norway, Austria

Research  area  2.  Creating  new  business 
opportunities through innovative wood and fibre-
based products and composites with properties 
optimised  to  the  end  use  requirements  and 
sustainable use of resources.

4.  Lilo 

-  High 

Impact  Lignin-Cellulose-
Composites  for  Logistics  -  Development 
of  advanced  lignin-cellulose-composites 
with  high  impact  properties  for  modular 
pallets  and  components  for  transport 
systems  overview.  Coordinator:  Tecnaro 
GmbH  (Germany).  Participating  countries: 
Germany, Finland, Latvia, Turkey

5.  MouldPulp - Development of Durable, Fully 
Bio-Based Thermoplastic Composites from 
Bioplastics  and  Pulp  Fibres  for  Injection 
Moulding Applications overview. Coordinator: 
for  Environmental, 
Fraunhofer-Institute 
Safety,  and  Energy  Technology  UMSICHT 
(Germany). Participating countries: Germany, 
Sweden, Finland

Research area 3. Increasing the competitiveness 
of  the  forest-based  value  chain  by  strategic 
technology  renewal,  new  business  strategies 
and production systems.

6.  CTPro  -  New  Forest  Industry  Production 
Systems Based on High-speed CT Scanning 
overview. Coordinator: SP Trätek (Sweden). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Sweden, 
Italy

7.  HI-FRETECH - High-frequency impregnation 
of  wood  overview.  Coordinator:  Georg-
August-Universität  Göttingen  (Germany). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Norway, 
Spain, Denmark

8.  WoodSens - Developing and implementing 
in 
formaldehyde  online-senor  systems 
wood-based panel processing. Coordinator: 

161

Georg-August-University 
(Germany). 
Germany, France, Spain

Participating 

of  Göttingen 
countries: 

Research area 4. Optimising end-of-life of wood 
based products considering their total life cycle.

9.  DEMOWOOD  -  Optimisation  of  material 
recycling and energy recovery from waste 
and  demolition  wood  in  different  value 
chains.  Coordinator:  FCBA 
(Germany). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  France, 
Finland

Third call 2010

consumers  and 

The 3rd call of WW-Net was arranged together 
with  the  ERA-NET  Bioenergy.  This  Joint  Call 
2010 for “Sustainable forest management and 
optimised  use  of  ligno-cellulosic  resources  – 
Bridging  gaps  between  research  disciplines, 
society”  was 
producers, 
launched  on  September  15,  2010.  In  this  call 
the ERA-NETs WoodWisdom-Net 2 and ERA-NET 
Bioenergy  aim  to  step  up  the  cooperation  and 
coordination of research activities carried out at 
national  and  regional  level  by  joining  forces  to 
promote innovative research and cooperation to 
help optimise the use of trees and forests. The 
public funding is jointly provided by 19 national 
funding  organisations  from  Finland,  France, 
Germany,  Ireland,  Italy,  Latvia,  Norway,  Poland, 
Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey and the United 
Kingdom between 2011 and 2014.

During this 2-step call there were 81 pre-proposals 
submitted  and  out  of  these  40  proposals  were 
invited to the second step. The full proposals were 
peer-reviewed by an international Expert Panel and 
based  on  the  ranking  list  collected  by  the  Expert 
Panel  the  Call  Committee  then  recommended  13 
projects to be funded within the framework of the 
available national budgets. The total value of these 
13 projects is close to EUR 21 million, the share of 
public WW-Net funding being EUR 13.7 million and 
the rest (ca. seven million euros) coming from other 
co-funding  sources  (industrial  co-funding  etc.).  As 
well as the main participants, some of the projects 
have partners from Austria, Brazil and Chile.

List of selected projects sorted by main research 
area:

7.  LBTGC  -  Load  Bearing  Timber-Glass 
Composite 
Coordinator: 
Structures. 
Vienna  University  of  Technology  (Austria). 
Participating  countries:  Austria,  Germany, 
Sweden, Turkey, Slovenia, Chile, Brazil

8.  PowerBonds  -  Enhancement  of  Fiber  and 
Bond  Strength  Properties  for  Creating 
Added Value in Paper Products. Coordinator: 
Tampere  University 
Technology 
(Finland).  Participating  countries:  Finland, 
Germany, France, Sweden, Austria

of 

9.  WOBAMA  -  Wood  Based  Materials  and 
Institute 
Fuel.  Coordinator:  KTH  Royal 
of  Technology 
(Sweden).  Participating 
countries: Sweden, France, Finland, Poland

10. WoodApps - Improvement in collaboration 
along  the  wood  value  chain  through 
knowledge-based  methods  and  mobile 
applications.  Coordinator:  HCN  e.  V.  - 
(Germany). 
High  Competence  Network 
Participating countries: Germany, Slovenia, 
Sweden, Ireland

Area 3. Advanced biofuels and biorefineries

11. GREASE  -  A  novel 

lipid  platform  to 
from 
sustainable  bio-based  products 
low-value 
through 
forestry 
multi-functional  fatty  acids.  Coordinator: 
VTT  Technical  Research  Centre  Finland 
(Finland).  Participating  countries:  Finland, 
Germany, Turkey, Sweden, Italy, Finland 

streams 

12. PINOBIO  -  Pinosylvins  as  novel  Bioactive 
Agents for Food Applications. Coordinator: 
University  of  Eastern  Finland  (Finland). 
Participating  countries:  Finland,  Spain, 
Latvia, Slovenia

13. ProLignin  –  High-value  products  from 
lignin side-steams of modern Biorefineries. 
Coordinator: VTT Technical Research Centre 
of Finland (Finland). Participating countries:  
United  States,  Germany,  Latvia,  Spain, 
Italy, Finland, Brazil

Area  1.  Forest  for  multiple  needs  of  society, 
including  enhanced  productivity  and  optimised 
use of forest feedstock

1.  AgroCop  -  Maximizing  Timber  and  Energy 
Wood Production by Innovative Agroforestry 
Systems  with  Short  Rotation  Coppice 
as 
Forstliche 
Versuchs-  und  Forschungsanstalt  Baden-
Württemberg 
(Germany).  Participating 
countries: Germany, France, Ireland, Italy 

Intercrop.  Coordinator: 

2.  BIOFOAMBARK 

- 

Valorization 
Bark 
insulating  Foams  and  Bioenergy. 
into 
Coordinator: Institute for Forest Utilization 
and Works Science and Freiburg Materials 
Research 
(Germany). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Finland, 
Slovenia, France, Spain, Italy

Center 

(FMF) 

3.  COOL - COMPETING USES OF FOREST LAND 
– The future of integrative and segregative 
policy and forest management approaches 
in  Europe.  Coordinator:  Institute  of  Forest 
and  Environmental  Policy 
(Germany). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  Finland, 
Slovenia, Spain, Norway

4.  RegioPower - A regional IT-based platform 
for bringing resource needs and land-based 
resource  production  together.  Coordinator: 
Rheinische  Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität 
Bonn  (Germany).  Participating  countries: 
Germany,  Sweden,  Finland,  Slovenia, 
associated partner in China

5.  WOP – WoodSupply. Coordinator: University 
of Helsinki (Finland). Participating countries: 
Finland, Sweden, Germany

Area 2. Advanced products and technologies for 
primary wood processing and manufacturing of 
wood and fibre-based products

6.  Cell-Assembly 

Self-Assembled 
- 
Biomimetic Wood-Based Nanocomposites. 
University/Physics 
Coordinator: 
(Finland).  Participating  countries:  Finland, 
Sweden, Germany 

Aalto 

162

FP7 ERA-NET Plus 
Actions

European Reseach Area Networks
of the 7th Framework Programme

BESTF 1

BioEnergy Sustaining the Future

PROJECT DETAILS

Objective

Period

From 
To     

2013-01-01
2017-12-31 (Expected) 

Follow-on ERA-NET

BESTF2

Project reference

321477

Programme 
acronym

Topic identifier

BESTF

ENERGY.2012.10.1.1: ERA-NET_Plus – 
Bioenergy Demonstrations of the European 
Industrial Bioenergy initiative

Title

Bioenergy Sustaining the Future

Contract type 

Coordination and Support Actions ERANET Plus

Total cost
EU contribution

€  46 000 000
€  15 000 000

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

10

Technology Strategy Board TSB, United 
Kingdom

Megan Cooper
T +44 300 0686298
E megan.cooper@decc.gsi.gov.uk

www.eranetbestf.net

CH
DE
DK
ES

FI
PT
SE
UK
UK
UK

Federal Office of Energy SFOE-DETEC
Agency for Renewable Resources FNR
Energy Development and Demonstration Programme EUDP
Department of Economy, Finance, Industry and Employment 
of Navarra DEHIE
Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation TEKES
Foundation for Science and Technology FCT
Swedish Energy Agency SWEA
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council BBSRC
Department of Energy and Climate Change DECC
Technology Strategy Board TSB

projects 

This  proposal  directly  addresses  the  goals  of 
the  Energy  2012.10.1.1  ERA-NET  Plus  call  by 
implementing a joint programme for bioenergy 
demonstrate 
demonstration 
enhanced bioenergy technologies that will help 
Europe  progress  towards  achieving  its  2016 
and 2020 targets. It will leverage public-private 
partnerships to manage the risks and share the 
financing of close to market bioenergy projects. 

to 

The key objectives of this BESTF initiative are:

•	

•	

•	

•	

implement  a  single  collaborative 
To 
funding  call  that  will  support  projects 
focused on the generation of bioenergy. 

