Horizon 2020 addresses this complexity and defines the challenges relating to this sector: "The challenge is to secure supplies of safe and high quality food and bio-based products and to ensure sustainable management of biological resources, contributing to both rural and coastal development and to competitiveness of the European biobased industries, while preserving terrestrial and marine eco-systems, reducing fossil-dependency, mitigating and adapting to climate change and promoting zero-waste and resource efficiency".

Alongside the conference, an exhibition of selected bio-based products will range from food and feed to the prototype of the first bio-based tyre, a collaboration between European and US industry.

ACKNOWLEDGING that the Arctic ecosystems and indigenous communities are particularly at risk because of the biomagnification of persistent organic pollutants and that contamination of their traditional foods is a public health issue,

In particular, the following terms or their usual derivatives (such as bio, eco etc.) or diminutives, alone or combined, shall be regarded as indications referring to the organic production method throughout the Community and in any Community language, unless they are not applied to agricultural products in foodstuffs or feedingstuffs or clearly have no connection with this method of production:

Among the selected projects which are expected to have a direct bearing on agriculture, there will be the development of : - new animal vaccines for cattle and sheep - seaweed extracts as plant nutrients - 2 - - environmentally safe pesticides for olive trees (derived from micro-organisms) - new varieties of maize and tomatoes which are resistant to disease and insects - integrated technologies for the harvesting and processing of maize and sunflowers which bring added-value to the farmer - fish farming techniques for marine species of fish The biodegradable plastics Among the selected projects which focus on industrial applications, there will be : - the extraction and transformation of vegetable oils for the production of lubricants, dete ...[+++]rgents, biodegradable plastics and other uses - the development of biodegradable polymers from bacteria and plants - the use of plant fibres in plastics, pulp and paper processing - the development of natural flavours from plant extracts - the production of galacturonic acid from beet and citrus pulp (used as an acidulant or emulsifying agent, and in food and animal feedstuffs).

For instance, we are working with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and the Alberta Innovates Bio Solutions fund on a pilot project to develop new tools for detecting and monitoring the type of listeria recently implicated in issues concerning food safety and security.