In the belly, not the bin – actions to reduce food waste

WHAT CAN YOU APPLY FOR?

Needs-driven and applied research or development projects that aim to develop measures for reducing food waste from the processing to the consumer levels.

WHO CAN APPLY?

Research-performing organisations, companies (not sole proprietorships), public organisations and other organisations that meet Formas’ requirements for administrating organisations. At least one researcher who has completed their PhD must participate in the project. Only multi-party applications that include at least one research organisation and at least one end user (from the business sector, trade or interest organisation, government agency or other public organisation) can receive funding.

HOW MUCH CAN YOU APPLY FOR?

An average of SEK 2 million per year over the years stated in the application. Funding can be sought for a maximum of 3 years and a maximum of SEK 6 million.

Given decision: 2023-11-13 13:00

Preliminary decisions. Please note that only decisions published in Prisma is a guarantee of granted funding.

In the belly, not the bin - actions to reduce food waste

 

Registration number

Applicant First Name

Applicant Second Name

Administrating organisation

Project Title

Funded amount, SEK

2023-01906

Maud

Langton

Sveriges Lantbruksuniversitet

Att stoppa matsvinn från fabrik till tallrik: Återanvändning av industriella proteinbiprodukter för hållbar brödproduktion

 

2023-01908

Christopher

Malefors

Sveriges Lantbruksuniversitet

Minskat matsvinn inom offentliga måltider genom service design

6 000 000

2023-01912

Nicklas

Neuman

Uppsala universitet

Följ maten: Svinnminskande åtgärder i butik; vad händer med maten hemma hos konsumenten?

5 977 622

2023-01916

Sally

Wiggins Young

Linköping universitet

Smaka lite först: Kommunikativa strategier för minskat tallrikssvinn i förskolans måltider

5 938 099

2023-01923

Evelina

Höglund

RISE Reserach Institues of Sweden

Rapspresskaka till goda och hälsosamma livsmedel

5 984 571

2023-01927

Hossein

Shahrokni

Kungliga Tekniska högskolan

Matklok - Minska matsvinn genom att koppla ihop livsmedelspåsen med matavfallspåsen

5 891 988

2023-01931

Cecilia

Geijer

Chalmers Tekniska högskola

MINSKA - Levande Material för att förhINdra förSKämning Av skördade frukter och grönsaker

6 000 000

2023-01936

Pedro

Brancoli

Borås universitet

Skräddarsydda tillvägagångssätt för att förebygga matsvinn: kontextspecifika åtgärder inom storkök

5 848 552

2023-01938

Fiona

Lambe

Stockholm Environment Institute

Beteendedesign för att minska hushållens matsvinn i samarbete med den offentliga sektorn

5 321 660

A third of all food produced in the world is thrown away and does not end up on people’s plates. Food waste occurs throughout the whole food system, but the largest amount of food waste occurs in the households. Each year, we waste roughly 15 kilos of edible food per person in Sweden. This weakens the resource efficiency of the food system in terms of land use, the supply of capital, inputs, energy consumption and labour. By increasing our understanding of people’s attitudes and behaviours around food waste and by developing food processing in industry and production, we can improve access to high-quality food while easing the burden on the environment. To a greater extent, more food from production should end up in the stomach and feed more people.

For these reasons, Formas is announcing funding for needs-driven and applied research or development projects that aim to develop measures for reducing food waste at the processing and consumer levels. In order for the results to create benefits in society and in the food sector, we see great value in collaboration among academia, the business community, the public sector and other stakeholders.

Food waste refers to food products that are intended for human consumption, but for various reasons do not advance in the food chain to be eaten.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) estimates that about one third of all food produced in the world is lost or wasted each year. At a global level, sustainable development target 12.3 calls for halving per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels. At the national level, Sweden has two interim targets for reducing food waste: “The total food waste must be reduced by at least 20% by weight per capita from 2020 to 2025” and “An increased share of produced food must reach stores and consumers by 2025, so as to avoid food losses”. The Swedish National Food Agency, the Swedish Board of Agriculture and the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency have developed a joint action plan for reducing food waste together with relevant stakeholders. The plan states that there is a need to acquire and develop more knowledge on various waste-related issues. Reducing food waste is also mentioned in the national strategy for sustainable consumption, as part of sustainable food consumption. Reducing food waste is a key development area for making the food system more resource efficient, both in Sweden and worldwide, and many of the waste issues need to be solved in collaboration.

The term “food waste” can be interpreted and used in different ways. In this call, we define food waste as food products that are intended for human consumption, but for various reasons do not advance in the food system to become food that people eat. It is food that could have been eaten or sold if it had been processed differently.

We need more innovative product development, business development and processing in which food and raw materials that are not used to a significant extent instead go to human consumption. Advances in technology and logistics are needed for the food system, such as packaging solutions that further reduce food waste and increase profitability. The right forecasting, distribution and ordering tools are essential for preventing food waste in the processing chain and retail trade, for example.

