General Information AIR Programme

Contacts
Website: ec.europa.eu/research/agro1.html

AIR: Agriculture and Agro-Industry including Fisheries Programme of Research and Technological Development

In 2002, CPL Scientific Publishing Services Ltd produced a report entitled Assessment of the Commercial Success of the AIR Programme (1990 -1996)
in the area of Biomaterials & Green Chemicals (Non Food):
Relevance to the Sixth RTD Programme (FP6) under contract QLK5-2000-30141. The Final Report can be downloaded from this site or requested on CD-ROM.

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Introduction
AIR Programme: Final Project Results disseminated under FAIR-CT96-1904
Non-Food Projects
Links to Specific Project Items

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Introduction

This Item focuses upon the selected 'non-food' projects of the European Union's Agriculture and Agro-Industry including Fisheries Programme of Research and Technological Development, which was adopted on 23rd April 1990 as part of the Community's Third Framework Programme. This specific programme concerned all of the agriculture, horticulture, forestry, fishery, aquaculture, and related food and non-food industries, and was jointly managed by the Commission services of DGXII E-2 (Agro-Industrial Research), DGVI FII-3 (Agricultural Research) and DGXIV C-2 (Fisheries Research). The ultimate objective of the programme was not only to help primary production to adapt and respond to changing Community policies, but also to link the primary production sector with the agro-industrial processing sector, by matching the production of land and water-based biological resources and their use by consumers and industry through pre-competitive research, technological development and demonstration. The programme was organised into four distinct scientific and technical areas:

1. Primary production in agriculture, horticulture, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture

2. Inputs to agriculture, horticulture, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture

3. Processing of biological raw materials from agriculture, horticulture, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture

4. End use and products

The programme was implemented through shared cost research and technological development and demonstration projects, concerted actions and accompanying measures such as training grants and studies.

There were three calls for proposals in the lifetime of this programme, the last being in September 1993.

	AIR 1	AIR 2	AIR 3
Proposals received	762	1.014	680
Proposals selected	103	203	124
%	14 %	20 %	18 %
N° of Experts invited	187	240	183

Overall 429 proposals were selected for funding, comprising 3,332 participants from the European Union, with a total research budget of around 780 MECU and an EC contribution of 360 MECU. This CD-ROM includes Items covering 133, or 30% of the total of these projects which have been classified as 'non-food'. Non-food in this context is used as a generic term for research projects dealing with the primary production and processing of biological raw materials for industrial purposes other than food, be it for the production of chemicals and polymers, bioenergy or forest products.

There were four main types of contract supported under the AIR Programme:

Concerted Actions (CA)

Concerted actions aim to coordinate research activities which are already funded by other sources than the Community. The Community provides up to 100% of the costs of the coordination.

Shared Cost (SC)

The Community contributes up to 50% of the total cost of the project or 100% of the additional (marginal) costs.

Demonstration Projects

The Community contribution is normally not more than 30% of the total full cost. The objective is to demonstrate a new product or technology whose feasibility has been approved on a small scale.

Accompanying Measures

Here the Commission within the definition of the specific programme will fund such activities as studies, training and mobility grants, workshops, seminars and publications related to the programme.

Non-Food Projects

The resurgence of interest in non-food sources as an industrial raw material and as a resource for alternative land use in Europe is stimulated by the following factors: a desire to reduce our dependence on imports e.g., oil and paper-pulp; responding to environmental concerns such as the reduction of local air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions; increasing demand for domestic agricultural products of a renewable nature and maintaining rural agricultural employment. The research projects funded within the AIR programme and described in these Items have tried to address the practical problems of increasing land area for industrial crops and trees by researching ways to optimise the introduction, growth, pedo-climatic adaptation, pest control, harvesting, storage, supply, processing and end-use of new and traditional agricultural crops, trees, and agro-industrial wastes for industry.