To  maintain  and  enhance  coherence  and 
networking  between  national  bioenergy 
programmes across the EU.

To further the demonstration of enhanced 
bioenergy  technologies  in  order  to  help 
develop  robust  project  plans  for  a  range 
of  demonstrator and  flagship  plants, that 
will help Europe to make progress towards 
achieving  its  2016  and  2020  energy 
targets. 

To disseminate knowledge gained from the 
programme and individual projects across 
the EU. 

Consortium

consists  of  10 
The  BESTF 
organisations from eight EU Member States and 

consortium 

164164

bioenergy 

innovative 

•	 New  pilot  or  prototype  demonstrations 
of 
conversion 
technologies, covering one or several of the 
seven value chains and including analysis 
and  evaluation  of  results,  plus  strategies 
(and proposals) for further optimisation to 
achieve commercial deployment.

levels 

financial 
BESTF  will  complement  existing 
measures  available  to  industry  and  support 
projects that have progressed to high technology 
readiness 
  see:  Technology 
(TRLs; 
Readiness Levels: A White Paper. April 6, 1995 
John  C.  Mankins  Advanced  Concepts  Office 
Office  of  Space  Access  and  Technology  NASA) 
but  still  require  a  level  of  public  and  private 
financial  support  to  enable  their  industrial 
implementation. Relevant examples of financial 
support  for  industry  include  NER300  funding; 
European 
(EIB)  financial 
products; Private venture capital funds. 

Investment  Bank 

Joint call 

A joint call was launched in January 2013 and 
closed  on  27th  March  2013.  Assessment  of 
proposals will be complete by November 2013.

Associated Countries, including the UK, Denmark, 
Finland, Germany, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and 
Switzerland.

Mapping and scoping activities 

The  BESTF  programme  will  support  bioenergy 
demonstration projects that:

Address one or more of the seven EIBI bioenergy 
value chains detailed above;
Provide an innovative process or step within the 
value chain (see detail below); 
Are at an appropriate stage of development (see 
detail  on  TRLs  below),  and  will  be  in  or  move 
into demonstration phase within the timeframe 
of the project;
Are  industry-led  and  will  lead  to  commercial 
scale application. 

Such projects may include:

•	

Technological  modifications  of  existing 
and tested demonstration plants, if these 
modifications  serve  to  realise  processes 
which  differ  significantly  from  the  past 
operations. 

165

BESTF 2
(under negotiation)

BioEnergy Sustaining the Future 2

PROJECT DETAILS

Objective

Period

From
To     

2013-12-01 (Expected)
2018-11-30 (Expected)  

Project reference

Programme 
acronym

618046

BESTF2

Topic identifier

ENERGY 2013.10.1.1: ERA-NET Plus

Title

Bioenergy Sustaining the Future 2

Contract type 

Coordination and Support Actions ERANET Plus

Total cost
EU contribution

€  22 089 552
€    7 289 552

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

8

The Department of Energy and Climate 
Change DECC, United Kingdom

Megan Cooper
T +44 300 0686298
E megan.cooper@decc.gsi.gov.uk

www.eranetbestf.net

CH
DE
DK
NL
SE
UK
UK
UK

Federal Office of Energy SFOE-DETEC
Agency for Renewable Resources FNR
Energy Development and Demonstration Programme EUDP
Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ
Swedish Energy Agency SWEA
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council BBSRC
Department of Energy and Climate Change DECC
Technology Strategy Board TSB

projects 

This  proposal  directly  addresses  the  goals  of 
the  Energy  2013.10.1.1  ERA-NET  Plus  call  by 
implementing a joint programme for bioenergy 
demonstrate 
demonstration 
enhanced bioenergy technologies that will help 
Europe  progress  towards  achieving  its  2016 
and 2020 targets. It will leverage public-private 
partnerships to manage the risks and share the 
financing of close to market bioenergy projects. 

to 

The key objectives of this second BESTF initiative 
are:

•	

•	

•	

•	

To 
implement  a  single  collaborative 
funding  call  that  will  support  projects 
focused on the generation of bioenergy. 

To  maintain  and  enhance  coherence  and 
networking  between  national  bioenergy 
programmes across the EU.

To further the demonstration of enhanced 
bioenergy  technologies  in  order  to  help 
develop  robust  project  plans  for  a  range 
of  demonstrator and  flagship  plants, that 
will help Europe to make progress towards 
achieving  its  2016  and  2020  energy 
targets. 

To disseminate knowledge gained from the 
programme and individual projects across 
the EU. 

166166

Consoritium

The  BESTF2  consortium  consists  of  eight 
organisations from six countries.

bioenergy 

innovative 

conversion 
of 
technologies, covering one or several of the 
seven value chains and including analysis 
and  evaluation  of  results,  plus  strategies 
(and proposals) for further optimisation to 
achieve commercial deployment.

Mapping and scoping activities 

The BESTF2 programme will support bioenergy 
demonstration projects that:

•	 Address  one  or  more  of  the  seven  EIBI 
bioenergy value chains detailed above;

•	 Provide  an  innovative  process  or  step 
within the value chain (see detail below); 

•	 Are at an appropriate stage of development 
(see detail on TRLs below), and will be in or 
move into demonstration phase within the 
timeframe of the project;

•	 Are industry-led and will lead to commercial 

scale application. 

Such projects may include:

levels 

BESTF2  will  complement  existing  financial 
measures  available  to  industry  and  support 
projects that have progressed to high technology 
readiness 
see:  Technology 
(TRLs; 
Readiness Levels: A White Paper. April 6, 1995 
John  C.  Mankins  Advanced  Concepts  Office 
Office  of  Space  Access  and  Technology  NASA) 
but  still  require  a  level  of  public  and  private 
financial  support  to  enable  their  industrial 
implementation. 

Relevant  examples  of  financial  support  for 
industry include:

•	

•	

•	

NER300 funding; 

European  Investment  Bank  (EIB)  financial 
products; 

Private venture capital funds. 

•	

Technological  modifications  of  existing 
and tested demonstration plants, if these 
modifications  serve  to  realise  processes 
which  differ  significantly  from  the  past 
operations. 

•	

New  pilot  or  prototype  demonstrations 

Joint call 

A  single  joint  call  will  be  launched  within  six 
months  of  the  start  of  the  project,  and  is 
anticipated to be by Winter 2013.

167

CORE Organic Plus

Innovative solutions in organic food 
and agriculture for next generation 
of food systems seeking synergies 
between rural development, natural 
resource management and food 
security and quality ERA-NET Plus

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2013-12-01
2018-11-30  

Project reference

618107

Programme 
acronym

FP7-KBBE

Topic identifier

KBBE.2013.1.4-06

Title

Contract type 

Total cost
EU contribution

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

Coordination of European Transnational 
Research in Organic Food and Farming 
Systems Plus

ERA-NET Plus

€  9 090 909
€  3 000 000

23

International Centre for Research in Organic 
Food Systems ICROFS-AU, Denmark

Niels Halberg (coordination)
Ulla Sonne Bertelsen (project management)
T +45 87 15 77 16
E Ulla.Bertelsen@icrofs.org

www.coreorganic.org

AT

BE
BE

CH
DE

DE
DK
DK

EE

ES

FI
FR
FR
IT
LT
LV
NL
NO
PL
RO

SE

SI
TR
UK

Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water 
Management BMLFUW
Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Flemish Authorities DLV
Walloon Agricultural Research Centre CRA-W

Federal Office for Agriculture FOAG
Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection 
BMELV
Federal Agency of Agriculture and Food BLE
International Centre for Research in Organic Food Systems ICROFS
Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries - Danish Food Industry 
Agency DAFA
Ministry of Agriculture of Estonia PMin

National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food Research 
INIA
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 
Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry MAAF
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA
Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF
Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Lithuania ZUM
Latvian State Institute of Agrarian Economics LSIAE
Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ
Research Council of Norway RCN
National Centre for Research and Development  NCBiR
Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development 
and Innovation Funding UEFISCDI
Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences 
and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Ministry of Agriculture and the Environment MKO
Ministry of Food Agriculture and Livestock MoFAL
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs DEFRA

Objective

The overall objective of the CORE Organic (CO) 
Plus is to efficiently fund transnational research 
addressing major potentials and challenges for 
the  development  of  organic  food  and  farming 
and  the  industry’s  capacity  to  contribute  to 
solving important societal challenges.

research, 

In many European countries organic agriculture 
has  grown  out  of  a  niche  and  become  an 
important  part  of  agricultural  production  and 
consumption.  This  development  has  happened 
and  is  still  in  process  as  a  consequence  of 
interest  and  political 
increasing  consumer 
support;  assisted  by 
innovation 
and  extension  dedicated  to  organic  food  and 
farming. A major reason for this is, that organic 
agriculture  addresses 
important  challenges 
such  as  sustainable  production  of  high  quality 
food,  reducing  dependency  on  high  energy 
inputs,  improving  environmental  and  nature 
conservation, climate change adaptation, animal 
welfare  and  rural  livelihoods.  Evidence  from 
research and practice can pave the way for the 
organic sector to become a major and important 
example of sustainable and productive food and 
farming systems.

