Annex I / Food, Agriculture and Biotechnology

Objective

Building a European Knowledge Based Bio-Economy¹⁷ by bringing together science, industry and other stakeholders, to exploit new and emerging research opportunities that address social, environmental and economic challenges: the growing demand for safer, healthier, higher quality food and for sustainable use and production of renewable bio-resources; the increasing risk of epizootic and zoonotic diseases and food related disorders; threats to the sustainability and security of agricultural, aquaculture and fisheries production; and the increasing demand for high quality food, taking into account animal welfare and rural  and coastal contexts and response to specific dietary needs of consumers.

Rationale

Innovations and advancement of knowledge in the sustainable management, production and use of biological resources (micro-organism, plants, animals), will provide the basis for new, sustainable, safe, eco-efficient and competitive products for agriculture, fisheries, feed, food, health, forest based and related industries. In line with the European strategy on life sciences and biotechnology¹⁸, this will help increase the competitiveness of European agriculture and biotechnology, seed and food companies, in particular high tech SMEs, while improving social welfare and well-being.

Research into the safety of food and feed chains, diet-related diseases, food choices and the impact of food and nutrition on health will help to fight food-related disorders (e.g. obesity, allergies) and infectious diseases (e.g. transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, avian-flu), while making important contributions to the implementation of existing and the formulation of future policies and regulations in the area of public, animal and plant health and consumer protection.

The diversity and mainly small size of the European industries in these areas, while being one of its strengths and an opportunity, leads to fragmented approaches to similar problems. These are better addressed by increased collaboration and sharing of expertise, for example on new methodologies, technologies, processes and standards that result from changing Community legislation.

Several European Technology Platforms contribute in setting common research priorities, in fields such as plant genomics and biotechnology, forestry and forest based industries, global animal health, farm animal breeding, food and industrial biotechnology. The research will also provide the knowledge base needed to support¹⁹: the Common Agricultural Policy and European Forest Strategy; agriculture and trade issues; safety aspects of GMOs; food safety regulations; Community animal health, disease control and welfare standards; and the Common Fisheries Policy reform aiming to provide sustainable development of fishing and aquaculture and the safety of seafood products. In view of social relevance, a flexible response to new policy needs is also foreseen, in particular with respect to new risks and social or economic trends and needs.

Activities

• Sustainable production and management of biological resources from land, forest, and aquatic environments: Enabling research, including 'omics' technologies, such as genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, systems biology, bioinformatics and converging technologies for micro-organisms, plants and animals, including exploitation and sustainable use of their biodiversity.

  For land based biological resources, research will focus on: soil fertility, improved crops and production systems in all their diversity, including organic farming, quality production schemes and monitoring and assessment of GMO impacts on environment and humans; plant health, sustainable, competitive and multifunctional agriculture, and forestry; rural development; animal health and welfare, breeding and production; infectious diseases in animals, including epidemiological studies, zoonoses and their pathogenic mechanisms, and diseases linked to animal feedstuffs; other threats to the sustainability and security of food production, including climate change; safe disposal of animal waste.

  For biological resources from aquatic environments, research will support sustainability and competitiveness of fisheries, provide the scientific and technical basis of fisheries management and support the sustainable development of aquaculture, including breeding and welfare.

  Development of tools (including ICT tools) needed by policy makers and other actors in areas such as agriculture, fisheries and aquaculture and rural development (landscape, land management practices etc.); socio?economic and ethical contexts of production.

• "Fork to farm": Food, health and well being: Consumer, societal, cultural, industrial and health as well as traditional aspects of food and feed, including behavioural and cognitive sciences; nutrition, diet related diseases and disorders, including childhood and adult obesity and allergies; nutrition in relation to the prevention of diseases (including increased knowledge about the health bringing compounds and properties of food); innovative food and feed processing technologies (including packaging and technologies from non-food fields); improved quality and safety, both chemical and biological, of food, beverage and feed; enhanced food safety assurance methodologies; integrity (and control) of the food chain; physical and biological environmental impacts on and of food/feed chains; impact on and resistance of food chain to global changes; total food chain concept (including seafood and other food raw materials and components); traceability and its further development; authenticity of food; development of new ingredients and products.

• Life sciences and biotechnology for sustainable non-food products and processes: Improved crops and forest resources, feed-stocks, marine products and biomass (including marine resources) for energy, environment, and high added value products such as materials and chemicals (including biological resources utilisable in pharmaceutical industry and medicine), including novel farming systems, bio-processes and bio-refinery concepts; bio-catalysis; new and improved micro-organisms and enzymes; forestry and forest based products and processes; environmental bio-remediation and cleaner bio-processing, the utilisation of agro industrial wastes and by-products.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

¹⁷The term "bio-economy" includes all industries and economic sectors that produce, manage and otherwise exploit biological resources and related services, supply or consumer industries, such as agriculture, food, fisheries, forestry, etc.

¹⁸ "Life sciences and biotechnology – A strategy for Europe" - COM(2002) 27.

¹⁹ Complementary research relating to the sustainable management and conservation of natural resources is addressed under the "Environment (including Climate Change)" theme.