Rules, rule enforcement and date marking in the food system are other factors that can influence food waste. For example, there might be a lack of knowledge about how to interpret rules in order to prevent waste or that measurements to prevent waste are clarified in different certifications and quality assurances Regulations on exporting food products are also relevant, since the export of food products with a low market value in Sweden should be promoted to further reduce food waste.

More innovative outreach initiatives and educational approaches, tools and instruments are needed in the shift to sustainable consumption with reduced food waste and increased resource efficiency. Considering the circumstances of different consumers with regard to age, gender, background and financial situation can raise consumer awareness and give stakeholders at all levels the chance to reduce their environmental impact in combination with higher profitability.

Food waste raises questions about how much we know about which foods should be thrown away and our relationship to food. Why do we get rid of such large quantities of completely edible foods like fruits, vegetables, bread and dairy products? How do approaches to food differ depending on social group? For example, what is the significance of age, gender and socio-economic background for food consumption and waste?

The consumer is dependent on how the store chooses to present the food products. How are foods marketed, priced and placed in the store for the consumer from a waste perspective? The companies in the food chain are also affected by the increased prices of, for example, raw materials, energy and inputs and have incentives to increase productivity.

A greater focus on preparedness and self-sufficiency, both at the national level and among households, can increase the demand for food with a longer shelf life, which can help reduce food waste as well as boost the resilience of the food system.

The call aims to promote measures for reducing food waste. The research should be applied, needs-driven and of the highest scientific quality. Applicants must address current topics and solutions for meeting the needs around reduced food waste and should increase expertise in the field. The call includes food waste in processing, consumption, logistics and distribution in the food system, among other phases. This does not exclude a system perspective, even if the project focuses on one part of the value chain. Projects can take international perspectives into account but must aim to reduce food waste in Sweden.

Formas encourages interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary approaches. A wide range of topics and themes are needed for growing the knowledge base for reduced food waste. For example, the following areas are considered to be significant for research and development within the framework of this call:

  • Promoting new technologies, packaging, and innovative solutions to increase resource efficiency and reduce food waste in the food system.
  • Improving how commercial kitchens, in both the public sector and restaurants, work to reduce their food waste.
  • Investigating how to prevent food waste in logistics and distribution systems.
  • Investigating opportunities to increase consensus among stakeholders and harmonise rules and rule enforcement to reduce food waste.
  • Increasing knowledge about how the development of governance, policies, marketing, and nudging can affect consumption patterns in order to reduce food waste.
  • Examining how greater consensus among stakeholders and clearer regulatory enforcement can reduce food waste at the processing and consumer levels, while maintaining food quality and safety.
  • Examining the effectiveness of various waste reduction measures, mainly at the consumer level but also in other parts of the food system.
  • Examining how awareness-raising measures as well as changed attitudes and behaviours can decrease food waste among consumers.
  • Increasing knowledge about how norms and social and cultural attitudes characterise behaviours around food, with the aim of reducing food waste.

The following areas are not included in the call:

  • Projects that aim to find uses other than food, such as using residual products, residual streams for feed or for energy.
  • Food losses in primary production.
  • Measurement and follow-up of waste.
  • Research on public health and nutrition.

For applied research projects, the combination of evidence-based research with practice-based and experience-based research is of great value. Collaboration among different stakeholders in the food system and researchers from a range of disciplines creates a solid foundation for scalability and dissemination of knowledge, new methods and solutions. The projects must therefore be multi-party projects, with at least one party being the research-performing organisation and at least one party an end user from the business community, public sector or other relevant organisation, such as a trade or interest organisation.

The projects can last between 12 and 36 months and include a total grant of a maximum of SEK 6 million for a 36-month project (three project years). Project grants can total a maximum of SEK 2 million per year on average over the years stated in the application. The total budget for this call is SEK 50 million.

This call is part of the national research programme on food. The need for research and development in this field has been identified in the research programme’s strategic research agenda, “Towards a sustainable and competitive food system” and is aligned with the national action plan for reduced food waste, “Swedish action plan for reducing food waste External link.”.

Research-performing organisations (higher education institutions or research institutes), companies (not sole proprietorships), public organisations and other organisations that meet Formas’ requirements for administrating organisations can apply for funding.

The call is aimed at project teams in which at least one project party is from a research-performing organisation and at least one is an end user from the business community, the public sector or other relevant organisation, such as a trade or interest organisation. The project team should include at least one researcher who has a doctoral degree, but this person does not have to be the coordinating project party (main applicant). Other participants do not need to have a doctoral degree.

IMPORTANT: Only legal entities can apply in the call. Therefore, sole proprietorship businesses cannot apply for funding or participate in projects.