CO  seeks  to  tackle  these  challenges  by 
supporting  organic  food  and  farming  systems 
in  a  trans  disciplinary  and  holistic  approach  by 
creating sufficient volume in funding for a joint 
transnational  call  and  so  allowing  research  of 
high value and significance considering topics of 
transnational character. These topics have been 

168168

explored  during  COII  taking  into  consideration 
national 
research  needs  and  transnational 
research gaps. 

Thus,  the  main  aim  of  this  transnational 
cooperation  and  joint  call  is  to  improve  the 
knowledge  basis  and 
innovation  capacity 
necessary for supporting the next development 
phase  of  organic  food  and  farming  as  a  tool 
to  answer  to  significant  societal  challenges  in 
Europe’s agriculture and food systems. 

from  ERA-NET 

The process will build on experiences from the 
two  previous  CO  ERA-NETs  and  on  knowledge 
gained 
related  meetings 
and  workshops.  Furthermore  a  call  process 
evaluation performed within COII will contribute 
to further improve the call process.

CO Plus will involve the technology platform “TP 
Organics” in several activities and foster relations 
with national and transnational stakeholders.

Initiating projects on topics identified as common 
priorities while encouraging the participation of 
SMEs  and  facilitating  the  integration  of  new 
forms  of  knowledge  generation, 
innovation 
and  dissemination  in  the  project  designs  will 
allow  the  sector  to  better  meet  the  demand 
for organic food and products and at the same 
time further develop the practices in accordance 
with  the  organic  principles.  This  will  contribute 
to sustainable development  in  food  production 
and  improve  the  general  competitiveness  of 
the  European  agriculture  and  present  new  and 
innovative solutions to environmentally friendly 
agriculture  with  a  high  level  of  animal  health 
and welfare. 

Consortium

The CO Plus consortium consists of 23 partners 
from 19 countries. 

Mapping and scoping activities

Co  Plus  will  set  focus  on  monitoring  and 
dissemination  activities  within  the  research 
projects,  to  maximise  the  use  of  the  results 
from the transnational research and achieve the 
highest possible impact of the research results 
within  the  organic  sector  and  the  agricultural 
sector  as  such.  Different  tools  like  continuous 
newsletters  with  research  results,  mandatory 
use of the open access archive Organic Eprints 
and  identified  national  knowledge  hubs  for 
dissemination will support these efforts.

On  basis  of  the  current  research  activities 
and  results,  and  national,  transnational  and 
stakeholders research priorities, further research 
needs for a future call will be identified.

Joint call

A  joint  call  for  transnational  research  and 
innovation  in  organic  food  and  farming  is 
scheduled at the beginning of CO Plus. The call 
will  comprise  four  different  thematic  research 
areas with several sub-topics.

The call will allow for a focused and coordinated 
research  and  innovation  effort  covering  the 
most important and pertinent challenges along 
the  organic  value  chains  and  -  where  relevant 
-  combine  research  and  innovation  in  primary 
production  with  development  in  processing 
techniques,  value  adding  and  market  and 
consumer research.

169

 
PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To       

2008-10-01
2013-06-30

Project reference

235447

Programme 
acronym

FP7-COORDINATION

Topic identifier

ERANET.2008.2

Title

ERA-NET Plus proposals of a horizontal nature

Contract type 

ERA-NET Plus

Total cost
EU contribution

€  24 033 837
€    5 500 000

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

11

Jülich Research Centre JUELICH, Germany

Bernhard Gilleßen
E b.gillessen@fz-juelich.de

www.erasysbio.net

AT
DE
DE
ES
FI
FR
IL
LU
NL

SI
UK

Federal Ministry of Science and Research BMWF
Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH
Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness MINECO
Academy of Finland AKA
National Agency for Research ANR
Israel Science Foundation ISF
National Research Fund FNR
The Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and 
Development ZonMw
Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport MESCS
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council BBSRC

ERASysBio+ 

The consolidation of systems 
biology research stimulating the 
widespread adoption of systems 
approaches in biomedicine, 
biotechnology, and agri-food

Objective

Systems  biology  is  still  considered  a  young 
discipline in the field of life sciences. It integrates 
mathematics,  chemistry,  physics,  informatics, 
in  biological 
engineering  and  other  fields 
research.  The  fragmentation  of  the  discipline 
concerns all levels of the field:

•	

•	

•	

researchers  with  a  new 
It  confronts 
combination of knowledge, methods, skills 
and expertise from different disciplines.

It  challenges  funders  overcome  obstacles 
hindering  cross  organisational  funding  - 
across national borders.

It dares policymakers set goals outside the 
limits of preconceived structures.

It is the interdisciplinary that makes collaboration 
imperative  -  on  all 
levels.  Therefore  the 
ERASysBio+ partners firmly believe that systems 
biology  offers  the  ideal  vehicle  to  implement 
pan-European collaboration in order to overcome 
the  still  success  limiting  fragmentation  within 
systems biology. The aim of this proposal is to 
implement  a  large  transnational  call  enabling 
transnational,  collaborative  research  projects 
in  systems  biology 
research.  The  funding 
organisations  represented  by  this  consortium 
are aiming to:

•	

jointly  pave  the  way  for  systems  biology 
research to interact outside the boundaries 
set by national regulations,

•	 widen the landscape beyond that of well-
established  groups  and  contribute  to 
integrating groups from regions where the 

170170

systems approach and its funding are only 
just emerging.

in this call. Research focused on microorganisms 
has to be clearly distinctive from research fields 
funded under the SysMO initiative of ERASysBio.

instrument 

The  ERA-NET-Plus 
is  the  only 
instrument to effectively combine national and 
European funding efforts in an efforts in a joint 
funding  measure  achieve  the  abovementioned 
ambitious goals.

Consortium

The  ERASysBio+  consortium  consists  of  11 
partners form 10 different countries.

Joint call

The ERA-NET Plus ERASysBio+ is the 2nd Joint 
Call of the ERA-NET ERASysBio. Its topic is “The 
consolidation  of  systems  biology  research  - 
stimulating the widespread adoption of systems 
approaches  in  biotechnology,  biomedicine  and 
agri-food”.  The  call  has  been  launched  on  15-
10-2008 with a budget of  EUR 24 million. The 
consortia  have  taken  up  work  in  March  2010 
and the last research projects will end on 2013-
08-31.

The  main  purpose  of  the  call  is  to  generate 
transnational  collaborations  for  research  and 
development  on  Systems  Biology  in  Europe. 
Application  to  the  call  has  been  open  to 
joint  transnational  research  proposals  with 
a  maximum  of  seven  participants  from  a 
minimum  of  two  ERASysBio+  partner  countries 
(Austria, Germany, Spain, Finland, France, Israel, 
Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Slovenia, United 
Kingdom).

The  aim  of  the  call  is  to  enable  transnational, 
in  Systems 
research  projects 
collaborative 
Biology research involving the quantitative and 
integrative understanding of dynamic biological 
processes.  All  16  research  projects  involve 
interdisciplinary  studies  that  combine  applied 
mathematics and/or statistics with experimental 
data to create and validate appropriate models. 
All  aspects  of  biotechnology,  biomedicine  and 
agri-food  from  molecular  systems,  to  cells, 
organs, up to whole organisms were considered 

171

coordinators, 

data  management 
Project 
representatives, the scientific advisory board and 
the funding partners met on 17th-18th of May 
2010 in Paris for the kick-off meeting. Following 
1.5 years of scientific work, the next joint event 
took place on 13th -15th of September 2011 in 
Vienna. The scope of this mid-term meeting was 
to evaluate the progress of the projects on the 
basis of talks and posters. A final meeting took 
place on 26th-27th June 2013 in Berlin.

