The funding of Organic RDD 9 is awaiting the negotiations of the Finance act, which is significantly delayed due to the election and the negotiations concerning the establishment of the new government. We expect that the period from the invitation of applications to the application deadline will be approximately two months – and thus shorter than normal. We therefore encourage potential applicants to prepare for a future project application already now.

ICROFS’ research strategy 2022, which will be the foundation for the funding of Organic RDD 9, awaits the confirmation of the new Minister for Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, but will at latest be published in connection with the call. The overall focus areas of the research strategy are the same as in the former strategy and can be found here (only in Danish).

Planned focus areas for Organic RDD 9

In the Organic RDD 9 programme it is possible to apply within all six focus areas, but ICROFS’ board especially prioritizes projects which are based on, or integrate, the focus areas:

• Biodiversity
• Climate and environment
• Health and welfare

including the challenges, which the organic farmers and organic companies are facing, in relation to:

• Circular bioeconomy
• The FUTURE organic consumer
• Organic farming – for a living

The projects may address selected topics within one or more focus areas, but should be based on a food system approach, be holistically oriented, and include the value chain and the users of the produced knowledge as well as the end-user (the consumer) to the extent that it is relevant.

The development of the organic sector must be sustainable for the farmers as well as for the society, and must meet the expectations of the consumers and society. Based on this, especially innovation, research, development, and demonstration are welcomed within the following areas, which will be specified further in ICROFS’ research- and development strategy 2022, which will be published later this year:

• Cropping and husbandry systems, initiatives and methods that support biodiversity in the farmed soil, on the farmed areas, as well as on the surrounding and connected areas in the farmed landscape. This includes investigation of interplay between biodiversity and soil fertility, e.g., in regenerative farming systems, production systems with high diversity and with combinations of plant- and livestock production, and in systems with agroforestry and perennial crops with high soil carbon sequestration.
• Quantification and valuation of the effect of organic farming on nature, biodiversity, and ecological functions. This includes documentation of pollination success and pest-regulation, improved soil fertility, -health, and – structure, as well as documentation for increased resilience in the production.
• The role and integration of livestock in a sustainable food system that provides healthy food products with nutritious value, without compromising the climate- and environmental impact of the production, or the health and welfare of the livestock.
• Organic farming- and production systems that improve healthy and resilient plants and plant-based foods, as well as the nutrition- and health quality of these foods.
• Maintenance and improvement of soil fertility, health, resilience, and carbon sequestration, hereunder the role of livestock and the interplay between microorganisms, and microorganisms and plants.
• Minimizing the negative impact on climate and environment from plant- and livestock production and adapting in relation to climate change. Resilient production systems and -technologies which increase the resource use efficiency and carbon sequestration, minimize greenhouse gas emissions, and reduce the loss of nutrients.

It is still possible to apply for funding either for projects with a business plan (type 1-projects) or project without a business plan, which are focusing exclusively on public goods and green sustainability effects (type 2-projects).
Read about the project types here (only in Danish)

Info meetings concerning Organic RDD 9

In connection with the new application-round, ICROFS is organising two info meetings, where you can learn more about the application process and hear more about the criteria, which forms the basis for the evaluation of the projects.

On condition that the funding for Organic RDD 9 is in place beforehand, the info meetings will take place:

• As an online meeting: Wednesday the 22^nd. of March from 9-12:00 pm.
• As a physical meeting: Thursday the 30^th. of March from 12-15:00 pm.

Sign up here: https://events.au.dk/infomoedeorganicrdd9/infomode-organicrdd9

The online info meeting from the former application round (Organic RDD 8) can be viewed here

Receive feedback on your project idea before sending your application

You can receive feedback on your project idea by sending a short project outline to the ICROFS-secretariat.
The project outline has to be written into a template, which can be found here (only in Danish).

The project outline must be sent via e-mail to icrofs@icrofs.org
The secretariat strives to have a maximum processing time of one week. You will receive your feedback by phone.

Interested in organic research on EU level?

Following successful CORE Organic Cofund programme period (2016-2022) with 29 research project funded, the network started a new edition as CORE Organic Pleiades from September 2022 until early 2026. The new programme period aims at ensuring a continuity in the transnational cooperation related to research in organic food and farming.

The main vehicle for the future research calls in organics will be European Partnerships on ‘Agroecology’ and ‘Sustainable Food Systems’ that should be operational from 2024. The CORE Organic network actively participates and supports development of these new European funding instruments. The CORE Organic is also part of Green ERA-Hub (GEH) encompassing 16 different Agri-food and biotechnology ERA-Nets and international initiatives. Under the GEH umbrella, CORE Organic network together with other partners, is planning a new joint call during Spring 2023.

More information will be available on: https://projects.au.dk/coreorganicpleiades; https://greenerahub.eu