GRAINS – Greening Agrifood in Social Economy
An EU funded project to promote the transition of enterprises in the agrifood sector to a more sustainable model.
About
The agri-food sector is both impacted by and contributes to climate change. It can help mitigate climate change by adopting several solutions, including sustainable farming practices, reducing food loss and waste, developing eco-packaging solutions, promoting local markets and sustainable diets and investing in innovative technology to reduce carbon energy and water footprint while ensuring biodiversity. Moreover, faced with growing global demand and resources competition, the EU’s agri-food activities need to be seen in a broader context, linked to energy, biodiversity, health diets and food security.
This sector is vital in achieving the European Green Deal and is supported by the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) In the last years, accelerating the twin transition has become a transversal priority for the European Union, and the social economy plays a crucial role in this twin transition by helping to build a greener and more equitable agrifood sector, promoting inclusive and sustainable models.
In 2022, the European Commission published the Twin Transition Pathway for social economy ecosystem. Social economy players are developing alternative and sustainable food systems. Small and medium-sized agri-food enterprises can promote sustainability by reducing emissions, providing affordable and high-quality food, and generating employment opportunities. However, these SMEs face challenges such as skills gaps, policy restrictions, and funding constraints.
Objectives
GRAINS project aims to address these challenges by providing training on sustainable practices and on how to reduce their environmental footprint.
- Supporting the transition of social economy SMEs towards sustainable and environmentally friendly practices and production processes.
- Promoting the adoption of sustainable technologies and innovations in the agri-food
- Building the capacity and competitiveness of social economy SMEs through knowledge transfer and skills development in sustainable practices.
- Fostering transnational cooperation, best practice sharing, and promoting sustainable practices through awareness-raising efforts.
Outputs
European capacity building trainings
participants
Coaching and mentoring advice services to
SME's
Business advisory services to
SME's
Financial support to
SME's
Opportunity hub
Open Calls
OPEN CALL FOR PROPOSALS FOR FINANCIAL SUPPORT - call closing soon
This Call for Proposals for Financial Support for Social Economy SMEs in Agrifood is open from 29 February 2024 to 28 June 2024 17:00 CET (final deadline). Financial support up to 8175 EUR is granted for 60 Social Economy SMEs from the agrifood sector. Interested to apply? Application process and more details are available in the European Cluster Collaboration Platform. You find the text call also here.
If you are a service provider, there is still possible to apply for admission to the service provider’s pool. For individual assessment please register via the service provider’s application form.
Find here the most recent Service Providers List (updated on the 20th June 2024).
GENERAL INFORMATION ON CAPACITY BUILDING TRAININGS
The trainings are organised between January 2024 and May 2025 online, in English and open to all free of charge but registration is needed.
Check all the information about the training session here.
The next online training is on 27 June on Clusters of Social and Ecological Innovation (CSEIs) and European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIH). Registration are open, please see below.
NEXT ONLINE TRAINING - Registration open! - Capacity Building on Clusters of Social and Ecological Innovation (CSEIs) and European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIH)
The next online training is on 27 June on “Clusters of Social and Ecological Innovation (CSEIs) and European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIH)”. The training will be held online, from 9.25 to 13.30h CET. You can access the full agenda here.
Interested in participating? Register here before the 26 June 13:00 CET. After registration you will receive further information via email.
If you were part of the previous training sessions, you will receive an email containing the link to the upcoming session soon.
Closed Calls
(First round) CALL FOR INTEREST: Coaching and Mentoring Services for Social Economy SMEs on Greening Agrifood
30 participants from Social Economy SMEs in the agrifood sector will be selected to receive support for the implementation of their project. This support includes coaching and mentoring services designed to assist the beneficiaries in assessing their requirements and developing action plans to adopt sustainable practices within their operations.
Find updated information here and apply through this link before the 15 June 2024.
(First round) CALL FOR INTEREST: Specialised Advisory Services for Social Economy SMEs on Greening Agrifood
40 participants from Social Economy SMEs in the agrifood sector will be selected to receive support for the implementation of their project. This support includes advisory services designed to assist the beneficiaries to adopt sustainable practices within their operations.
