Five European Technology Platforms, together with nine organisations from across the agri-food sector, have issued a joint statement urging EU policymakers to recognise agriculture, aquaculture, and food systems as strategic sectors within the future European Competitiveness Fund and the next EU Research and Innovation Framework Programme, Horizon Europe.
Against a backdrop of growing geopolitical uncertainty, climate challenges, and economic pressure, the signatories underline that agriculture, aquaculture, and food systems are central to Europe’s competitiveness, resilience, and strategic autonomy. These sectors play a vital role in ensuring food security, supporting rural economies, contributing to climate objectives, and strengthening sustainable biomass supply and industrial value chains across the EU.
According to a press release, the statement calls on the European Parliament and Member States to:
- Explicitly include agriculture, bioeconomy, and food within the scope of Policy Window 2 of the ECF and Horizon Europe;
- Ensure sufficient and dedicated funding for agri-food research and innovation;
- Guarantee balanced representation of all agri-food stakeholders in EU priority-setting and programming processes.
The signatories emphasise that innovation in agriculture, aquaculture, and food systems is not only essential to achieving sustainability goals, but also critical to Europe’s long-term economic resilience and global leadership. They also reaffirm their readiness to work constructively with EU institutions to ensure that these strategic areas receive the attention they require in Europe’s future competitiveness and innovation policies.
