GRAPPA — Innovation Open Call (cut-off 2)
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GRAPPA
Free GRAPPA intakeGRAPPA funds SMEs that turn agri-food biomass and side-streams into market-ready products — upcycled ingredients for food and non-food uses (cosmetics, nutraceuticals, biosolutions), and the processes and technologies that make this possible.
- Funding
- Lump-sum grant of up to €60,000 per single SME, up to €90,000 per consortium (max 3 SMEs). The €60,000 ceiling applies per SME across cut-off 1 and cut-off 2 combined. Grants must be matched by at least 15% private financial contribution; in-kind personnel does not count.
- Who can apply
- Four categories: SMEs in agri-food production / processing; SMEs in other sectors valorising agri-food biomass; SMEs in other sectors (such as cosmetics or nutraceuticals) valorising their own biomass or side-streams for the agri-food sector; and SMEs offering technology or solutions for biomass valorisation (system integrators, ICT, machinery, packaging). Collaborative projects must include at least one food-processing or food-producing SME.
- Requirements
- TRL ≥ 6 at start, project ≤ 12 months, established in an EU Member State or a country associated to the Single Market Programme.
- Evaluation (new for cut-off 2)
- Two phases. Phase 1 is a pre-selection that tests two things only — whether the project is within the scope of the call, and whether it meets the minimum TRL. The outcome is Yes or No, and only proposals that pass are scored. Cut-off 1 had no such stage.
- Programme
- Run by I4BE, a partnership of leading agri-food clusters across 7 countries and 24 regions.
- Deadline
- 20 Oct 2026— 36 days remaining
- Max grant
- €60,000
- Official source
- https://i4be.eu/grappa/ ↗
Is this the right call for you? 7 conditions decide it
- 01Your project starts below TRL 6. From cut-off 2 onwards this is checked in a knock-out phase, before anyone scores your proposal.
- 02Your input is not a side stream. The guide is explicit: under-utilised biomass that is not a side stream is not eligible under this call.
- 03Your end application is energy, construction, textile or plastics — out of scope even when the input is a genuine agri-food side stream.
- 04You already received €60,000 in cut-off 1. The ceiling per SME applies to both cut-offs combined.
- 05You cannot evidence 15% private financing. In-kind personnel contributions do not count, and proof is required.
- 06Your collaborative project has no food processing or producing SME. At least one is mandatory.
- 07Your feedstock is post-consumer waste or waste water. The eligibility table answers both with a plain No, whatever the intended end product.
Not a match on one of these? Then this call is not the one, which says nothing about the next. Calls open continuously: the free Match Report tells you which call does fit, or tells you plainly that none of them do, and our weekly digest tells you when a call you can enter opens.
Can a single SME apply to GRAPPA, or do you need a consortium?
A single SME can apply, for up to €60,000. A consortium of at most three SMEs can apply for up to €90,000, and must include at least one SME in food processing or producing. Both routes carry the same €60,000 ceiling per individual SME across cut-off 1 and cut-off 2 combined.
What TRL do you need at the start of GRAPPA cut-off 2?
At least TRL 6 at the start of the project. For cut-off 2 this is no longer only a scoring element: the minimum TRL is one of two criteria in a pre-selection phase that ends in a plain Yes or No. A project that intends to reach TRL 6 during the project does not qualify.
How much of the budget do you have to co-finance yourself?
At least 15% of the total project budget, from private financial resources — debt or your own funds — with proof required. Personnel contributed in kind does not count towards that 15%. Grants are paid in two instalments, the first being 50% pre-financing within 30 days of signing the subgrant agreement, so you carry part of the project before the balance arrives.
Which valorisation routes are out of scope?
The call funds upcycled ingredients, products, processes and technologies for food and non-food applications, explicitly excluding energy, construction, textile and plastics. The guide lists three rejected examples outright: biostimulants developed from agricultural by-products, non-edible bioplastics from brewer spent grains, and agri-food by-products for compost.
Why are cut-off 2 applications rejected before they are evaluated?
Because cut-off 2 introduced a two-phase evaluation. Phase 1 tests only whether your project falls within the scope of the call and whether it meets the minimum TRL. The outcome is Yes or No, and only proposals that pass reach the scoring phase. A borderline scope argument that would have earned partial credit under cut-off 1 now removes you from the process entirely.
What score do you need, and can a strong proposal still fail on one section?
Yes, and this is where good proposals die. The maximum is 100 points with an overall threshold of 70, but you must also clear a separate threshold on each of the four award criteria: Technical Excellence, Feasibility and Viability needs 35 of 50; Impact and Sustainability 17.5 of 25; Capacity and Team Expertise 7 of 10; and Budget 10.5 of 15. Missing any single one disqualifies you even if the total is comfortably above 70. Note what that means for the budget section in particular — it carries 15 points and a real threshold, so a poorly justified budget can end an otherwise excellent application. Scores are the average of the evaluators’ marks.
When can you still ask the programme a question?
Until 13 October 2026 at 17:00 CET — a full week before the submission deadline of 20 October. Questions go through the contact form on the call page or to the Single Point of Contact for your country, listed in Annex 1 of the guide. It is worth diarising separately from the submission date: the questions that matter most, about whether your side stream and your valorisation pathway sit inside the scope, are exactly the ones that decide the phase 1 knock-out, and after 13 October you can no longer ask them.
What do you have to do after you win, beyond the project itself?
More than most cascade calls require. Laureates must attend SIRL-tool training, take part in mandatory project activities such as matchmaking preparation and applied system innovation workshops, contribute to a success story campaign, and complete a mandatory impact survey during and after the project. The commitment that needs planning is the pitch presentation at the GRAPPA symposium during the 2nd European Food Biomass and Bioeconomy Summit in June 2027, which requires in-person attendance. Travel costs for it are eligible under the project, so budget them in rather than discovering them later.
Verified against GRAPPA-Call_Applicants-Guide-version-16072026.pdf — 16 July 2026. Official source: https://i4be.eu/grappa/ ↗
If you are a technology provider, we position you under the valorisation-technology route and, where useful, pair you with a food-processing partner. Every question in our readiness intake below maps to a field or eligibility rule of the official application form — start there for a free eligibility and fit assessment.
- Why applications fail before the technology is read
Two administrative things decide a cascade application before its technical merit is weighed. Both are inside your control.
Ready for GRAPPA? Starting is free.
One structured intake, specific to this call. We confirm your fit, quote a fixed price, and only then decide together whether we write your GRAPPA application. No obligation, no sales call.
Prefer your own language? Start the intake in Dutch, French, German, Spanish or Portuguese — we assess in your language and write the application in English.
The calls worth knowing about, once a week.
Cascade calls are not published in one place. Each consortium announces on its own project website, and aggregators run weeks behind. We monitor the sources directly and send what we find, with our own reading of who it actually fits. No pitch, and one reply takes you off the list, the same day.