Matchmaking April 24

Before you apply

All information about the contents of an application, the application process and the assessment process is described in the sections below.

Print-friendly version of the call text External link.

Any changes to the call text will be listed below Revision history.

  • To ensure scientific quality, the project team must include at least one researcher who has a doctoral degree. However, this person does not have to be the main applicant (project leader).
  • The main applicant (project leader) must have a personal account in Prisma in order to register the project application. Project participants must also have a personal account in Prisma in order to register CVs and any publications relevant for the application. Create a personal account in Prisma External link..
  • An applicant is not allowed to submit the same application with different main applicants in this call. All completed applications that have the same content will be rejected.
  • The main applicant can only submit one application in this call. However, you can be a project participant in several applications as long as the applicant’s total grant amount, distributed over the projects, does not exceed 100 percent.
  • The main applicant is allowed to have an ongoing grant from one of Formas’ targeted national or international calls, from the annual open call or from both, as long as the applicant’s total salary distributed over the projects does not exceed 100 percent of the grant amount.
  • Private companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity that want to apply for a grant from Formas are subject to state aid regulations. See the section “State aid regulations for companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity”.
  • The project duration must be 12, 24 or 36 months (meaning one, two or three years).

The call welcomes applicants from higher education institutions and research institutes, and from companies and other organisations that can become administrating organisations for an individual project. The administrating organisation is the organisation that receives and administers the funds Formas awards. You can apply to become an administrating organisation in Prisma. However, it is important to do this well in advance of registering the project application but no later than 11 May 2023 so that Formas has time to process your request. See also “Main applicants from organisations that can become administrating organisations for an individual project”.

  • The administrating organisation is a coordinating project party that manages the application for all project parties in Prisma, via the project leader.
  • The administrating organisation is the organisation that receives and administers the funds that Formas pays out to an awarded project and that distributes these funds to other project parties as decided by Formas.

When you apply for project funding, you can apply for a grant to cover both direct and indirect costs. Direct costs include, for example, staff expenses and operating costs. Indirect costs are costs that are shared with others in your organisation, such as for administration, IT and renting of premises. Indirect costs are sometimes called overhead.

Private companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity that want to apply for a grant from Formas are subject to state aid regulations. See the section “State aid regulations for companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity”.

Grants from Formas can be used to fund research, development and innovation that are partly conducted outside Sweden, although the research must be initiated and managed from Sweden. Note that companies or other organisations engaged in economic activity outside Sweden cannot receive grants in this call. The administrating organisation must be located in Sweden and approved by Formas. This organisation is responsible for hiring any foreign staff if necessary or reimbursing costs for activities or services outside Sweden, in accordance with the administrating organisation’s guidelines.

In this call, you can seek a grant for projects that run for a maximum of 36 months (three project years). The maximum grant for a 36-month project is SEK 6 million.

Project grants can cover a maximum of SEK 2 million per year, on average, over the years stated in the application. So, applicants can apply for more than SEK 2 million during one year as long as the amount sought during another year of the project period is less than SEK 2 million. If the total amount applied for exceeds the average annual amount of 2 million, the application will be rejected.

The project start date is predefined in Prisma and cannot be changed, since funding for the entire first year of the project will be paid out in 2023. Project funds can be used for up to 12 months after the end of the project. A final financial report must be submitted within three months after the project ends.

You should write application in English, since the review panel that will assess your application is international. If you do write your application in Swedish, a professional translator will translate into English only the section describing the research programme. You will not be able to change the translation before the application proceeds to assessment. However, the popular science description must be written in Swedish, while the abstract should be in both Swedish and English. Your budget specification and CV will not be translated. We therefore prefer that you write these in English, even if you otherwise write in Swedish and submit the application in the Swedish version of our application system.

Please be aware that if you have installed an automatic translation plugin in your browser, you risk having your text translated into the language that you have set as the default when you paste your text into Prisma. We recommend that you check the language of your text in good time before you submit the finalised application.

According to Swedish law, your application and its appendices are considered as general public documents once they have been submitted to us. This means that anyone can request and read your application. Information can only be concealed if it is confidential as defined in the Public Access to Information and Confidentiality Act (2009:400). Therefore, your application should not contain the personal data of anyone who is not included in the application.

The popular science description and project abstracts in Swedish and English will, if the project is awarded funding, be published in open-access project databases without a confidentiality review. Therefore, the contents of these fields should not contain sensitive information.

We at Formas are eager to fund projects that maximise positive and minimise negative impacts on the environment and climate. We therefore encourage grant applicants to design their projects so that collaboration takes place primarily through online meetings and that any necessary travel takes place in a climate-smart way. We also suggest that you include measures that minimise energy use and other resource consumption, emissions and waste in project planning. However, this will not be part of the assessment of your application at this time.

