The bioeconomy will receive €170 million under CBE JU 2026

The European Commission launches a key call in April to bring bio-based innovation to market

February 9, 2026
European project funding

At a glance: the essentials of this article

The Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU) will launch, on 23rd April 2026, a call with a budget of €170.7 million to support projects that take bio-based innovation from technological development to industrial deployment. Structured around 13 topics, the call reinforces the market-driven approach of the European circular bioeconomy and promotes collaboration across the entire value chain, with a strong focus on demonstration, replication and industrial uptake.

Innovation Actions – Flagship. Fund projects at TRL 8, with €80 million allocated across 4 topics, targeting first-of-a-kind industrial-scale deployments.

Innovation Actions. Support demonstration in industrial environments at TRL 6–7, with €70 million distributed across 5 topics focused on biomass valorisation and advanced materials.

Research and Innovation Actions. Drive technological developments at TRL 4–5, with €19.5 million allocated to 3 topics addressing key bottlenecks in the bioeconomy.

Coordination and Support Actions. Strengthen industrial uptake and sectoral transition with €1.2 million allocated to 1 topic for coordination and support.

The European Commission has set the timetable and budget for one of its main initiatives to boost the circular bioeconomy in 2026. The new Annual Work Programme of the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU) will mobilise €170.7 million through a call that will open on 23rd April and close on 22nd September, with the aim of funding projects capable of linking research, industry and the market around bio-based products and processes. Structured around 13 topics, the call consolidates the role of this public-private partnership as one of the core instruments of European industrial policy linked to the green transition.

In the words of Damián Muruzábal, Head of the Food and Bioeconomy area at Zabala Innovation, “participating in the CBE JU 2026 call offers organisations a strategic opportunity to position themselves at the forefront of Europe’s circular bioeconomy”. He stresses that “the programme provides access to substantial funding, including flagship projects enabling first-of-a-kind industrial deployment, and offers high visibility within a well-established European bio-based ecosystem”.

CBE JU 2026 also promotes collaboration across the entire value chain, “by bringing together industry, SMEs, research organisations and other key stakeholders, and by providing clear pathways to market, with a strong focus on demonstration, replication and the industrial uptake of funded solutions”, Muruzábal adds.

Structure of the CBE JU 2026 call

The 2026 Work Programme maintains a familiar structure, while reinforcing the emphasis on effective market uptake. The call is organised into different types of actions depending on the technology readiness level (TRL) of the projects, with the aim of covering the full pathway from applied research to deployment under real operating conditions. This approach seeks to reduce the gap between technological development and industrial adoption, one of the recurring challenges in the bioeconomy.

Innovation Actions – Flagship

At the level closest to the market are the Innovation Actions – Flagship (IA-Flagship), targeting projects ready for industrial implementation at TRL 8. This category includes four topics, each with a budget of €20 million and the expectation to fund a single project. One focuses on boosting biorefinery competitiveness through biotechnology. Two topics fall under the Safe and Sustainable by Design approach and address the development of bio-based alternatives for fertilising and/or crop protection products, as well as bio-based solutions for home and/or personal care. The fourth topic targets the diversification of nutritional food ingredient sources, with the objective of strengthening EU resilience and strategic autonomy.

Innovation Actions

An intermediate level is represented by Innovation Actions (IA) aimed at demonstration in industrial environments (TRL 6–7). In this category, CBE JU will fund five topics with €14 million each, with the expectation of supporting two projects per topic. These include biotech routes for the valorisation of residual biomass, bio-based additives to unlock and increase recyclability and/or biodegradability of materials, and the development of bio-based chemicals and/or materials from woody residues. This block is completed by two topics on advanced materials, namely high-performance, circular-by-design, bio-based thermosets and films and coatings for circular packaging.

Research and Innovation Actions

Within Research and Innovation Actions (RIA), the call addresses developments that are still distant from the market but necessary to resolve key technological bottlenecks (TRL 4–5). Three topics will be funded with a budget of €6.5 million each (two projects are expected to be funded per topic) focusing on separation and purification challenges in biorefineries, Safe and Sustainable by Design bio-based polymers from alternative sources, and breakthrough and sustainable bio-based textile fibres. These projects aim to generate the technological basis for future industrial applications.

Coordination and Support Actions

CBE JU 2026 is completed by a Coordination and Support Action (CSA), with a budget of €1.2 million for funding 1 project, aimed at supporting industry in the switch to sustainable and circular bio-based products and processes.

Events linked to CBE JU 2026

Zabala Innovation has a strong track record in this programme and, in the previous CBE JU call, achieved a 45% success rate, well above the average. The consultancy has confirmed its participation in the main events linked to the 2026 call: