The call is relevant for cities and regions that are looking to develop a CSS around agriculture, forestry and agri-food value chains in rural areas. The circular use of waste coming from these value chains can lead to the creation of new economic opportunities when these sectors cooperate with each other; however, primary producers are often not fully integrated in these bio-based value chains. The call therefore asks for the assessment of the suitability and feasibility of new forms of cooperations among primary producers in these value chains, to develop new forms of cooperation, business models and governance models that allow for symbiotic and resource-efficient valorisation of underutilised biomass. Whilst doing so, projects must implement a multi-actor approach and demonstrate the involvement of all concerned key actors, including primary producers, landowners, researchers, regional authorities, environmental organisations and consumers.
 

All stakeholders of the bio-based industries ecosystem including public authorities can apply for CBE JU funding. CBE JU calls for project proposals are open to any legal entity, be it private or public, for-profit or not-for-profit organisation, including:

• large companies;
• small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs);
• research and technology organisations (RTOs);
• universities;
• associations.

Proposals should come up with new forms of cooperation among primary producers in agricultural and forestry sectors that optimise harvesting, logistics and processing of particularly secondary or underutilised biomass for the manufacturing of innovative products in the scope of the CBE JU (including the management and recycling of waste produced during the transformation process). This includes the:

• development of wider value networks, clusters and other forms of collaboration in the bio-based sectors and stimulation of interactions between the key actors to reduce the limiting factors such as seasonality of biomass, initial costs or high market competition;
• use of technologies and logistics in a symbiotic and resource-efficient way to further accelerate the deployment of a circular and sustainable bioeconomy;
• identification and development of solutions to overcome the barriers for the valorisation of underutilised biomass;
• demonstration of the economic and sustainable feasibility of the production of high added-value, bio-based products with tangible market applications;
• development of economically viable long-term business plans and marketing strategies as well as other non-financial benefits;
• identify bottlenecks and opportunities in existing EU level policy frameworks in order to facilitate the creation and uptake of innovative forms of cooperation among primary producers and bio-based industries;
• supporting the piloting and scaling up of the production of new high-added-value products including under the innovative regional clusters;
• development of suitable governance models to ensure the practical feasibility of implementing such cooperations in specific and varying institutional contexts across European countries.
   

Total indicative budget is EUR 4 million. It is estimated that a contribution of EUR 4 million would allow these outcomes to be addressed appropriately. Nonetheless, this does not preclude submission and selection of a proposal requesting different amounts.
 

Cities and regions can apply for funding through the following steps. Cities and regions have to select the relevant call and draft a proposal with the required details. With the CBE JU networking platform, cities and regions can find partners to build a consortium. The proposal can be submitted using the funding and tender opportunities portal using an EU login. All the members of the consortium must have a nine-digit Participant Identification Code (PIC) to apply for funding. Draft your project proposal in the submission service section of your topic page. This link becomes available when the call opens. Fill in all the required information and submit the proposal before the call deadline.
 

Call launch: 24 April 2024

Call deadline: 18 September 2024 17:00 CET