Please read about Formas’ own sustainability work.

How to apply

You apply for a grant in our application system, Prisma, where you add the information you need for your application.

Please read these instructions carefully, even if you have previously applied for a grant from Formas.

The information and instructions that follow describe personal and organisation accounts in Prisma.

Personal account

The main applicant who fills in the necessary information and registers the application must have a personal account in Prisma. If the main applicant does not have a personal account, he or she must apply for it in good time before the call closes, no later than 13 May 2023.

Apply for a personal account in Prisma External link..

Organisation account

When the main applicant fills in the application form in Prisma, they must select the administrating organisation and so-called project site from the respective drop-down lists. The available project sites are retrieved from the organisational structure based on the organisation account settings defined by the manager of the organisation account. The administrating organisation represented by the main applicant (the coordinating project party) must have an organisation account in Prisma when applying for funding.

If your organisation has not previously been an administrating organisation for Formas’ funds, then your organisation must apply for an organisation account with Formas in Prisma. Note: Other project parties do not need an organisation account and should therefore not apply for one.

Main applicants from administrating organisations for all types of calls

In most cases, higher education institutions, research institutes and government agencies already have an organisation account in Prisma. The account will appear in the default list of administrating organisations in the application form.

Main applicants from organisations that can become administrating organisations for an individual project

Companies, municipalities, trade associations and other organisations can apply to become administrating organisations for an individual project. A decision to approve an organisation as an administrating organisation in these cases is taken when grants are awarded in the call. Prior to any decision, Formas conducts credit checks on all companies and organisations engaged in economic activity that might be awarded a grant. However, it is important that the organisation has an account with Formas in Prisma before the project leader begins applying for a grant in the call.

Organisation account for organisations that can become administrating organisations for an individual project

  • If the organisation already has an account in Prisma, contact our research officer Maria Rogell at maria.rogell@formas.se to request to be added to Prisma’s list of default administrating organisations for this call. State your organisation number in your email, even if your organisation was approved as an administrating organisation in one of Formas’ previous calls.
  • If your organisation does not have an account in Prisma, an appropriate representative should apply for the organisation account on the Prisma website. In the reason for your application, indicate that you want to apply for funding in Formas’ call “In the stomach, not the bin – measures for reducing food waste”, the type of organisation and the organisation number.
    Apply for an organisation account in Prisma External link.
  • If you do not know whether the organisation has a Prisma account, contact Formas research officer Maria Rogell at maria.rogell@formas.se before you apply for a new account. State your corporate identity number.

It is important for the main applicant to apply in good time for an organisation account for the intended coordinating project party (the administrating organisation) if it is not listed in Prisma, but no later than 11 May 2023.

Project site – create a structure to describe your organisation

To be able to register the application, the organisation must specify its domicile. A project site can be an institution, department or project specialisation. The person who manages the organisation account must create a structure containing units and subunits (project sites). If the organisation does not have departments, specify a unit that has the same name as the project specialisation, for example. Prisma’s user support contains information about how to do this. The organisation must have at least one project site because this information is mandatory when the main applicant registers the application.

Learn more about creating project sites and viewing levels for project sites in Prisma External link.

All limits for the maximum number of characters refer to characters including spaces. We recommend that you choose the Arial font in font size 12 for the information you enter in all text boxes.

Note that if you write your application in word processing software and then paste it into Prisma, the formatting might disappear.

So, tables and figures that contain advanced formatting or formulas should be uploaded as an attachment in order to prevent the loss of valuable information.

Your application must include a clear description of the project under the following sections:

Basic information

  • Number of months applied for (12, 24 or 36).
  • Start month: December 2023. The start month is predefined in Prisma and cannot be changed.
  • Project title in Swedish and English (max. 200 characters including spaces).
  • Popular science description in Swedish (max. 4,500 characters including spaces).
  • Abstract in Swedish and English (max. 1,500 characters each, including spaces). The popular science description and project abstracts for awarded projects will be published in open-access project databases without a confidentiality review. Therefore, the contents of these fields should not contain sensitive information.

Project description

Note the review panel’s criteria for each of the following three parts of the project description.

  • Project’s relevance and potential (max. 8,000 characters, including spaces). Describe the goal of the project and how it relates to the purpose and focus of the call. Describe the research or current level of development that underpins the project and why it is important to conduct the project. What impact will the expected results have?
  • Project implementation (max. 15,000 characters, including spaces). Describe how the project activities will be carried out. Specify the project plan, including tasks, and schedule. Specify a plan for how the project’s results will achieve real-world impact. Also reflect on how gender equality and diversity have been integrated in the project.
  • Project parties (max. 8,000 characters, including spaces). Describe which experts are available for the project as well as their importance for the project’s implementation and real-world impact. Describe the participation of the parties and the interaction with relevant stakeholders and users. Also reflect on how gender equality and diversity have been taken into account in the composition of the project team.
  • References (max. 5,000 characters, including spaces). List the in-line references in a separate field.