Projects funded:

1.  FRIM 

-  FRuit 

Integrative  Modelling. 
Coordinator: 
(France). 
Participating  countries:  France,  United 
Kingdom, Germany, South Africa

INRA-Bordeaux 

2.  LINCONET - Modelling the Gene Regulatory 
Network  underlying  Lineage  Commitment 
in  Human  Mesenchymal  Stem  Cells: 
Identification  of  Drug  Targets  for  the 
Anabolic  Treatment  of  Degenerative 
Disorders.  Coordinator:  FNWI  Radboud 
University  Nijmegen  (The  Netherlands). 
Participating  countries:  The  Netherlands, 
United Kingdom, Germany

3.  BioModUE_PTL  -  Biophysical  Modelling 
of 
for 
the  Uterine  Electromyogram 
understanding  and  preventing  PreTerm 
de 
Coordinator: 
Labor. 
(France). 
Technologie  de  Compiègne 
Participating 
The 
Netherlands, Slovenia, Iceland

Université 

countries: 

France, 

the  dynamics  of 

4.  Zebrain  -  Understanding  decision  making 
large  neural 
from 
populations 
fish. 
Coordinator:  Instituto  Cajal,  CSIC  (Spain). 
Participating  countries:  Spain,  France, 
Germany, Israel

in  behaving  zebra 

biology 

through 

5.  SYNERGY  -  Systems  approach  to  gene 
regulation 
nuclear 
receptors.  Coordinator:  University  of 
Helsinki  (Finland).  Participating  countries: 
Finland, The Netherlands, United Kingdom, 
Germany

6.  SynProt  -  A  Systems  Biological  Approach 
to  Elucidate  Local  Protein  Synthesis  Code 

stress  based  on  data  generated  from  in 
vitro  differentiated  hepatocytes  derived 
from  patient-specific  human  iPS  cells. 
Coordinator:  MPI  for  Molecular  Genetics 
countries: 
Participating 
(Germany). 
Germany; Austria

13. EpiGenSys 

- 

System 

Biological 
Determination of the Epigenomic Structure-
Function  Relation.  Coordinator:  Erasmus 
University  Rotterdam  (The  Netherlands). 
Participating  countries:  The  Netherlands, 
United Kingdom, Germany

14. GRAPPLE  -  Iterative  modelling  of  gene 
regulatory 
underlying 
interactions 
stress,  disease  and  ageing  in  C.  elegans. 
Coordinator: University of Liverpool (United 
Kingdom).  Participating  countries:  United 
Kingdom, Spain, The Netherlands, France

15. ApoNET  -  Systems  Analysis  of  TNF  and 
TRAIL Signalling Pathways in Hepatocytes. 
Coordinator:  University  of  Heidelberg 
(Germany). 
countries: 
Participating 
Germany, United Kingdom

16. TB-HOST-NET 

- 

Integration 

of 
computational modelling with transcription 
and  gene  essentiality  profiling  of  both 
MTB bacillus and infected human dendritic 
cells  and  macrophages  to  understand 
molecular interaction networks involved in 
the host-pathogen cross-talk. Coordinator: 
University  of  Surrey  (United  Kingdom). 
Participating  countries:  United  Kingdom, 
France, Germany, Italy

in  Plasticity  and  Memory.  Coordinator: 
University  of  Haifa  (Israel).  Participating 
countries: Israel, United Kingdom, Norway

regulatory  networks 

7.  LymphoSys  -  Signalling  pathways  and 
gene 
responsible 
for  Th17  cell  differentiation.  Coordinator: 
University  of  Turku  (Finland).  Participating 
countries:  Finland,  United  Kingdom,  The 
Netherlands

endocytic 

8.  SHIPREC  -  Living  with  uninvited  guests 
comparing  plant  and  animal  responses 
invasions.  Coordinator: 
to 
Research  Centre  Jülich  GmbH  (Germany). 
Participating  countries:  Germany,  France, 
United Kingdom, Spain

9.  ModHeart - Modelling the genetic network 
controlling  heart  development  using  the 
model organism Drosophila melanogaster. 
Biology 
Coordinator: 
Developmental 
(France). 
Institute  of  Marseille-Luminy 
Participating  countries:  France,  Germany, 
Spain

10. C5Sys  -  Circadian  and  cell  cycle  clock 
systems  in  cancer.  Coordinator:  INSERM 
and  University  Paris  Sud  11  (France). 
Participating 
The 
countries: 
Netherlands, United Kingdom

France, 

11. iSAM - Integrative Systems Analysis of the 
Shoot Apical Meristem. Coordinator: Cardiff 
University  (United  Kingdom).  Participating 
countries: United Kingdom, France, Finland

12. livSYSiP - The systems biology of network 

172

FACCE-ERA-NET+
(under negotiation)

Food security, Agriculture, Climate 
Change ERA-NET plus

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2013-10-01
2018-09-30  

Project reference

not yet available

Programme 
acronym

FACCE-ERA-NET Plus

Topic identifier

KBBE.2013.1.4-05

Title

Climate smart Agriculture: adaptation of 
agricultural systems in Europe ERA-NET Plus

Contract type 

Coordination (or Networking) Action

Total cost
EU contribution

€  16 000 000
€    4 000 000

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

23

French National Institute for Agricultural 
Research INRA, France

Isabelle Albouy
T +33-1-42-75-94-42   
E isabelle.albouy@paris.inra.fr

www.faccejpi.com

BE
CH

CY
CZ
DE
DE

DE
DE
DK

EE
ES

FI
FI
FR
FR
IE
IL
IT
NL
NO
RO

SE

UK

Public Service of Wallonia SPW
Swiss National Science Foundation SNSF

Research Promotion Foundation RPF
Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic MZE
Federal Agency of Agriculture and Food BLE
Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection 
BMELV
Jülich Research Centre JUELICH
Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF
Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation – Danish 
Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation DASTI
Ministry of Agriculture EVPM
National Institute for Agriculture, Technology and Food 
Research INIA
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 
Academy of Finland AKA
National Agency for Research ANR
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA
Agriculture and Food Development Authority TEAGASC
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MOARD
Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies MiPAAF
Ministry of Economic Affairs EZ
Research Council of Norway RCN
Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development 
and Innovation Funding UEFISCDI
Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural 
Sciences and Spatial Planning FORMAS
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council BBSRC

Objective

The overall aim of the FACCE-ERA-NET+ action 
is to allow the 18 Member and Associated State 
partners to successfully implement a Joint Call 
on  Climate  Smart  Agriculture  as  part  of  the 
FACCE-JPI  action  strategy  detailed  in  the  SRA 
thus further increasing the level of coordination 
between
European research funding bodies in the area of 
Agriculture,  Food  Security  and  Climate  Change. 
This will contribute to the strategic objective of 
the  JPI  which  is  to  build  a  European  Research 
Area in the domain of agriculture, food security 
and climate change as well as to the scientific 
objective of enhancing resilience in agricultural 
production  systems.  In  turn,  this  will  contribute 
to  tackling  the  societal  challenge  of  ensuring 
food security in the face of climate change.

Specifically, this ERA-NET Plus action will:

•	

Enhance  operational  coordination  of  RTD 
public funding in Europe by implementing 
a  transnational  joint  call,  thus  improving 
coordination  and 
reducing  overlapping 
between national and EU funding;

•	 Contribute  to  the  ERA  by  aligning  23 

national research programmes;

•	 Contribute  to  achieving  critical  mass  and 
ensuring better use of limited resources in 
the area of adaptation to climate change;

•	 Contribute  to  delivery  of  the  FACCE  – 
JPI  SRA  by  setting  up  a  joint  call  on 
one  of  five  core  themes  (adaptation  to 
climate  change)  through  new  knowledge 

173173

generation and innovation;

Consortium

•	 Provide  a  leverage  effect  on  national 
financial 
the 
contributions 
participation of the EC (adding 33% to the 
call budget);

through 

•	 Contribute  to  addressing  the  societal 
challenge  of  sustainable  agriculture  and 
food security in the face of climate change 
through more resilient production systems;

•	 Contribute to research for devising resilient 
and  eco-efficient  crop  and 
livestock 
systems  while  ensuring  conservation  of 
soil,  water  and  genetic  resources  and 
taking 
socio-economic 
aspects of adaptation;

into  account 

•	

Through innovative research, contribute to 
technological  advances  for  climate  smart 
agriculture  –  eco-technologies  to  adapt 
water  management  by  improved  water 
harvesting, increased water use efficiency 
and  efficient  fertilisation  practices,  to 
monitor  and 
reduce  greenhouse  gas, 
to  increase  and  verify  soil  and  biomass 
carbon stocks;

•	 Contribute  to  the  experience  of  the  JPI  in 
setting  up  fast,  easy  and  simple  ways  to 
set  up  transnational  projects  to  improve 
in  the  possible 
future  calls 
context of an Article185 action by sharing 
good  practices  in  implementing  research 
programmes.

including 

The FACCE-ERA-NET+ consortium consists of 23 
partners from 18 countries.

Mapping and scoping activities

Extensive  mapping  of  each  of  FACCE-JPI’s  five 
core themes has been carried out under FACCE 
CSA including the core theme on adaptation to 
climate change and therefore is not foreseen in 
the context of this ERA-NET Plus. 

Joint call

One joint call addresses adaptation of European 
agriculture  to  climate  change  to  be  launched 
in  October  2013.  The  focus  areas  include  the 
following:

•	 Genetics & Breeding of animals and plants 
to increase resilience to climate change

•	 Pests  &  diseases  linked  to  climate  and 

posing significant risks

•	 Adaptive  management  of  water  and  soil 

resources

•	 Options for adapting agricultural systems, 
livestock  and  mixed 

including  crop, 
systems, as well as horticultural systems.

