In a world grappling with complex global challenges such as population growth, climate change, and environmental degradation, ensuring security, sustainability, and food safety is paramount. Agricultural practices and food production processes are integral to public health, economic stability, and societal well-being. However, conventional approaches have often operated in isolation, limiting our understanding and hindering scalability. The WHEATWATCHER initiative seeks to break these barriers by uniting soil health monitoring, plant health assessment, and food traceability through a cutting-edge digital soil monitoring system. This system assesses soil nutrition, chemical, and biological factors impacting wheat grains from field growth to flour production, spanning multiple European regions. By actively involving stakeholders, including farmers, mill proprietors, and policymakers, WHEATWATCHER tailors its solution to practical needs. It leverages diverse sensor technologies, advanced machine learning models, and automated mapping techniques to boost efficiency and scalability. A Decision Support System and cloud platform ensure accessible insights. At its core, a machine learning model seamlessly integrates technologies, creating a cohesive solution that bridges the gaps between soil health, plant health, and food traceability. WHEATWATCHER aims to foster harmony between sensing technologies, data processing, and stakeholder engagement, revolutionizing comprehensive monitoring.

RUNFASTER4EU will demonstrate the sustainability and replicability at industrial scale (TRL8) of a new value chain focused on the large-scale cultivation of low-ILUC-risk oil crops on marginal lands, avoiding competition with food or feed. These crops will provide vegetable oils and residual biomass for high-value bio-based products (cosmetics formulations, bio-stimulants, feed ingredients, herbicides, dielectric fluids, bioplastics, NIPU for vertical gardens) in a cascading approach. Building on previous and ongoing EU projects (FIRST2RUN, BRILIAN, MIDAS, CARINA), RUNFASTER will i) enhance bio-based value chains, prioritizing soil health and carbon sequestration, ii) upgrade two flagship plants in Italy (Matrica - Porto Torres, Versalis - Crescentino) and iii) realize Large-scale cultivations, i.e., safflower (Carthamus tinctorius), validating innovative agronomic practices with farmer involvement. RUNFASTER partners will demonstrate downstream processing and cascading valorisation of biomass, with products tested by end-user industries to meet SSbD standards. Sustainability, circularity, and safety will be assessed via Life Cycle and Ecosystem Services methods. RUNFASTER will engage local communities, provide guidelines and training for farmers, and develop an IP-compliant exploitation strategy and business plan for replication. The approach will also be validated in Spain, Greece, Serbia, and Romania on fragile (i.e. contaminated) soils with other crops, such as cardoon and rapeseed.

Textile Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes represent a pivotal opportunity for the European Union to implement circular business models and solidify its position as a global sustainability leader within the textile industry. In the pursuit of this transformative goal, TRUSTex leverages invaluable insights from industrial partners and meticulous guidance from retail experts on the Stakeholder Board. The project's primary focus is to test strategies and formulate recommendations that analyze the feasibility of EPR schemes, pinpointing weaknesses, and proposing solutions. Based upon a robust governance foundation, TRUSTex adopts a holistic approach to cover the pivotal EPR activities; collection, sorting, reuse, and recycling. This multifaceted strategy is designed to identify barriers within these activities, showcasing innovations that directly improve the EU industry's capacity to manage textile waste. Additionally, TRUSTex includes upstream solutions that, while lying outside EPRs activities, have a direct influence on their feasibility. Consequently, the project integrates eco-design on new fibers and the incorporation of Design for Disassembly technologies. Additionally, TRUSTex will develop digital solutions aligned with forthcoming digital product passport and labeling regulations, to facilitate garment identification and traceability. Throughout the project, TRUSTex emphasizes continuous feedback and support from key stakeholders. This engagement ensures that recommendations not only maximize their impact but also align with the needs and secure compliance of industrial partners. In the final stages, a robust dissemination, communication, and exploitation strategy will reach society, consumers, and end-users increasing awareness about the benefits of adopting sustainable and circular business models. As a result, TRUSTex aspires to be a catalyst for positive societal impact, influencing health and livelihood practices across the continent.

The MARMADE project aims to develop sustainable, high-value food and feed ingredients from marine biomass, focusing on crustacean residues (shrimp shells and blue crabs) and seaweed. The key objectives are to 1) establish efficient biorefinery processes for extracting ingredients (pre/postbiotics, vitamins, peptides, oligosaccharides, fats, emulsifiers, and digestibility enhancers); 2) develop innovative food and feed prototypes with improved nutritional and sensory properties; 3) ensure compliance with safety, sustainability, and regulatory standards, paving the way for future market uptake. To achieve these objectives, MARMADE will leverage advanced technologies, including Deep Eutectic Solvents (DESs), Supercritical CO2 extraction, dynamic high-pressure processing (e.g., microfluidization, high-pressure homogenization), wet milling, screw pressing, ultrasonication, and cavitation, to optimize extraction efficiency and maintain the purity of bio-based food and feed ingredients. Key ingredients will be validated through in vitro and in vivo testing, ensuring compliance with safety standards, while consumers’ and end-users’ insights will guide product design to ensure market acceptance, in a multiactor approach. MARMADE aligns with the RIA-05 topic addressing the need for sustainable, affordable bio-based food and feed ingredients. It supports the Circular Economy Action Plan and Zero Pollution Action Plan objectives by valorising marine resources and reducing reliance on petrochemical-based ingredients. The project contributes to the Farm to Fork Strategy by enhancing the nutritional profiles of food products and aligns with the EU Bioeconomy Strategy by fostering bio-based cascading extraction processes. Additionally, MARMADE promotes environmental sustainability by integrating the Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD).