Activities responding to this topic should analyse existing food systems to identify potential changes needed to encourage the consumption of diverse required foods and the eating behaviours consistent with the Mediterranean diet.

Proposals should codify and valorise the components of the Mediterranean dietary patterns with the final goal to trigger mechanisms to attract more consumers and ensure greater recognition and competitiveness in markets of healthy Mediterranean food. This should be applied to a great variety of unprocessed or minimally processed foods present in the markets (domestic, regional, international), which are consistent with the Mediterranean dietary pattern, to counteract the mass consumption of unhealthy food.

Proposals should propose new food products and related sustainable food habits, consistent with the Mediterranean diet, that meet consumers’ preferences and acceptability along with tailored business models and marketing strategies. Activities could also propose a new process able to trigger the consumption of components of the Mediterranean diet or a mix between product and process.

Food behaviour drivers should be assessed to foster increasing adherence to the Mediterranean diet, to define how to influence food demand, by raising citizens’ knowledge and awareness; as well as creating enabling environments for healthy and sustainable Mediterranean food choices. In this sense, activities should consider behaviour change initiatives to promote a healthy diet in Mediterranean countries among others, policy advise, communication strategies and awareness and education campaigns targeting in particular children, adolescents, and older adults, also by using attractive and tech-based aged adapted methodologies (e.g. game approaches). Scaling up of best practices already existing in the region, with continuous monitoring of their effectiveness, is encouraged.

The proposal should indicate linkages to relevant EU policies and objectives in the context of the EU Green Deal and relevant Horizon Europe Missions and Partnerships. The relevant SDGs and methodology to contribute to the reporting of SDG indicators should also be included in the proposal.

PRIMA considers that proposals requesting a contribution from the EU in the range of 2 800 000 EUR and with a duration of 36 months, would allow this specific challenge to be addressed appropriately.