174

WOODWISDOM-NET+ 

Innovation in the forest-based 
sector for increasing resource 
efficiency and tackling climate 
change with competitive customer 
solutions

PROJECT DETAILS

Period

From
To     

2012-11-15
2017-11-14

Project reference

NMP2-ER-2012-321573

Programme 
acronym

FP7-ERANET-2012-RTD

Topic identifier

KBBE.2012.1.2-08 / NMP.2012.4.0

Title

ERA-NET Plus on Innovation in the forest-
based sector for increasing resource efficiency 
and tackling climate change with competitive 
customer solutions

Contract type 

ERA-NET Plus

Total cost
EU contribution

€  24 242 425
€  8 000 000 maximum

Number of 
participants

Coordinator

Contact person

Website

Participants

20

Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and 
Innovation TEKES, Finland

Ilmari Absetz
T +358 2950 55837
E ilmari.absetz@tekes.fi
Mika Kallio
E mika.kallio@woodwisdom.net

www.woodwisdom.net

AT

CH

CH

DE
FI
FI
FI
FR
FR

FR
FR
IE

LV
LV
NO
SE
SE

SI
SK

UK

Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and 
Water Management BMLFUW
Federal Department of Economic Affairs FDEA  - Commission 
for Technology and Innovation KTI  
Federal Department for Environment, Transports, Energy and 
Communication BAFU

Agency for Renewable Resources FNR
Academy of Finland AKA
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry MMM 
Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation TEKES
Ministry of Agriculture, Food, Fisheries and Rural Affairs MAA
Technological Institute for Forest Cellulose, Construction-wood 
and Furniture FCBA
French National Institute for Agricultural Research INRA
French Environment and Energy Management Agency ADEME
Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine DAFM-
COFORD
Latvian Academy of Sciences LAS
Ministry of Agriculture Republic of Latvia ZM
Research Council of Norway RCN
Swedish Energy Agency SWEA
Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems 
VINNOVA
Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport MESCS
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Slovak 
Republic MPRV SR
Forestry Commissioners FC

Objective

The overall objective of the WoodWisdom-Net+ 
is to support the transformation of the European 
F-BI  and  sustainable  forest  management  for 
increasing  resource  efficiency  and  adapting 
to  and  mitigating  climate  change  effects.  This 
will  be  achieved  by  integrating  knowledge  and 
technologies  of  large-scale  industrial  products 
and processes, as well as primary production.
The aim is to plan a single joint call for proposals 
for research, development and innovation in the 
forest sector with a clear financial commitment 
from  the  participating  national  (or  regional) 
research programmes and the EU. The estimated 
total funding volume of the joint call is expected 
to ca. EUR 30 million (share of industry funding 
EUR 5-10 million).
The  main  approach  in  the  WW-Net+  is  the 
substitution  of  non-renewable  resources  (e.g. 
materials  or  fossil  fuels),  by  renewable  forest-
based solutions to reduce carbon emissions and 
waste.  The  joint  transnational  call  will  address 
the  whole  forest-based  value  chain  in  four 
areas. These are: the sustainable management 
of  forest  resources  through;  their  efficient 
utilisation  in  industrial  processes  to;    value 
added  products  and  competitive  customer 
solutions. The exact scope will be defined during 
the project.
WW-Net+  will  base  its  research,  development 
and 
the 
innovation  funding  activities  on 
processes  and  experience  developed  during 
the  preceding  ERA-NETs  towards  streamlined 
and  efficient  processes.  The  preceding  ERA-
and 
NETs  WoodWisdom-Net 

(2004-08) 

175175

initiative 

intended 

to 
industry, 

transnational  WoodWisdom-Net 
Research 
Programme is to support the total transformation 
of  the  European  F-BI  and  sustainable  forest 
management  to  enable  it  to  increase  resource 
efficiency  and  develop  a  totally  new  products 
scope,  while  adapting  to  and  mitigating  the 
impacts of climate change.
The main approach in WoodWisdom-Net+ is the 
substitution  of  non-renewable  resources  (e.g. 
materials  or  fossil  fuels),  by  renewable  forest-
based solutions to reduce carbon emissions and 
waste.  The  joint  transnational  call  will  address 
all forest-based value chains in four areas. These 
are:  1)  the  sustainable  management  of  forest 
resources through 2) their efficient utilisation in 
industrial processes to 3) value added products 
and 4) competitive customer solutions. 
facilitate 
is 
The 
collaboration 
SMEs, 
between 
stakeholder associations, research organisations, 
leading-edge scientists from the wider range of 
disciplines covering wood material, construction, 
natural,  biological,  social,  economic  and  other 
relevant  sciences  that  will  bring  their  broad 
expertise  to  support  the  transformation  of  the 
European  forest-based  sector  and  to  secure 
its  competitiveness.  Importantly,  the  call  will 
also  aim  to  encourage  and  make  best  use 
of  interdisciplinary,  systems  approaches,  and 
improve  the  impact  and  integration  of  social 
research and economics in this area. 
The  funding  organisations  are  particularly 
keen  to  encourage  innovative  transnational 
proposals  from  multidisciplinary  groups  of 
researchers  with  optimal  combinations  of 
expertise  and  experience  (e.g.  including  early 
stage researchers and staff exchange between 
partners)  to  address  the  call  topic  areas.  The 
participation  of  commercial  and  industrial  and 
or  other  stakeholders  –  especially  small  and 
medium-sized  enterprises  (SMEs)  –  is  strongly 
recommended  to  ensure  the  relevance  of  the 
research  to  technological  development  and  to 
the needs of society.

form 

the 
WoodWisdom-Net  2 
(2009-12) 
Research 
transnational  WoodWisdom-Net 
Programme 
(total  funding  volume  of  the 
launched  three  calls  ca.  EUR  50  million)  which 
provides the planned ERA-NET Plus Action with 
a  solid  foundation.  Looking  to  the  future,  the 
WW-Net+ will continue to improve the delivery 
of  joint  activities  and  has  ambitious  goals  for 
funding  transnational  research  and  offering 
access to the resources of other countries.

Consortium

The WoodWisdom-Net+ consists of 20 partners 
from 12 different countries.

Mapping and scoping activities

While  the  ERA-NET  scheme  supports  the 
coordination  of  the  launch  of  joint  calls  for 
proposals,  ERA-NET  Plus  focuses  on  funding 
of  the  actual  R&D-activities.  Furthermore, 
extensive  mapping  has  been  carried  out  under 
WoodWisdom-Net and WoodWisdom-Net 2 and 
therefore  is  not  foreseen  in  the  context  of  this 
ERA-NET Plus.

Joint call

Fourth call 2013-2016

Joint  Call  2013-2016  -  The  4th  Joint  Call 
for  Proposals  within  the  WoodWisdom-Net 
Research Programme 

The  WoodWisdom-Net  Research  Programme 
announced  in  February  2013  its  fourth  call  for 
joint European research projects. The indicative 
total  available  budget  amounts  to  EUR  24 
million (national public funding including EC top-
up funding of eight million euros). The total call 
volume  with  industrial  co-funding  is  estimated 
to be up to ca. EUR 30 million. 
The  overarching  aim  of  this  4th  call  under  the 

176

Annexes

Annex 1  

FP6 and FP7 ERA-NET Actions per Theme

In total 71 ERA-NETs have been funded under FP6. Of the initial FP6 contracts 31 have received or 
currently receive further funding for coordinating their activities under FP7. A total of 51 ERA-NETs 
will have started under FP7 on topics that were not covered formerly. Under FP7 a total of 82 ERA-
NETs and 23 ERA-NET Plus actions are funded or expected to be funded.

ERA-NET and ERA-NET Plus Actions per Theme under FP6 and FP7.

FP6

FP6/7

FP7

Theme

Energy

Environment

Fundamental 
Sciences

Health

ICT

INCO

BIOENERGY
FENCO-ERA
HY-CO
INNER
PV-ERA-NET

AMPERA
BONUS
BIODIVERSA
CIRCLE
COASTAL-ERA
CRUE
ECORD
EUROPOLAR
IWRM.Net
MARINERA
NET-BIOME
SNOWMAN
SPLASH EUWI ERA-
NET
SKEP

ASPERA
ASTRONET
ERA-CHEMISTRY
Complexity-NET
NanoSci-ERA

ALLIANCE-0
CoCanCPG
ERA-AGE
E-RARE
ERANANOMED
HESCULAEP
NEURON
NEW-OSH-ERA
PRIOMEDCHILD
PathoGenoMics

CO-REACH
EULANEST
SEE-ERANET

FP7+

BESTF
BESTF2

BONUS+
HERITAGE PLUS

PV-ERA-NET 2

Geothermal ERA-NET
SOLAR-ERA.NET
SmartGrids

BIODIVERSA 2
CIRCLE-2

ECO-INNOVERA
ERA-ENVHEALTH
NET-HERITAGE
OCEANERA-NET
SEAS-ERA

ASPERA 2

E-RARE 2
ERA-AGE 2
NEURON 2
ERANANOMED 2

EUROCOURSE
HIVERA
Infect-ERA
TRANSCAN

BiophotonicsPlus
OLEA+
PIANO+

ERA.Net RUS Plus
SEE-ERA.NET Plus

CHIST-ERA
CHIST-ERA 2
DC-NET
SEERA-EI

BS-ERA.NET
CONCERT-Japan
ERANet-LAC
ERANETMED
ERA.Net RUS
INNO INDIGO
KORANET
NEW Indogo

178

CORNET 2
EraSME 2
MANUNET 2
MNT-ERA.NET 2
WOODWISDOMNET2

CAPITA
CROSSTEXNET
ERACOBUILD
ERA-MIN
ETB-PRO
INCOMERA
LEAD ERA
M-ERA.NET
SAFERA
SIINN

iMERA-Plus
MATERA+
NanoSci-E PLUS
WOODWISDOMNET+

Industrial 
Technologies /  
SMEs

Infrastructures

KBBE

AERTOs
COMPERA
CORNET
EraSME
ERA-SPOT
ERABUILD
eTRANET
EUROTRANSBIO
EURYI
iMERA
MANUNET
MATERA
MNT-ERA.NET
SUSPRISE
VISION
WORK-IN-NET
WOODWISDOMNET