Budgeted expenses, funding and other information

The main applicant is responsible for filling in the application using information from their own organisation and the other participating project parties. Depending on the organisational affiliations of the parties, different rules apply for funding the project costs of the parties.

In Prisma, you state the project budget, funding and other information about all the organisations participating in the application. Note that you should always write the budget and budget specification in English; any Swedish budget specification will not be translated but will instead be assessed as is by the international review panel. In Prisma, write out the total amount you are applying for in kronor using digits. For example, SEK 1 million should be written as: 1 000 000 kronor.

Note that the first payment to an awarded project will be made in December 2023, but you should state the budget for 2024, 2025 and 2026.

Information to be stated for all project parties

The following mandatory information must be completed for each party in the project. The information should be collected and filled in by the coordinating project party (main applicant). The coordinating project party’s organisation must be the same as the one stated as the administrating organisation.

  • Name of the organisation
  • Corporate identity number
  • Address, postal code, city, country
  • Annual turnover (the total sales or turnover of the higher education institution, research institute, company or organisation during the previous fiscal year), stated using digits. Example: 3 500 000.
  • Balance sheet total (the sum of either the assets page or liabilities and equity from the company’s or organisation’s balance sheet), stated using digits. Example: 5 500 000.
  • Number of employees
  • Contact person
  • E-mail of contact person
  • Name of the workplace, address, postal code, city and country where most of the work will be carried out.

Costs for the coordinating project party and project participants

  • Personnel costs: Eligible staff expenses for companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity may be estimated at a maximum of the actual cost. Higher education institutions or research institutes are not subject to this limitation. The amount that employees of higher education institutions or research institutes may be awarded must not exceed 100% of full-time employment. So, someone who already has full salary funding from any funding source cannot receive additional salary funding. Researchers who are full-time pensioners cannot receive funding for their own salary.
  • Equipment, buildings and land: The maximum amount you can be granted for equipment and equipment depreciation costs is SEK 500,000.
  • Consultancy and licensing costs: For the costs of consultancy services and licenses to be eligible for funding, they must be purchased or licensed from external providers at market prices, and their services and scope must be stated in the project description.
  • Other direct costs: Other direct costs can include the cost of consumables, travel, conferences and publication fees for open-access journals and databases.
  • Indirect costs: Higher education institutions and research institutes may charge a markup for indirect costs according to the applicable full-cost pricing method. Other project participants may charge a markup for indirect costs of up to 30 percent of their eligible staff expenses. Formas does not grant funds for overhead on costs that you write off for equipment or for premises.

Financing for the coordinating project party and project participants

There are four types of funding an applicant can specify in the application:

  • Applied funding from Formas: Indicates the amount requested from Formas under the call. The amount cannot exceed the total or the annual costs. If the amount sought is less than the total costs, the remaining amounts will be automatically calculated and reported under “Self-finance”.
  • Other funding (state): If Formas or another public funder has provided funding for related projects. Enter the name of the funding organisation if other funding will be received.
  • Other funding (private): If another private company or organisation has provided funding for the project. Enter the name of the funding organisation if other funding will be received.
  • Self-finance: If the project party contributes its own funding, this is calculated automatically and displayed in this field. Self-financing is calculated as costs less the grant amount sought and other public or private funding received.

Budget specification

Justification of budgeted personnel costs for project participants

Here, you specify the average hourly cost for budgeted staff expenses. This refers to salaries including social security contributions and other mandatory charges associated with salaries. (Max. 500 characters including spaces.)

Justification of the total project budget

Here, you specify further information by explaining the budget in your own words. Explain the overhead costs in the application according to the practice of the higher education institution or public organisation that is the project party.

Also indicate whether you will have consultancy costs, which consultant will be engaged and the scope of the consultant’s participation. Also indicate which project party or parties are responsible for the consulting costs. Formas does not grant funding for overhead costs that you write off for equipment or premises. Please clearly describe all costs related to the project activities. (Max. 9,000 characters, including spaces.)

How the main applicant fills in and verifies the budget and specifies other information

Coordinating project party

  1. Fill in the information for the coordinating project party.
  • State the company or organisation including related details.
  • State the workplace location where the majority of the project will be conducted including the related details.
  1. Fill in the costs for the coordinating project party.
  • Click
  • The columns displaying the years come from the calculated project time under Basic Information. To edit the project duration, go back to Basic Information in the application.
  • Fill in the costs for each type of cost and year.
  • Total costs are automatically calculated in the Total fields.
  1. Fill in the funding amounts for the coordinating project party.
  • Click Edit.
  • Fill in the requested grant from Formas, per year.
  • If applicable, fill in any funding received from another public funder.
  • If applicable, fill in any funding received from a private funder.
  • Self-financing is calculated automatically based on what is stated in the cost and financing section.
  • Total funding is calculated automatically in the Total fields.
  • Enter the name of the funding organisation if other funding will be received.
  • The aid intensity is calculated automatically as a percentage.
  • The co-funding level is calculated automatically as a percentage.
  • In the justification field, state how you calculated the average hourly expense for budgeted personnel costs.

