Open Call: Knowledge Transfer Grants to Strengthen Sustainable Food Systems

The STREAMING Open Call for Knowledge Transfer is a Horizon Europe‑funded scheme that provides up to €25,000 per grant to develop interactive digital learning courses on sustainable food systems and food trade, with a total budget of €275,000 for 11 grants. The call supports content that translates cutting‑edge research into practical digital training for farmers, food producers and processors, startups, students and other stakeholders, covering the entire food supply chain from sustainable farming to waste reduction and food safety. Projects are expected to run for 8–12 months, and all funded courses must use engaging digital formats such as interactive videos, applications, process descriptions and recipes for sustainable food products.​

Priority topics include traceability within food supply chains, life cycle assessment of food products, sustainable farming systems, nutritional requirements, reducing micronutrient deficiencies, food waste reduction, food safety, and scaling innovations in the food supply chain, with a specified number of grants per topic. The grants aim to connect research partners in Europe and Africa with practical actors (e.g. farmers, processors, startups) and to provide free access to high‑quality training on key sustainability challenges such as climate‑smart agriculture, market access for smallholders (especially women), food preservation and processing, alternative proteins, and trade‑relevant food safety and traceability systems. Proposals are evaluated on professional excellence, didactic experience, course concept and tools, and impact, with additional attention to gender balance, regional origin and inclusivity in cases of close scores.​

The call is part of the wider STREAMING project (Sustainable Trade Regimes with Europe and Africa through Mapping Innovation, New‑Technology and Growth‑Mindset), which aims to support fair, healthy and environmentally friendly food systems and to inform trade policy between Africa and Europe by addressing non‑tariff barriers, logistics gaps and market access constraints. STREAMING focuses on empowering youth and women, strengthening entrepreneurial mindsets, and building resilient local food value chains through innovation hubs, startup support, hackathons and targeted training, with this Knowledge Transfer Grant specifically dedicated to building the project’s open online learning platform. Funding decisions are made through a competitive, transparent process by an Evaluation Steering Committee of external experts from Africa and Europe, with results expected by 15 July 2026 following eligibility checks and evaluations conducted between March and June 2026.​

Countries and entities eligible to apply

• Geographic eligibility:
  • The call is open to Third‑Party organisations from both Africa and Europe, and third parties may also be located outside the STREAMING consortium countries.​
  • At least 60% of the total Knowledge Transfer budget must go to applicants from African Union countries, and the call particularly encourages experts from African countries who are familiar with local challenges.​
• Eligible types of organisations (legal entities):
  • Universities and research institutions
  • Business schools and vocational institutions/colleges
  • NGOs and civil‑society organisations
  • Innovation hubs and incubators
  • Food industry partners and private enterprises​
• Consortia:
  • Applications may be submitted by individual institutions or consortia of up to three entities, enabling cross‑border collaboration between African and European organisations.​
• Ineligible countries/entities (from the general call description you provided):
  • Entities from Russia, Belarus and non‑government‑controlled territories of Ukraine are excluded, as are organisations under certain EU restrictive or budget‑protection measures (e.g. in Hungary).​

The call also actively promotes gender equality, giving positive consideration to women‑led organisations and projects that place women in leadership roles and directly support female farmers, traders and entrepreneurs.​

Key funding details and timeline

• Maximum grant per project: €25,000.​
• Total call budget: €275,000 for 11 grants (traceability – 1; LCA – 1; nutritional requirements – 2; micronutrient deficiencies – 2; food waste – 1; sustainable farming – 2; food safety – 1; scaling innovations – 1).​
• Project duration: 8–12 months.​
• Call deadline: 02 March 2026, 23:59 CET.​
• Launch date: 19 December 2025.​
• Evaluation timeline: Eligibility checks in March 2026; evaluation and selection from March to June 2026; evaluation results and contracting by 15 July 2026.​

How to apply

Applicants must:​

• Develop a concept for an interactive digital course aligned with one main STREAMING topic, with the option to indicate a secondary topic.
• Prepare a budget (up to €25,000) that primarily covers personnel for course development, testing and improvements, and any scholarships embedded to increase outreach.
• Ensure compliance with Horizon Europe rules and the call’s specific eligibility criteria for financial support to third parties.
• Prepare and submit the proposal template and Declaration of Honour as part of the Open Call Kit, via the STREAMING application channel indicated in the call documentation.

Further details, full call text, templates and guidance are available through the STREAMING website (Sustainable Trade Regimes with Europe and Africa through Mapping Innovation, New‑Technology and Growth‑Mindset).
 

Click HERE to visit the official website.