ACENET
CORE ORGANIC
ERA-ARD
ERA-IB
ERA-PG
ERASYSBIO
EUPHRESCO
SAFEFOODERA
MARIFISH

CORE ORGANIC 2
ERA-IB 2
ERA-ARD 2
EUPHRESCO 2

Security

SSH/SIS

Transport

EU-SEC

THE HOUSE

ERA-SAGE
FORSOCIETY
HERA
NORFACE

AIRTN
ERA-NET ROAD
ERA-NET TRANSPORT
ERA-STAR REGION
URBAN-NET
MARTEC

AIRTN 2
ENT III
ERA-NET ROAD 2
ERA-NET TRANSPORT 
2
MARTEC 2

ERA-Instruments
NuPNET
e-InfraNET

ANIHWA
ARIMNET
ARIMNET 2
C-IPM
EMIDA
ERA-CAPS
ERA-MBT
ERASYNBIO
ERASYSAPP
COFASP
RURAGRI
SUMFOREST
SUSFOOD
ICT-AGRI
ICT-AGRI 2
FORESTERRA

GENDER-NET
ERNEST
ERANID
HERA-JRP

ERASYSBIO+
CORE ORGANIC 
PLUS
FACCE ERA-NET+

HERA JRP CE
NORFACE PLUS
WSF

Electromobility+

ERA-NET and ERA-NET Plus Actions per Theme under FP6 and FP7 including horizontal ones reassigned to the closest Theme 
(data DG RTD). The actions in bold are featured in this book. 

Annex 2  

Overview of bioeconomy ERA-NET Actions

The tables in this annex give an overview of the ERA-NET actions featured in this book. 

FP6 supported the coordination and the cooperation of research activities carried out at national or 
regional level through an open call. All disciplines were supported under this central ERA-NET scheme. 
In total 71 actions have been supported. For this book we selected those FP6 ERA-NETs, 14 in total, 
that covered topics now considered as core topics in the bioeconomy area. Within this set actions 
the core themes covered are food, agriculture, fisheries and biotechnologies. Also taken on board 
are  some  ‘neighbouring’  networks  from  environmental  or  material  sciences  that  have  substantial 
bioeconomy relevance. 

Under  FP7  the  thematic  directorates  adopted  the  ERA-NET  scheme  and  topics  were  included  in 
thematic work programmes. In this book all ERA-NET actions from the FP7 theme 2 Food, Agriculture 
and  Fisheries,  and  Biotechnology  (the  KBBE  Work  Programmes)  are  included,  as  well  as  some 
neighbouring  networks  with  substantial  relevance  to  the  bioeconomy  from  theme  6  Environment 
(including Climate Change) and from Theme 4 which included the Materials area. Furthermore, there 
were under FP7 also ERA-NET topics in ‘horizontal’ calls and those relevant to the bioeconomy are 
included as well in this book. In total 24 FP7 ERA-NETs actions are described in the book. 

Some ERA-NETs have been preceded by a preparatory actions. There is currently one preparatory 
action on going on a bioeconomy topic. As this preludes an ERA-NET on this topic, the preparatory 
action is taken up in the book. 

The last table gives on overview of the bioeconomy relevant ERA-NET Plus actions. A Plus action 
implements one transnational call with a Commission top-up funding of at maximum 33% of the 
total call budget. The funds come from various thematic budgets.

Bioeconomy ERA-NET Actions supported under FP6.
Ordered chronologically to their start date.

ERA-NET

Call identifier1

Project 
reference

EU 
contribution

Start – 
end date

WOODWISDOM-NET. Networking and 
Integration of National Programmes in 
the Area of Wood Material Science and 
Engineering

SNOWMAN. Sustainable Management of 
Soil and Groundwater

ERA-NET Plant Genomics. ERA-NET Plant 
Genomics

SAFEFOODERA. European Excellence in 
Food Safety Research Programming

ACENET. Coordination and Cooperation in 
the Field of Applied Catalysis

CORE ORGANIC. Coordination of European 
Transnational Research in Organic Food 
and Farming

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-A

510206

2 195 180

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-A

   3219

1 046 032

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-A

510189

2 900 000

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-B

515726

3 740 691

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-B

  11784

2 706 403

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-B

  11716

1 200 060

2004.01.01 
- 2008.12.31

2004.01.01 
- 2009.06.30

2004.01.01
 - 2009.12.31

2004.08.01
 - 2009.05.31

2004.09.01
- 2010.08.31

2004.10.01 
- 2007.09.30

180

EUROTRANS-BIO. EUROpean Network 
of TRANSnational Collaborative RTD 
for SMEs Projects in the Field of 
BIOtechnology

ERA-NET BIOENERGY.  ERA-NET 
BIOENERGY.

ERA-ARD. The Agricultural Research for 
Development (ARD) Dimension of the 
European Research Area (ERA)

BiodivERsA. An ERA-NET in Biodiversity 
Research

MariFish. The Coordination of European 
Marine Fisheries Research Programmes

ERA-NET/1/CA-SA-1-B

  11718

2 893 950

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-B

515738

2 651 593

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-C

517837

3 452 582

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-C

517836

2 837 440

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-D

  25989

2 997 070

ERASYSBIO. ERA-NET for Systems Biology

FP6-2002-ERA-NET-1-CA-
SSA-D

  23212

2 950 000

EUPHRESCO I. Coordination of European 
Phytosanitary (Statutory Plant Health) 
Research

ERA-IB. Towards an ERA in Industrial 
Biotechnology

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-E

  36212

2 633 991

ERA-NET/1/CA-SSA-E

  35581

2 513 644

2004.10.01 
- 2008.12.31

2004.10.01 
- 2010.12.31

2005.04.01 
- 2009.12.31

2005.05.01 
- 2010.04.30

2006.01.16 
- 2011.01.15

2006.02.01 
- 2011.02.28

2006.05.01 
- 2010.07.31

2006.05.01 
- 2011.12.31

1 The FP6 ERA-NET actions were funded through the open call of the ERA-NET scheme. 
Specific programme: integrating and strengthening the foundations of the European Research Area. Thematic priority/domain: 
Support for coordination activities. Call title: Supporting the cooperation and the coordination of research activities carried 
out at national or regional level (ERA-NET scheme). Date of publication: 17 December 2002. Closure dates: 03.06.2003 (A); 
02.03.2004 (B); 05.10.2004 (C); 02.03.2005 (D); 04.10.2005 (E).

Bioeconomy ERA-NET Actions supported under FP7.
Ordered chronologically to their start date.

ERA-NET 

Topic identifier2

Project 
reference

EU 
contribution

Start – 
end date

EMIDA. Coordination of European 
Research on Emerging and Major 
Infectious Diseases of Livestock

ARIMNET. Coordination of Agricultural 
Research in the Mediterranean

ETB-PRO. EUROpean Programme for 
TRANSnational R&D&I Cooperations of 
BIOtech SMEs

WOODWISDOMNET-2. Networking and 
Integration of National Programmes in 
the Area of Wood Material Science and 
Engineering in the Forest-Based Value 
Chains

ICT-AGRI. Coordination of European 
Research on ICT and Robotics in 
Agriculture and Related Environmental 
Issues

RURAGRI. Facing Sustainability: New 
Relationships Between Rural Areas and 
Agriculture in Europe

CORE ORGANIC II. Coordination of 
European Transnational Research in 
Organic Food and Farming Systems

CIRCLE-2. Climate Impact Research 
and Response Coordination for a Larger 
Europe

KBBE-2007-1-3-02

219235

   997 218

KBBE-2007-1-2-07

219262

   999 999

ERANET.2008.1

235368

3 166 533

NMP-2008-4.0-14

235066

1 332 960

ERANET.2008.1

235460

2 237 008

KBBE-2008-1-4-10

235175

   999 565

KBBE.2009.1.4-09

249667

   999 967

ENV.2009.1.1.6.4

249685

1 999 331

2008.04.01 
- 2011.12.31

2008.10.01 
- 2013.03.31

2009.01.01 
- 2012.12.31

2009.03.01 
- 2012.02.29

2009.05.01 
- 2013.07.31

2009.10.01 
- 2013.09.30

2010.03.01 
- 2013.02.28

2010.05.01
- 2014.04.30

181

2010.05.01 
- 2014.04.30

2010.10.01 
- 2013.03.31

2010.11.01 
- 2014.10.31

2011.01.01 
- 2014.03.31

2011.12.01 
- 2014.11.30

2011.12.01 
- 2014.11.30

2011.12.01 
- 2015.11.30

2012.01.01 
- 2014.12.31

2012.01.01
- 2015.12.31

2012.01.01 
- 2015.12.31

2012.01.01 
- 2015.12.31

2013.01.01 
- 2015.12.31

2013.02.01 
- 2017.03.31

Autumn 2013 
- 2017.12.31  
(Expected)

