The European Commission will allocate €186 million in 2024 to fund promotion activities for sustainable and high-quality agri-food products in the EU and abroad.
The promotion campaigns selected in 2024 are expected to feature products from sustainable farming practices.
These practices must contribute to reducing dependency on pesticides and antimicrobials, minimising fertilisation and water pollution, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, enhancing organic farming and improving animal welfare.
The amounts available for campaigns selected in 2024 are split between promotion in the EU internal market and in third countries, with €81.3 million and €85.1 million respectively.
Outside the EU, countries and regions with high growth potential are identified as main promotion targets.
This includes China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and North America, while the United Kingdom remains one of the main export markets for EU agri-food products.
Janusz Wojciechowski, Commissioner for Agriculture said: “Safety, sustainability, and authenticity. These are the defining qualities of European food and drink. These are also the qualities that we reinforce in our promotion policy.
“Our promotion campaigns open new opportunities for our agri-food sector, strengthening its essential contribution to the EU economy, especially in rural areas and remote regions,” he added.
Agri-food promotion
The amount of money allocated to the promotion of agri-food products in 2024 is the same amount that was allocated in 2022 for the same promotion this year.
For 2024, €62 million will be specifically allocated to sustainably produced agri-food products, including €42 million for organic products.
In the 2024 work programme, more than €18 million will be earmarked for the promotion of fresh fruit and vegetables.
An objective set out for 2024 is to increase the awareness of the EU’s quality schemes and products registered as protected designation of origin (PDO), protected geographical indication (PGI) and traditional specialty guaranteed (TSG).
A wide range of bodies, such as trade and producer organisations and agri-food groups responsible for promotion activities are eligible to apply for funding and submit their proposals for the promotion of their agri-food products.
The calls for proposals for the upcoming 2024 campaigns will open from January 18 to May 14, 2024, and they are being run by the European Research Executive Agency.