Project party

  1. Click Add project party to add the parties that will participate in the project besides the coordinating project party (the administrating organisation).
  2. For each project party, complete the information, budget and funding sections in the same way as described for coordinating project parties. See the section Coordinating project party above. Information for the project party is filled in regardless of whether or not you apply for a grant (funding) from Formas. If the project parties are not applying for funding from Formas but are participating in-kind, budgeted costs must be stated for these parties. So, enter “0” in the field “Applied for grant from Formas” under the Financing section.
  3. Note that any subcontractors to the applicant is not a project party in the application.

At the bottom, the total costs of the project and the total funding for the project are automatically calculated from the totals added together from the budget tables of the coordinating project party and other project parties.

Check how you filled in the budget tables well in advance before registering your application. Applications with incorrectly completed budgets can be rejected. Check all budget tables per project party, including coordinating project partner, as well as the tables for project costs and project funding, which aggregate totals from the tables for each project party based on the following information you have entered:

  • All the project parties involved in the project.
  • The requested grant amount from Formas for the project parties who wish to receive a grant from Formas.
  • Costs for all the parties involved in the project, regardless of whether or not they will receive a grant.
  • Any other funding for the project parties, if applicable.
  • Self-financing under the state aid rules for companies and other organisations, if applicable.

State aid regulations for companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity

Private companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity that want to apply for grants from Formas must follow specific regulations on state aid. The regulations are based on the principle of EU law, which states that aid to private enterprises normally distorts competition but that certain exemptions are allowed.

The aid intensity that Formas can offer depends on the size of the organisation and the type of activities in the project. The organisation’s size is assessed using the EU definition of small and medium-sized enterprises. Activities will primarily be assessed on the basis of Article 25, “industrial research”, of the General Block Exemption Regulation EU 651/2014.

In addition, de minimis aid can also be a possible basis for granting aid. The maximum de minimis aid an organisation can receive is 200,000 euros over three consecutive fiscal years. Any de minimis aid received by a company or organisation must be totalled and reported. If the project party is part of a group of companies, all aid within the group should be totalled. For projects in which this might be the case, Formas will ask the applicant to fill in a special form , 39.9 kB. during the review process.

Note that sole proprietorship businesses cannot be granted funding under this call or participate as a party to projects that are applying in Formas’ calls. Companies that do not have a Swedish corporate identity number cannot be granted funding but can participate in-kind.

The Formas website contains more information about the State aid regulations – for companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity.

Conditions governing the aid intensity a project party (including coordinating project party) that is a company or other organisation engaged in economic activity may receive:

  1. Identify the type of organisation – company, association or other organisation engaged in economic activity – that is subject to the state aid rules. The factor that determines if the beneficiary is considered to be engaged in an economic activity is whether the organisation offers products or services on a market.
  2. Identify the size of your organisation. See the User guide to the SME definition External link..
  3. Identify which paragraph in the aid regulations your project concerns. This call will apply the definitions of industrial research, aid for research and development in the fisheries and aquaculture sector as well as de minimis aid. See Table paragraphs and aid intensities External link..
  4. In the table, check which aid intensity (applied for funds from Formas plus other public funding) your organisation can receive to cover the costs it incurs in the project. Also check which part of the cost, and how much, should be covered by your own funds.

Ethical considerations

You should specify whether or not there are specific ethical concerns in your project. If so, state what these ethical concerns are and how you plan to manage them. Examples include research that uses personal data or research involving experiments on humans or animals.

If you are conducting research on humans or human tissue or are processing sensitive personal data, you must submit an application for ethical review to the Swedish Ethical Review Authority and have it approved. If you are conducting an animal experiment, you also need to obtain approval from a relevant animal ethics board.

You should state in your application whether or not you have obtained a valid ethical approval. If you have not obtained such approval and you are awarded a grant, you must obtain it before the described studies begin.

Even if you do not expect your research to involve ethical concerns, you should state this in your application and briefly explain why not.

Classifications

Formas uses the project’s classifications in analyses and supporting documentation on an overall level. The classifications are made when the applicant states the subject area, research subject (SCB code), at least one sustainable development goal the project can contribute to, and keywords.

  • Subject area
    Select the project’s subject area and add a sub-heading.
  • Research subject (SCB code)
    Select at least one research subject and two sublevels that together form the entire code.
  • Keywords
    Enter at least one and a maximum of three keywords describing the project.