The diversity of selected non-food projects allowed for their classification into clusters or groups of projects dealing with a specific theme, such as biomass production, bioenergy conversion, forestry or bioplastics (see index for full list of clusters). The 133 projects described on this CD-ROM have involved 1,138 institutes and industries spending a total of around 300 MECU with an EC contribution of 145 MECU or 40% of the total AIR budget. The statistics concerning these projects are detailed in Table 1. In the table the clusters are grouped into the following sectors:

• Biomass for Energy: 2 clusters, 24 projects, 220 participants and 14% of the non-food budget.

• Green Chemicals and Polymers: 4 clusters, 39 projects, 267 participants and 25% of the non-food budget.

• Forestry and Forest Products: 3 clusters, 52 projects, 469 participants and 25% of the non-food budget

• Inputs for Non-Food Crops: 1 cluster, 11 projects, 74 participants and 5% of the non-food budget

• Non-Food Demonstration: 1 cluster, 7 projects, 108 participants and 30% of the non-food budget.

The non-food project portfolio of the AIR programme represents a comprehensive picture of the current drive for alternative land use towards industrial products and touches upon the whole spectrum of activities in this sector. Industrial and private participation was around 20% and the application of generic technologies such as biotechnology and information science was present in many of the projects.

Many of these projects consolidate and build upon previous EC-funded non-food research particularly in the ECLAIR, FOREST, BIOMASS and CAMAR programmes of the Second Framework Programme. The AIR programme funding is now complete and the non-food approach will be expanded upon further in the Fourth Framework Programme which was launched at the end of 1994.

For each of the 133 projects arranged in their respective cluster, the following information is provided:

• Type of proposal, duration, EC reference number, name of Commission scientific officer who follows the contract

• Name and address of co-ordinator and of the participants

• Description of objectives

Photographs depicting the crop, tree, or process technologies involved are also included, where they have been supplied.

The text on AIR projects has been prepared from EC publication EUR 16206EN which contains the following disclaimer which extends to the information presented here.

Every care has been taken in the preparation of this publication and the information is provided in good faith. Nevertheless, the contents cannot be guaranteed to be accurate or complete, and neither the Commission of the European Communities nor any person acting on behalf of the Commission can be held responsible for the contents or for the use which might be made of them. In all cases where information is sought regarding a particular project, contact should be made with the project coordinator.

Also see: EUR 18227 EN
Success Stories from the Agro-Industrial Research Programmes



Click to display AIR Programme Items relating to:

AIR Cluster I - Biomass Production
AIR Cluster II - Bioenergy Conversion
AIR Cluster III - Bioconversion
AIR Cluster IV - Oils and Fats
AIR Cluster V - Speciality Chemicals
AIR Cluster VI - Bioplastics
AIR Cluster VII - Forestry and Forest Products
AIR Cluster VIII - Wood Products
AIR Cluster IX - Forestry
AIR Cluster X - Inputs for Non-Food Crops
AIR Cluster XI - Non-Food Demonstration Projects

Contacts

EC Scientific Officer

• Mr Bernard Von Wullerstorff / Commission of the European Communities / BELGIUM
• Joaquim AZCON BIETO / European Commission DG XII E-2 SDME 8/27 / BELGIUM
• Dieter PIRRWITZ / European Commission DG XII E-2 SDME 8/27 / BELGIUM
• Valentine REILLY / European Commission DG XII E-2 SDME 8/27 / BELGIUM
• Ciarán MANGAN / European Commission - DG Research Quality of Life Programme - Unit B1.2 / BELGIUM
• European Commission DG Agriculture BELGIUM
• Ignacio SEOANE / European Commission DG Research Theme 1 Key Action 5.3 / BELGIUM
• Alexandros ARABATZIS / European Commission DG Research Theme 1 Key Action 5.3 / BELGIUM
• Mr G Rossetto / European Commission DG VI Agriculture BELGIUM
• Adelmo MOREALE / European Commission DG VI Agriculture BELGIUM