FOSC projects end-term workshop
The FOSC projects final workshop was a hybrid meeting organized in Montpellier at the Université Paul Valéry on 27 May 2025. The meeting was back-to-back with the FOSC General Assembly on 26 May and the FOSC – Green ERA-Hub meeting on Widening on 28 May. All 22 projects from both calls were required to attend the final workshop and to present the main outcomes from their project. It was a very fruitful and full day.
Participants were welcomed by Hans-Jörg Lutzeyer, DG RTD representative. The first block of project presentations was filled by the projects IPSUS, Olive3P, CHIAM, BICEPS and SUS-Agri-CC. These were all projects that focused on circular food systems and the upcycling of side streams.
After the coffee break the presentations of the projects ThermoK, PHEALING, BIO-BELIEF, C4C and CRRIsP followed. A common thread among these research projects is their emphasis on laboratory-based investigation, particularly focusing on building blocks of biomass and plant characteristics. The block with presentation after lunch included the projects CREATE, URBANFOSC, SAFOODS and SmartDairy. These projects all focused on foods systems in communities and/or cross-border food system trade implications and learnings.
The next blocks of presentations included the projects CLIMAQUA, SECUREFOOD2050, BLUE-CYCLING and AlgaeBrew. These projects all have a role for aquaculture, wastewater or algae in their research on food systems. The projects SALAD, TRUSTFARM and MedAgriFoodResilience all have a stronger focus on resilience of food systems due to the effects of climate change and shocks on food systems. The NutriGreen project unfortunately had to cancel last minute and did not present.
All projects were requested to limit their presentation to 10 minutes, allowing for 5 minutes of questions after each presentation. The project presentations all followed the same format which included the: i) project objectives, ii) key scientific findings, iii) key policy-related findings, iv) innovative solutions, v) expected outputs that can be used in practice, vi) next steps towards reaching impact.
The workshop was physically attended by 34 participants. The online attendance was 50 participants. The hybrid setup allowed many additional project researchers who couldn’t travel to attend the meeting.
The organizing committee of the FOSC Projects Kick-off Workshop:
Nikki De Clercq, Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, BelgiumMartine Vernooij, Wageningen Research, the NetherlandsAnaelle Rabes, National Research Agency, FranceIsabelle Hippolyte, National Research Agency, FranceAnnika Fuchs, Federal Office for Agriculture and Food, GermanyJanina Zierul, Federal Office for Agriculture and Food, Germany
A new brochure about the FOSC projects was made and distributed to celebrate and communicate the final results of each project. The paper version of the brochure was shared with all participants of the event. The brochure includes a word of welcome by the coordinator followed by an introduction to FOSC, the 2019 call, the 2021 call and the outcomes of the FOSC Knowledge Hub. It then presents all projects of the 2019 call and the 2021 with their key results and outcomes and the key publications of each project. De brochure can be downloaded from the FOSC website.
Seeing the results, key-findings, solutions and impact from the 21 projects was inspiring and it shows the success of the joint programming actions. Each project contributes in a different was to sustainable food systems under climate change. The discussions with the coordinators after each presentation were fruitful and the event was considered successful by the participants.