Open topic: Boosting organic farming for a competitive, sustainable and resilient farming sector

Expected Outcome:Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:farmers, advisors, agri-food chain operators, policy-makers, public funders and citizens benefit from new knowledge and knowledge exchange, viable innovations, practices and tools that boost the competitiveness, sustainability (economic, environmental, social) and resilience of the organic farming sector;knowledge and innovations contribute to an improved sustainability of organic farming systems and an overall improved efficiency of the sector, leading to an increased attractiveness of organic farming in Europe and an improved understanding of its contribution to sustainability (economic, social, biodiversity, climate);the EU regulatory framework for organic farming, the Common Agricultural Policy, and the EU’s biodiversity, zero pollution and climate policies are supported by science-based evidence, methodologies and standardized monitoring frameworks. Scope:The Vision for Agriculture and Food[1] recognises organic farming as an approach with potential to ensure an attractive and predictable agri-food sector where incomes enable farmers to thrive, while at the same time delivering several ecosystem services beneficial for the environment, climate and biodiversity. The Vision also recognises the importance of research and innovation (R&I) for sustainable farming approaches, such as organic farming, to thrive. At the same time, the EU Action Plan on the Development of Organic Production[2] attaches a central role to R&I for achieving the Plan’s objectives. In line with this Action Plan, under Horizon Europe, the EU has funded several R&I projects addressing multiple aspects and challenges of organic production. The purpose of this topic is to fill remaining R&I needs to boost the organic farming sector in Europe.Proposals should increase knowledge and develop safe, viable and cost-effective innovations to tackle agronomic, sustainability (social, bi