Find the updated information here and apply through this link before the 15 June 2024.
CALL FOR SERVICE PROVIDERS
Selected Social Economy SMEs will contract verified service providers financed through the grant provided to them by the Financial Facility Program. Read all the information about the call here.
Find here the most recent Service Providers List.
FIRST CALL FOR PARTICIPANTS TO CAPACITY BUILDING ACTIVITIES
Registration for next trainings will be announced individually. Read all the information about the call here.
Training materials
Financial tools for the green transition of small and medium sized enterprises in Social Economy (25 January 2024)
The following materials are available to download:
Agenda
Training material
Presentations
- About the Grains Project
- Community Cooperative of «Vivo Petrolio»
by Pina Sodano, Consorzio Ruini Impresa Sociale - Crowdinvest for CSA – Ackerilla
by Nils Haubner - Examples of Financial Instruments’ Beneficiaries & Operators in the Rural SE Sector in Poland
by Urszula Fila-Kicman, FISE Expert - Financial instruments for greening agrifood in social economy
by Center for Not-for-profit Law - Financial tools for greening agri-food sector in Slovenia
by Štefan Bojnec - Green as a process
by Oana Zglobiu, Patria Credit - Greening the Agrifood in Social Economy
by DIESIS - Public & private procurement: Procurement Corn and Milk Program, Brasov City Hall, Romania
by Center for Not-for-profit Law
Access to technology and digitalisation for the green transition of Social Economy Small and Medium Enterprises (26 March 2024)
The following materials are available to download:
Agenda
Training material
Presentations
-
GRAINS project presentation by Melinda Kelemen
-
Digital Empowerment for Sustainable Growth: Navigating the Green Transition of AgriFood SMEs by Yevhenii Predchenko
-
Increasing the competitiveness and sustainability of enterprises through the implementation of renewable energy sources by Anton Kaspirovych and Promavtomatyka Vinnytsia
-
The Open Food Network by Julian Plagemann
-
Orto magico by Pina Sodano
Info Day Webinar
Watch again the GRAINS Info Day hosted 11 April 2024. In this webinar the project activities and the opportunities it offers to SMEs is explained. You can access here the presentation in pdf.
#GRAINSforaGreenerFuture campaign
We are spreading awareness about how social economy economy organistions are reshaping the agrifood sector. Prioritising people, they forge direct connections between producers, consumers, and communities for a more sustainable future.
In the agrifood sector, social economy is pivotal in promoting sustainability and fostering social cohesion through food. It serves as a catalyst for employment, addressing social challenges, and driving local economic growth.
Explore initiatives leveraging food for dual benefits—environmental and societal. Here, we showcase inspiring SMEs in the agrifood sector, illustrating their transformative impact on society and providing insights for replication.
Discover how these initiatives aligned with the 14 action areas defined in the Transition Pathway for Proximity and #socialeconomy by the European Commission.
Do you want to highlight your SMEs through our campaign?
Contact us at grainsproject@diesis.coop
Partnership
To achieve the project objectives, a strong and synergical consortium has been set up, composed of 6 organisations in 5 countries: Belgium, Germany, Romania, Italy and Ukraine.
Diesis - Coordinator
www.diesis.coop
Associazione Generale Cooperative Italiane
www.agci.it
Consorzio Ruini Societa' Cooperativa Consortile Impresa Sociale
www.consorziomeuccioruini.it
innova eG
www.innova-eg.de
Charitable Organization Platform for Social Change
www.social-change.com.ua/ukrainian-social-academys-en
Asociatia Centrul Pentru Legislatie Nonprofit
www.clnr.ro
The consortium partners are directly supported by 3 associated partners: EURO COOP that brings together 20 national movements of consumer co-operatives in Europe, plus PRACTICO, a part of Smart People business school in Ukraine, and Leaders International ASBL
Newsletter
Contact
Diesis Network
Boulevard Charlemagne 74
1000 Brussels – Belgium
TVA BE 0460304689
Tel: +32.2.543.10.43
diesis@diesis.coop
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
Project number 101127575