SEAS-ERA. Towards Integrated 
European Marine Research Strategy and 
Programmes

ERA-ARD II. The Agricultural Research 
for Development Dimension of the 
European Research Area

BIODIVERSA2. Cooperation and Shared 
Strategies for Biodiversity Research 
Programmes in Europe

EUPHRESCO II. EUROPEAN 
PHYTOSANITARY RESEARCH 
COORDINATION II

ERA-CAPS. ERA-NET for Coordinating 
Action in Plant Sciences

SUSFOOD. Sustainable Food Production 
and Consumption

ERA-IB-2. ERA-NET for Industrial 
Biotechnology 2

ERASYNBIO. Development and 
Coordination of Synthetic Biology in the 
European Research Area

CAPITA. Catalytic Processes for 
Innovative Technology Applications

FORESTERRA. Enhancing FOrest 
RESearch in the MediTERRAnean through 
improved coordination and integration

ENV.2009.2.2.1.2

249552

1 999 927

KBBE-2009-1-4-08

249664

   971 710

ENV.2010.2.1.4-2

266546

1 999 600

KBBE.2010.1.2-06

266505

   999 997

KBBE.2011.1.1-05

291864

1 989 658

KBBE.2011.2.6-02

291766

1 999 320

KBBE.2011.3.3-01

291814

1 999 992

KBBE.2011.3.6-06

291728

1 997 022

NMP-FP7-2010-4-0-9

266543

1 499 038

KBBE.2011.1.2-08

291832

1 997 795

ANIHWA. Animal Health and Welfare

KBBE.2011.1.3-05

291815

1 999 918

KBBE.2012.3.6-01

321567

1 999 862

KBBE.2012.1.2-13

321553

1 999 912

KBBE.2013.3.2.-01

604814

1 999 838

KBBE.2013.1.4-01

2 000 000 
(expected)

End 2013 
- end 2017

KBBE.2013.1.4-04

618123

1 997 106

2014.01.01 
- 2017.12.31

ERASysAPP. Systems Biology 
Applications

COFASP. Strengthening Cooperation 
in European Research on Sustainable 
Exploitation of Marine Resources in the 
Seafood Chains- ERANET

ERA-MBT. MARINEBIOTECH Towards 
integrated European Marine Research 
Strategy and Programmes

SUMFOREST. (under negotiation) Tackling 
the Challenges in the Implementation of 
Sustainable and Multifunctional Forestry 
through Enhanced Research Coordination 
for Policy Decisions

ICT-AGRI 2.  Information and 
Communication Technologies and 
Robotics for Sustainable Agriculture 
ERA-NET

ARIMNet2. (under negotiation). 
Coordination of Agricultural Research in 
the Mediterranean

PreSto GMO ERA-NET. Preparatory steps 
towards a GMO research ERA-NET

C-IPM. (under negotiation). Integrated 
Pest management (IPM) ERA-NET

KBBE.2013.1.4-02

KBBE.2013.1.4-03

618127

KBBE.2013.3.5-02

612739

996 739

2In FP7 individual ERA-NET topics were included in the thematic work programmes. All ERA-NETs of the KBBE 
workprogrammes are listed here as well as those from the environmental and the NMP themes considered to have 
substantial relevance to the bioeconomy. There were also horizontal calls.

182

1 998 228  

1 998 700 
(requested)

2013.12.01
- 2017.11.30 
(expected)

2013.09.01
- 2015.08.31

Bioeconomy ERA-NET Plus Actions supported under FP7.
Ordered chronologically to their start date.

ERA-NET PLUS

Topic identifier

Project 
reference

EU 
contribution

Start – end 
date

ERA Sysbio+. The consolidation of 
systems biology research stimulating 
the widespread adoption of systems 
approaches in biomedicine, biotechnology, 
and agri-food

WOODWISDOM-NET+ Pacing Innovation 
in the Forest-Based Sector. Innovation 
in the forest-based sector for increasing 
resource efficiency and tackling climate 
change with competitive customer 
solutions

BESTF 1. BioEnergy Sustaining the 
Future

CORE Organic Plus. Coordination of 
European Transnational Research in 
Organic Food and Farming Systems Plus

FACCE-ERA-NET+ (under negotiation). 
Food security, Agriculture, Climate Change 
ERA-NET plus

BESTF 2 (under negotiation). BioEnergy 
Sustaining the Future 2

ERANET.2008.2

235447

   5 500 000

2008.10.01 
- 2013.06.30

KBBE.2012.1.2-08 / 
NMP.2012.4.0

321573

   8 000 000 
    maximum

2012.11.15 
- 2017.11.14

ENERGY.2012.10.1.1

321477

15 000 000

KBBE.2013.1.4-06

   3 000 000

2013.01.01 
- 2017.12.31 
(Expected)

2013.12.01
- 2018.11.30

KBBE.2013.1.4-05

   4 000 000

01.10.2013 
- 30.09.2018

Energy 2013.10.1.1

618046

   7 289 552

2013.10.01 
(Expected) 
- 2018.09.30 
(Expected)

183

Annex 3 

ERA-NET country participation in FP7 ERA-NETs

s
e
i
r
t
n
u
o
c

d
r
i
h
T

s
e
i
r
t
n
u
o
c

d
e
t
a
i
c
o
s
s
A

s
e
t
a
t
S

r
e
b
m
e
M
U
E
w
e
N

s
e
t
a
t
S

r
e
b
m
e
M
U
E

R
T

S
R

L
I

O
N

K
M

S
I

H
C

A
B

L
A

K
S

I
S

O
R

L
P

T
M

V
L

T
L

U
H

R
H

E
E

Z
C

Y
C

G
B

K
U

E
S

T
P

L
N

U
L

T
I

E
I

R
G

R
F

S
E

K
D

E
D

E
B

T
A

d
n
e
-
t
r
a
t
S

d
l
e
i
f

h
c
r
a
e
s
e
R

N
T

,

A
M

,

G
E

,

Z
D

N
T

,

A
M

,

G
E

,

Z
D

O
A
S
U

,

O
P
J

,

O
N

I

,

Z
N

,

A
C

U
R

C
N

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

N
T

,

A
M

.

Z
D

O
U
R

O
U
R

A
U

,

E
G

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

A
U

,

U
R

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

O

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

O

O

O

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

O

P

P

P

P

O

P

P

P

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

O

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

O

P

P

P

P

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

O

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

O

P

s
n
o
i
t
a
e
r

l

r
e
h
t
o
s
e
t
a
c
i
d
n

i

’

O

‘

d
n
a

,

s
e
i
r
t
n
u
o
c

r
e
n
t
r
a
p
s
e
t
a
c
i
d
n

i

’

P

‘

,

i

y
r
t
n
u
o
c
g
n
i
t
a
n
d
r
o
o
c
e
h
t
s
e
t
a
c
i
d
n

i

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

P

C

P

P

P

C

P

P

P

P

P

O

P

P

P

O

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

C

O

’

C

‘

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

P

P

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

C

C

C

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

P

P

P

P

C

P

C

P

P

C

P

P

P

O

P

P

I
F

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

C

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

C

C

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

C

P

P

O

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

P

C

C

C

P

P

P

P

C

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

C

P

C

P

P

O

O

.

.

1
3
2
1
5
1
0
2
-
1
0
1
0
2
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
3
0
3
1
0
2
-
1
0
0
1
8
0
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
1
0
7
1
0
2
-
1
0
2
0
3
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
8
0
3
1
0
2
-
1
0
3
0
0
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

0
3
1
1
8
1
0
2
-
1
0
2
1
3
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
2
1
1
1
0
2
-
1
0
4
0
8
0
0
2

.

.

.

.

0
3
9
0
3
1
0
2
-
1
0
0
1
0
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

0
3
1
1
4
1
0
2
-
1
0
2
1
1
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

0
3
1
1
5
1
0
2
-
1
0
2
1
1
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
2
1
7
1
0
2
-
1
0
1
0
4
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
2
1
4
1
0
2
-
1
0
1
0
2
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
2
1
5
1
0
2
-
1
0
1
0
3
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

0
3
6
0
3
1
0
2
-
1
0
0
1
8
0
0
2

.

