Proposals should support the implementation of the European Data Strategy in food systems. Proposals should build on recent research and innovation about new architectures for managing online identity, personal and other data as an alternative to current dominant models. They should pilot new approaches to digital solutions in food systems and nutrition, which enhance personal data protection and data sovereignty, and which achieve a fairer distribution of wealth and benefits. The pilots should test and fine-tune new approaches that address the lack of sovereignty of European citizens on food and nutrition related data, and allow them to decide what is done with their data (purchasing data, data on dietary behaviour, nutritional health data, physical activity data). This data also includes the data that is generated by smart connected devices used by citizens. The tools and concepts of the pilots can include consent management tools, personal information management apps, as well as personal data cooperatives or trusts acting as novel neutral intermediaries in the personal data economy.

Proposals and their pilots should demonstrate the feasibility of achieving a more acceptable trade-off between the need for data-driven innovation in food and nutrition and the need for personal data protection and data sovereignty. They should be focused on 2 key areas of digital transformation and data driven innovation in food systems (such as online food retail, home delivery of food, personalised nutrition, digital tracking of food and nutrition related consumer behaviour, food advertising).  Proposals should explain and map how the pilots will achieve co-benefits relevant to the four Food 2030 priorities. Proposals should make explicit their capacity to attract top talent, to bring about disruptive innovation in line with EU policy objectives, to engage with a broad range of with food system actors and stakeholders as well as with communities and citizens, to deliver a solid value-adding services package to the third party projects, as well as their expertise and capacity in managing the full life-cycle of the open calls transparently.

Proposals may provide support to third parties to develop and implement the pilots. This support to third parties can only be provided in the form of grants. As a reference, 50% of the EU funding can be allocated to financial support to the third parties, through grant amounts that are in the  €150,000 to 300,000 range.  Proposals should focus their support for the pilots on third party projects from outstanding academic research groups, start-ups and SMEs, so that multiple third parties can be funded in parallel contributing to the same key area of digital transformation and data driven innovation, using short research cycles targeting the most promising ideas. (further details for the selected third parties projects, see page 535 of the work document)