Administrating organisation – the organisation receiving the grant

In Prisma, the coordinating project party is called an administrating organisation because this is the organisation that will receive and administer the funds Formas pays out to awarded projects.

  • Select the administrating organisation from the dropdown list. If you cannot find the organisation that will be the main applicant, see “Organisation account for organisations that can become administrating organisations for an individual project” under “How to apply”.
  • Select the project site from the dropdown list. If you cannot find the correct project site, see “Project site – create a structure to describe your organisation” under “How to apply”.

Project participants

  • The main applicant invites participating researchers/participants who can add and edit their CVs and publications via Prisma. The main applicant and participating researchers/participants fill in the fields that are applicable.
  • Each participant must have created their own user account in Prisma.
  • The main applicant adds the project participants, regardless of whether they are participating researchers or other participants, using the feature Invite participating researchers. The applicant invites participating administrators to be part of the application process by searching for their given name, surname and email address (the exact spelling of names and email addresses is required).
  • Note that invited participating researchers must accept the invitation to become a participating researcher and transfer their CVs and publications to the application so that the main applicant can register the application when it is ready. See the next section, “CVs”.
  • The main applicant can also add a participating administrator who is not part of the project but who helps to fill out the application in Prisma. This is done through the invite participating administrator Search for the administrator’s given name, surname and email address (the exact spelling of name and email address is required).

IMPORTANT: The main applicant cannot register their application if there are any unanswered invitations to participating researchers/participants or participating administrators. In that case, they must first be removed.

CVs

The CV should contain:

Education. Undergraduate, graduate and any post-graduate education.

Professional history. Current job and previous jobs that are relevant. Any relevant postdoctoral stays and research exchanges as well as significant gaps in research (such as parental leave, illness, military service or political duties).

Merits and awards:

  • Docentur (lectureships).
  • Supervised persons: State any PhD students, postdocs and graduate thesis students you have supervised; add either as an individual person or as a group. When adding a group, enter the total number for each category. When adding an individual person, name the most relevant ones (max. 10).
  • Research grants awarded in competition: Specify the most relevant ones (max. 10).
  • Awards and distinctions: Specify the most relevant ones (max. 10).
  • Other merits, including summary of publications: Here, the main applicant (if a researcher) and participating researchers should provide a brief summary of their publications over the past five years as well as the total number of publications if the applicant’s active research period exceeds five years (max. 800 characters including spaces).
    This summary should include the following:
    • The number of publications of various types, such as articles in peer-reviewed journals, book chapters, books and other monographs, conference papers and popular science contributions.
    • Any citation metrics should be given, excluding self-citations, and the database they are retrieved from.
    • The summary should not contain information about the H-index, the journal impact factor, or any other type of metric used to rank publishers or journals.
    • Under “Other qualifications,” you can list other qualifications that are relevant to the application, such as any popular science publications or proven experience of collaboration and research communication (max. 10).
  • Intellectual property: For example, patents and open source software that you have developed (max. 10).

List of publications

Participating researchers and the main applicant (if a researcher) should list up to ten of their most relevant publications. The publications should be linked from the applicants’ personal profiles in Prisma. You must present the publication summary in Prisma under “Other qualifications”.

Appendix

Appendix for illustrations. If you need figures, tables or images to describe the project, you can upload them as attachments here. A maximum of one PDF attachment of 4 MB can be uploaded. Note that the following should not be attached as an appendix here: CVs, letters of intent or other documentation proving collaborations. Collaborations should only be described in the project description.

After submitting your application

You can make changes to your registered application, de-register it and register it again up until the call closes at 14:00 CET on Thursday, 18 May. After that, the status of your application will change from “registered” to “completed”. No changes can be made to a completed application unless errors due to Prisma occurred. You are also not able to make any additions through, for example, an email or by phone. Your application will be assessed as is.

Your completed application is automatically sent to the administrating organisation after the call is closed. The administrating organisation then has seven calendar days to digitally sign the application in Prisma.

First, Formas verifies that the application meets the procedural requirements set out in the call. If the application does not meet these requirements, it is rejected.

The following requirements will be verified in this call:

  • The administrating organisation has signed the application. This must be done within seven calendar days after the call closes.
  • The application has been approved by the administrating organisation.
  • The focus of the application falls within the call’s areas.
  • The application is complete and contains all mandatory information.
  • The requirements for project leaders, project participants and organisations under “Applicant and organisation requirements” are met.
  • The coordinating project party (main applicant) who is responsible for other projects or activities funded by Formas has submitted any requested reports by the stated deadline.
  • A credit check has been done on all participating companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity that may be relevant for awarding a grant.
  • Verification of any statement of de minimis aid for the project parties that was provided. Note that this statement will be requested by Formas at a later stage during the review process and should not be submitted when the application is registered as final.
  • Verification of any statement of separate accounting and ancillary activities for the project parties that was provided. Note that this statement will be requested by Formas at a later stage during the review process and should not be submitted when the application is registered as final.