.

n
o
i
t
c
u
d
o
r
p

n
o
i
t
c
u
d
o
r
p

n
o
i
t
c
u
d
o
r
p

i

l

e
b
a
n
a
t
s
u
S

i

l

e
b
a
n
a
t
s
u
S

i

l

e
b
a
n
a
t
s
u
S

s
e
c
r
u
o
s
e
r

l

a
r
u
t
a
N

h
t
l
a
e
h

l

a
m
n
A

i

y
t
i
r
u
c
e
s

d
o
o
F

h
t
l
a
e
h

l

a
m
n
A

i

y
t
i
r
u
c
e
s

d
o
o
F

y
t
i
r
u
c
e
s

d
o
o
F

h
t
l
a
e
h

c
i
l

b
u
P

l

y
g
o
o
n
h
c
e
t
o
b

i

l

a
i
r
t
s
u
d
n

I

l

y
g
o
o
n
h
c
e
t
o
b

i

e
n
i
r
a
M

y
g
o
o
b

l

i

c
i
t
e
h
t
n
y
S

y
g
o
o
b

l

i

y
g
o
o
b

l

i

s
m
e
t
s
y
S

s
m
e
t
s
y
S

I

S
U
L
P
C
N
A
G
R
O
E
R
O
C

I
I

I

C
N
A
G
R
O
E
R
O
C

T
E
N
-
A
R
E

A
W
H
N
A

I

T
E
N
M
R
A

I

*
2
T
E
N
M
R
A

I

P
S
A
F
O
C

M
P
I
-
C

I
I

D
R
A
-
A
R
E

S
P
A
C
-
A
R
E

I

A
D
M
E

2
-
B
I
-
A
R
E

T
B
M
-
A
R
E

I

O
B
N
Y
S
A
R
E

P
P
A
S
Y
S
A
R
E

I

+
O
B
S
Y
S
A
R
E

.

.

1
3
3
0
4
1
0
2
-
1
0
1
0
1
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

0
3
9
0
8
1
0
2
-
1
0
0
1
3
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
2
1
5
1
0
2
-
1
0
1
0
2
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
3
0
4
1
0
2
-
1
0
5
0
9
0
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
2
1
7
1
0
2
-
1
0
1
0
4
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
8
0
5
1
0
2
-
1
0
9
0
3
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

0
3
9
0
3
1
0
2
-
1
0
0
1
9
0
0
2

.

.

.

2
1
7
1
0
2
-
2
1
3
1
0
2

.

.

.

0
3
1
1
4
1
0
2
-
1
0
2
1
1
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

9
2
2
0
2
1
0
2
-
1
0
3
0
9
0
0
2

.

.

.

.

4
1
1
1
7
1
0
2
-
5
1
1
1
2
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
2
1
3
1
0
2
-
1
0
1
0
9
0
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
0
1
4
1
0
2
-
1
0
1
1
0
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

0
3
4
0
4
1
0
2
-
1
0
5
0
0
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

0
3
4
0
4
1
0
2
-
1
0
5
0
0
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
2
1
7
1
0
2
-
1
0
1
0
3
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

0
3
1
1
8
1
0
2
-
1
0
2
1
3
1
0
2

.

.

.

.

1
3
2
1
5
1
0
2
-
1
0
1
0
2
1
0
2

.

.

n
o
i
t
c
u
d
o
r
p

n
o
i
t
c
u
d
o
r
p

i

l

e
b
a
n
a
t
s
u
S

i

l

e
b
a
n
a
t
s
u
S

*
T
S
E
R
O
F
M
U
S

I

R
G
A
R
U
R

e
g
n
a
h
c

e
t
a
m

i
l

C

2
T
E
N
-
M
O
D
S
W
D
O
O
W

I

e
g
n
a
h
c

e
t
a
m

i
l

C

+
T
E
N
-
M
O
D
S
W
D
O
O
W

I

h
t
l
a
e
h

c
i
l

b
u
P

D
O
O
F
S
U
S

n
o
i
t
u
c
d
o
r
p

n
o
i
t
c
u
d
o
r
p

i

l

e
b
a
n
a
t
s
u
S

i

l

e
b
a
n
a
t
s
u
S

2
-
I
R
G
A
-
T
C

I

I

R
G
A
-
T
C

I

n
o
i
t
a
c
i
f
i
d
o
m
c
i
t
c
e
n
e
G

T
E
N
-
A
R
E
O
M
G
o
t
S
e
r
P

t
n
e
m
p
o
e
v
e
d

l

.

c
o
s
&

.

c
E

A
R
R
E
T
S
E
R
O
F

e
g
n
a
h
c

e
t
a
m

i
l

C

*
+
T
E
N
-
A
R
E
-
E
C
C
A
F

y
t
i
r
u
c
e
s

d
o
o
F

I
I

O
C
S
E
R
H
P
U
E

184

e
g
n
a
h
c

e
t
a
m

i
l

C

e
g
n
a
h
c

e
t
a
m

i
l

C

s
e
c
r
u
o
s
e
r

l

a
r
u
t
a
N

y
t
i
r
u
c
e
s

y
g
r
e
n
E

y
t
i
r
u
c
e
s

y
g
r
e
n
E

s
n
o
i
t
a
c
i
l

p
p
a
y
g
o
o
n
h
c
e
T

l

l

y
g
o
o
n
h
c
e
t
o
B

i

2
A
S
R
E
V
D
O
B

I

I

O
R
P
-
B
T
E

2
-
E
L
C
R
C

I

A
R
E
-
S
A
E
S

1
F
T
S
E
B

*
2
F
T
S
E
B

A
T
I
P
A
C

.

d
e
t
a
c
i
d
n

i

s
i

)

O
>
P
>
C
(

l

e
v
e

l

t
n
e
m
e
v
o
v
n

l

i

t
s
e
h
g
h

i

e
h
t

,

y
r
t
n
u
o
c

e
n
o
m
o
r
f

g
n
i
t
a
p
i
c
i
t
r
a
p

s
n
o
i
t
a
s
i
n
a
g
r
o

l

e
p
i
t
l
u
m

f
o

e
s
a
c

n

I

.
r
e
n
t
r
a
p

g
n
i
t
u
b
i
r
t
n
o
c

r
o

y
t
r
a
p

d
r
i
h
t

,

e
t
a
i
c
o
s
s
a

,
r
e
v
r
e
s
b
o

s
a
h
c
u
s

n
o
i
t
a
i
t
o
g
e
n

r
e
d
n
u
*

l

s
n
o
i
t
c
a
s
u
P
T
E
N
-
A
R
E
d
n
a
T
E
N
-
A
R
E
7
P
F
t
n
a
v
e
e
r
-
y
m
o
n
o
c
e
o
b
n

l

i

i

g
n
i
t
a
p
i
c
i
t
r
a
p
s
e
i
r
t
n
u
o
c

i

f
o
w
e
v
r
e
v
o
s
i
h
t
n

I

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex 4  

List of country codes

AL 
AT 
BA 
BE 
BG 
CA 
CH 
CY 
CZ 
DE 
DK 
DZ 
EE 
EG 
ES 
FI 
FR 
GE 
GR 
HR 
HU 
IS 
IE 
INT 
IL 
IT 
LB 
LT 
LU 
LV 
MA 
MK 
MT 
NC 
NL 
NO 
NZ 
PL 
PT 
RO 
RS 
RU 
SE 
SI 
SK 
TR 
TN 
UA 
UK 

Albania
Austria
Bosnia Herzegovina
Belgium
Bulgaria
Canada
Switzerland
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Germany
Denmark
Algeria
Estonia
Egypt
Spain
Finland
France
Georgia
Greece
Croatia
Hungary
Iceland
Ireland
International organisation
Israel
Italy
Lebanon
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Latvia
Morocco
Macedonia
Malta
New Caledonia
The Netherlands
Norway
New Zealand
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Serbia
Russia
Sweden
Slovenia
Slovakia
Turkey
Tunisia
Ukraine
United Kingdom

185

European Commission

Bioeconomy ERA-NET Actions
European Research Area Networks of the 6th and 7th Framework Programmes

Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union

2014 — 185 pp. — 17.6 x 25.0 cm

ISBN 978-92-79-29458-7
doi:10.2777/98348

HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS 

Free publications: 

•  one copy: 

via EU Bookshop (http://bookshop.europa.eu); 

•  more than one copy or posters/maps: 

from the European Union’s representations (http://ec.europa.eu/represent_en.htm);  
from the delegations in non-EU countries (http://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/index_en.htm);  
by contacting the Europe Direct service (http://europa.eu/europedirect/index_en.htm) or  
calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) (*). 

(*)  The information given is free, as are most calls (though some operators, phone boxes or hotels may charge you). 

Priced publications: 

•  via EU Bookshop (http://bookshop.europa.eu). 

Priced subscriptions: 

•  via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union 

(http://publications.europa.eu/others/agents/index_en.htm). 

 
 
The FP7-funded Coordination Action PLATFORM brings 
together all existing Bioeconomy coordination networks 
from FP6 and FP7 with the aim to improve exchange 
and cooperation between all relevant actors within 
related initiatives with the aim of strengthening their 
contribution to the European Research Area. 

The PLATFORM consortium consists of 13 partners 
from eight European Member and Associated countries. 
Started in January 2012 the project runs for 36 months. 

PLATFORM has three distinct and mutually reinforcing 
objectives: establish a networking platform (through 
common workshops and a discussion forum), stimulate 
mutual learning (through a master class and a guidance 
based on good practices) and delivering of a Vision 
Paper and Roadmap for long-term cooperation and 
synergy among and between ERA-NETs and other 
research policy actors such as JPIs, SCAR, and KBBE 
Technology Platforms. 

This publication contains factual information on all 
ERA-NET and ERA-NET+ projects supported by the KBBE 
theme of FP7 as well as related ERA-NET predecessors 
funded under FP6.

Studies and reports

K
I
-
3
0
-
1
3
-
5
6
3
-
E
N
-
C

doi:10.2777/98348