Horizon Europe Cluster 6 - Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment

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Enriched EU · Found: 2026-03-10 13:31

Horizon Europe Cluster 6 with EUR 14 billion for 2026-27. Funds sustainable and circular management of natural resources. Key calls include circular economy and bioeconomy sectors, decontamination of aquatic environments (up to EUR 6M per project), and HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-FARM2FORK-02 (EUR 12M for sustainable agriculture).

Source: https://research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu/funding/funding-opportunities/funding-programmes-and-open-calls/horizon-europe/cluster-6-food-bioeconomy-natural-resources-agriculture-and-environment_en

Funding Details

Funder: European Commission — Directorate-General for Research and Innovation (via European Research Executive Agency, REA)
Funding Goal: Fund research and innovation projects across seven intervention areas under Horizon Europe Cluster 6: (1) environmental observation, (2) biodiversity and natural resources, (3) agriculture, forestry and rural areas, (4) seas, oceans and inland waters, (5) food systems, (6) bio-based innovation in the EU bioeconomy, and (7) circular systems. The 2026-27 work programme allocates EUR 14 billion total across all Horizon Europe. The circular economy and bioeconomy sub-call (HORIZON-CL6-2026-01-CIRCBIO) has EUR 101 million for 11 topics including improving plastic food packaging, textile recycling technologies, critical raw material recovery, and bio-based innovation. A two-stage call for Circular Cities and Regions Initiative has EUR 28 million for 2 topics.
Funding Amount: EUR 14 billion total for Horizon Europe 2026-27. Circular economy and bioeconomy sub-call (HORIZON-CL6-2026-01-CIRCBIO): EUR 101 million indicative budget (single-stage, 11 topics). Two-stage circular call: EUR 28 million (2 topics on Circular Cities and Regions). Individual project grants vary by call topic — typically EUR 3-10 million per project for research consortia.
Deadline: 2026-04-16 (Fixed)
How to Apply: Apply through the EU Funding and Tenders Portal at ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/. Register as a legal entity, form a consortium, prepare a project proposal following the call topic requirements. Two-stage calls require a 10-page outline proposal first (deadline April 2026 for first stage), followed by full proposal for successful applicants (September 2026 for second stage). Single-stage calls: full proposal by deadline. Support available from National Contact Points and REA support services.
Target Region: EU Member States and associated countries (Horizon Europe associated countries). Some topics address global challenges but implementation is primarily EU-based.
Contact: European Research Executive Agency (REA): rea.ec.europa.eu. National Contact Points in each Member State provide free advisory support to applicants. Funding and Tenders Portal: ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/
Last Checked: 2026-03-15 10:50

Application Checklist

Eligibility

Must be a legal entity established in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe associated country
Project consortium requires minimum 3 independent legal entities from at least 3 eligible countries

Project Scope

NGOs can participate but projects must have a research and innovation component, not purely operational
Proposal must address one of the specific call topics (check current open calls on Funding and Tenders Portal)

Required Documents

Register on EU Funding and Tenders Portal and submit proposal in required format
Two-stage calls: submit 10-page outline first (April 2026 deadline for first stage); invited applicants submit full proposal by September 2026

Constraints

Open science compliance is mandatory — data management plan and open access to publications required
Gender dimension must be integrated in research and innovation content where relevant
Single-stage calls: submit full proposal by deadline (approximately April-September 2026 depending on topic)
EU financial regulations apply — rigorous financial reporting and audit requirements throughout project lifetime

Summary

Horizon Europe Cluster 6 — 'Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment' — is the European Commission's primary research and innovation funding stream for environmental and sustainability topics, with EUR 14 billion allocated for the 2026-27 work programme. Managed by the European Research Executive Agency (REA), Cluster 6 funds projects through competitive calls organised around seven intervention areas, including circular systems, seas and oceans, biodiversity, and food systems. The circular economy and bioeconomy sub-call (HORIZON-CL6-2026-01-CIRCBIO) is the most relevant component for plastic waste and circular economy actors. With EUR 101 million in budget for 11 topics in 2026, it targets innovations in plastic food packaging improvement, textile recycling technologies, critical raw material recovery, and bio-based value chains. A separate two-stage call (EUR 28 million) funds the Circular Cities and Regions Initiative. The 2025 equivalent call attracted 213 proposals — competition is strong. Projects under Cluster 6 are typically consortium-based research and innovation actions requiring at least 3 partners from 3 eligible countries. Typical grant sizes for individual consortium partners range from EUR 3-10 million per project, though the total consortium budget can be substantially larger. The programme is primarily oriented towards R&D and innovation rather than direct NGO operational grants — applicants must bring scientific or technical innovation and demonstrate EU added value. For organisations in the plastic circularity space — particularly those with the capacity to join or lead a multi-country research consortium — this programme offers strong alignment on circular economy, plastic waste, and oceans topics. However, the research/innovation orientation and consortium requirements mean it is less accessible for smaller NGOs without existing academic or industry partnerships.

Historical Context

Horizon Europe is the EU's 9th Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2021-2027). Cluster 6 covers food, bioeconomy, natural resources, agriculture and environment with a 2026-27 work programme published December 2025. Previous 2024 circular bioeconomy call (HORIZON-CL6-2024-CIRCBIO) received 137 proposals; 2025 call received 213 proposals. The 2025 Circular Economy and Bioeconomy call had a budget of EUR 140 million. A proposed successor programme (Horizon Europe 2028-2034) is planned with a doubled budget of EUR 175 billion.

Why it was added

Major EU funding instrument for aquaculture, bioeconomy, and marine resource research with multi-million euro project budgets

Sources

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