All applications are assessed by an external review panel that is appointed by Formas and consists of practicing researchers and users. The application is assessed based on its contents. It is therefore important to write the application as clearly as possible and include all important and relevant information. Applications are assessed based on the criteria below.

Relevance

  • The project can significantly contribute to the purpose and aims of the call.
  • The design of the project and the expected results have taken into consideration the relevant needs and conditions of different groups in society.
  • The application clearly states how the expected results can make a real-world impact.

Potential

  • The project is of high scientific quality and is innovative.
  • The problem formulation and purpose of the project are clear, logical and in line with the purpose and focus of the call.
  • The expected results of the project and/or proposed solution are at the forefront of the field, i.e. in relation to the state of the art.
  • The project has significant potential for scalability, dissemination or both.

Implementation

  • Planned activities and methods are realistic and appropriate for achieving expected results during the project.
  • The time frame and budget are realistic and appropriate in relation to the purpose and objectives of the project.
  • The plan for how the results of the project are to be utilised is well described and appropriate.
  • Ethical considerations are well described and the plan for how to handle these is appropriate.
  • Gender perspectives are well integrated into the implementation of the project

Project organisation

  • The project’s organisation and overall expertise of the project team are appropriate for implementing the project, including real-world impact of the project’s results.
  • The project will be carried out in collaboration with relevant stakeholders or end users. The involvement of the project participants is clearly described and appropriate considering the project objectives.
  • The project team (key stakeholders) as well as the distribution of influence is well balanced between women and men. Relevant for project teams of more than 3 people.

Formas is expected to reach a decision on 14 November 2023 concerning which projects are awarded funding. Decisions will be announced the following day at the latest on Formas’ website, and information that a decision has been taken is later sent via email from Prisma. Decisions are available in Prisma. Grant award decisions cannot be appealed.

In order for Formas to pay out grants for approved projects, the following is required:

  • The project leader and administrating organisation (coordinating project party) must sign the approval of terms in Prisma.
  • Administrating organisation must create an agreement covering project implementation and financing with each project party. See the form Project party approval , 94.4 kB., and submit copies to registrator@formas.se.

All awarded projects must submit a report to Formas containing financial and project results within three months of the end of the grant availability period. For projects longer than 18 months, a financial statement must also be submitted to Formas annually. All reports are submitted in Prisma.

Financial reporting in Prisma , 187 kB.

Formas may impose requirements on how projects must be reported in terms of content and results to enable distribution and application. In such cases, the award decision will contain more information about this. Formas may also require you to participate in conferences and similar events in order to create synergies and platforms for learning and knowledge sharing.

Results of research funded by Formas must be published using open access.

You must also have a data management plan for the data produced in the project. This plan does not need to be submitted to Formas, but should be presented on request. By signing our grant terms and conditions, you certify that a data management plan will be available before the research begins and that it will be maintained.

Open access to research results and data

Formas shares information about awarded grants to Swecris External link., a national database of grant funded research that was instituted by request of the government.

Definition

Term

Definition

Coordinating project party

An organisation that coordinates the project and is administrating organisation i.e. receives the grant funds from Formas and distributes the funds to other organisations that are beneficiaries in the project, reports the project according to instructions and notifies any changes to Formas.

Note that only Swedish administrating organisations may be coordinating project party.

Project party

An organisation that implements the project - regardless of whether it receives a grant or not, ie. contributes in-kind. A subcontractor is not a project party.

Please note that private companies or other organisations engaged in economic activity outside of Sweden cannot receive funding in this call. However, they can participate as project parties if they contribute in-kind.

Main applicant

A person appointed by the coordinating project party as project manager.

Project participant

A person who participates in the project, can be a participating researcher or a participating non-researcher.

Administrating organisation

The administrating organisation is the organisation that receives the grant funds from Formas and distributes the funds to other organisations that are beneficiaries in the project, reports the project according to instructions and notifies any changes to Formas.

Administrating organisation for all types of calls

Organisation that can apply for all types of calls at Formas. These are universities, colleges, research institutes and authorities with research assignments.

Administrating organisation for an individual project

Organisation that can apply for funding in individual calls from Formas and receive funding for an individual project. These are companies, associations, industry associations, boards, funds and municipalities.

Project site

A domicile can, for example, be an institute, a department or a project specialisation.

Revision history

Any changes to the call text will be listed here.

  • 2023-04-06: New closing date is May 23.
  • 2023-10-31: New decision date is November 13.

Contact information

For questions about the content of the call

For administrative questions and questions about Prisma

Updated:13 November 2023