EU-Wide Advantages & Opportunities for the Grant “Nutrition in emergency situations – RUSF & RUTF” (HORIZON-CL6-2025-02-FARM2FORK-17)

1. Single Market Access: Leveraging 450+ Million Consumers

• Pan-EU demand for sustainable ingredients – The shift towards plant-based proteins, novel oils and marine ingredients is accelerating across the EU. Proposals that develop African-sourced, climate-smart raw materials (e.g., Bambara groundnut, moringa leaf powder, small pelagics) can tap into mainstream EU food and nutraceutical value chains once EFSA specifications are met.

• Built-in humanitarian procurement channels – EU Civil Protection & Humanitarian Aid (ECHO), UNICEF Supply Division Copenhagen hub and the World Food Programme all procure RUSF/RUTF for EU-funded emergency responses. A Horizon project that certifies locally produced formulations under Codex CXG 95-2022 can fast-track entry into these €800 m+/year procurement streams.

• Public food purchasing – The new "Healthy & Sustainable Public Procurement" criteria (in preparation under the Farm-to-Fork Strategy) will push Member States to favour low-carbon, socially responsible nutrition products for schools, hospitals and defence forces. Locally manufactured African RUSF/RUTF with verifiable low CO₂ footprints become attractive imports under EU–AU partnership quotas.

2. Cross-Border Collaboration & Knowledge Exchange

• Mandatory AU–EU Consortium Composition – The topic obliges at least three African entities plus EU partners, automatically creating North-South innovation corridors on food safety, value-added processing and agro-ecology.

• Living Labs network – Europe hosts >35 Food System Living Labs (ENOLL; EIT Food RIS Hubs) that can be integrated as test-beds for product acceptability, shelf-life and logistics simulations, reducing time-to-market.

• Mutual recognition of academic credits & mobility – Using the Erasmus+ “International Credit Mobility” window, PhD students and post-docs can rotate between African food tech incubators and EU research infrastructures (pilot extrusion lines, sensory labs), accelerating skills transfer.

3. Alignment with Flagship EU Policies

| EU Policy / Initiative | Direct Relevance to Grant |

| --- | --- |

| European Green Deal & Fit-for-55 | Lowering transport emissions by on-site African production; climate-smart crop choices. |

| EU–AU FNSSA Roadmap | Topic explicitly listed; contributes to nutrition security, climate resilience, biodiversity restoration. |

| Farm-to-Fork Strategy | Strengthens external dimension (global sustainable value chains); promotes reformulation of foods with healthier profiles. |

| Action Plan on Critical Raw Materials | Diversifies EU protein & micronutrient sources away from soy and fish oil dependencies. |

| Gender Equality Strategy & Youth Action Plan | Cascading funding can target women-led SMEs & youth start-ups in both continents. |

4. Regulatory Harmonisation Benefits

• Codex Alimentarius CXG 95-2022 alignment – Collaboration with EFSA & WHO enables simultaneous dossiers for EU Novel Food authorisation and WHO pre-qualification, cutting duplication costs.

• Pan-EU Mutual Recognition – Once a low-sugar RUSF variant secures market entry in one Member State under Regulation 2015/2283 (Novel Foods) or 609/2013 (Food for Specific Groups), it enjoys free circulation across all 27 MS.

• Digital traceability pilots – Use of EU electronic Product Code (EPCIS) and GS1 standards allows interoperable traceability from African facility to EU distribution centres, easing customs clearance under the new Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) reporting.

5. Innovation Ecosystem & Research Excellence

• Access to 5,000+ R&I actors through Horizon Europe partnerships (Sustainable Food Systems, Agroecology, Animal Health & Welfare). Synergies permit sharing of metabolomic, toxicology and LCA datasets needed for rapid formulation screening.

• Key EU infrastructures:

• Joint Research Centre (JRC) labs for mycotoxin & heavy-metal testing.

• European Marine Biological Resource Centre (EMBRC) for algae-based omega-3 extraction trials.

• Pilot upscaling at EIT Food-backed Bio-Pilot Plants (e.g., FBR-Wageningen, Fraunhofer IVV) to de-risk capex before African replication.

• Intellectual property (IP) acceleration – The European Patent Office’s free IP pre-diagnosis for Horizon beneficiaries plus the Patent Prosecution Highway with African Regional IP Organisation (ARIPO) smooths dual-continent protection.

6. Funding Synergies & Blended Finance

1. Horizon Europe Mission ‘Soil Deal for Europe’ – joint calls on climate-resilient cropping of high-protein legumes; can cover agronomic trials feeding into RUSF supply chains.

2. NDICI–Global Europe & EFSD+ guarantees – Enable blended-finance vehicles for African processing plants (≥€20 m) once Horizon prototypes prove viability.

3. EIT Food Seedbed & Impact Funds – Offer equity/coaching to spin-offs emerging from project’s cascading funding portfolio.

4. ERDF / Interreg – Support EU regional clusters (e.g., Atlantic algae biomass) that supply novel fatty acids to RUSF producers.

5. InnovFin Infectious Diseases (repurposed under InvestEU Health window) – Covers clinical validation costs for new therapeutic formulations.

7. Scale & Impact Potential at EU Level

• Market replication – Proven African local-production models can be adapted for EU Outermost Regions (e.g., Mayotte, Canary Islands) where supply-chain disruptions mirror emergency contexts.

• Climate impact – LCA estimates show a switch to in-country African manufacture reduces CO₂e per therapeutic ration by up to 60 %. Aggregated across 50 m rations/year procured with EU funds, this saves ~120 kt CO₂e, feeding directly into EU climate accounting.

• Social return on investment (SROI) – Each €1 invested in localised RUTF can generate €16 in health, employment and gender-inclusive income according to World Bank multipliers – a compelling narrative for EU taxpayers.

• Strategic autonomy – Diversified supply of micronutrient pre-mixes and omega-3 sources shields the EU humanitarian pipeline from geopolitical shocks (e.g., fish-oil shortages, war-induced logistics blocks).

8. Recommended EU-Focused Actions for Applicants

1. Map the EU humanitarian procurement calendar (ECHO Framework Contracts, UNICEF LTAs) and embed pilot lots for new formulations in Y3–Y4 work plan.

2. Sign an MoU with EFSA’s Emerging Risks Network to fast-track safety assessments of under-utilised African crops.

3. Build an SSH work package on consumer trust, gender norms and behavioural economics across three EU and three AU countries to meet mandatory SSH integration.

4. Allocate part of the 20 % cascading fund to diaspora-led EU SMEs that can act as importers/regulatory representatives, ensuring seamless entry into the single market.

5. Plan joint LCA and Environmental Product Declarations aligned with the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) method to satisfy future Green Claims Regulation requirements.

9. Conclusion

Operating at EU scale greatly amplifies the scientific, economic and humanitarian value of this topic. Horizon Europe financing unlocks:

• Immediate alignment with Green Deal, Farm-to-Fork and AU–EU FNSSA priorities.

• Access to harmonised regulatory pathways and 450 m consumers.

• Integration into world-class research infrastructures and blended-finance instruments.

• System-level impact on carbon reduction, health outcomes and strategic resilience.

By fully exploiting these EU-wide advantages, consortia can de-risk innovation, accelerate certification, and ensure that lifesaving RUSF/RUTF solutions reach both African children in emergencies and European citizens seeking healthier, more sustainable nutrition options.