ONGOING PROJECTS

Two studies, three foresights, a collective scientific accessment (CSA) and a european project are ongoing

PREZODE foresight study on the prevention of zoonotic diseases

A foresight study on the prevention of the emergence of zoonotic diseases, i.e., diseases transmitted from animals to humans, is currently being conducted by the DEPE as part of the PREZODE (PREventing ZOonotic Diseases Emergence) priority research program and equipment program (PEPR). The PREZODE PEPR led by IRD, CIRAD, and INRAE, aims to enable France to play a pivotal role in pandemic prevention. Structured around five work packages, the program contributes to scientific advances on the drivers of zoonotic disease emergence and innovative prevention strategies.

The foresight study aims, in relation with national and international partners (collaborators, scientists, the One Health initiative, and decision-makers) and in conjunction with projects developed within the PREZODE PEPR and the Emerging Infectious Diseases (MIE) PEPR, to provide a solid basis for societal debate and public decision-making by constructing prevention scenarios.

The foresight study will explore future conditions for preventing the emergence of zoonotic diseases by 2050. The aim is to explore a paradigm shift, moving from responding to the emergence of pandemics, when the pathogen involved has already begun to circulate in human populations (spillover with potential for species jump), to primary prevention actions upstream of emergence, i.e., seeking to reduce, at source, the risks of spillover by acting on the social, economic, and ecological factors involved in emergence.

The proposed foresight method combines two approaches: one aims to explore future conditions for establishing preventive measures based on future developments in the drivers contributing to the emergence of zoonoses (and their interactions) and past analysis of preventive measures; the other aims to work with stakeholders at three sites (corresponding to risk areas) to jointly develop scenarios for preventing the emergence of zoonoses by 2050.

Contact: Olivier Mora, olivier.mora@inrae.fr          November 2025 - November 2027

Foresight to build scenarios for sustainable, health-promoting food systems using microorganisms

Microorganisms have been used in food systems for millennia, for example in food fermentation. The development of scientific knowledge in the field of microbiomes has recently accelerated considerably, thanks in particular to high-throughput sequencing techniques. We now know that microorganisms are omnipresent in our environment, and that they play a major role in the health of soils, plants, animals, human beings and ecosystems in general. Thanks to their multiple functions, microbiomes are presented as potential solutions to the challenges posed by the development of sustainable food systems, from farm to fork. In particular, they could help replace or reduce the chemical inputs used in agriculture (pesticides, fertilizers), reduce the use of antibiotics in animal production, reduce food loss and waste, improve the taste of plant products through fermentation...

The aim of this foresight study is to build exploratory scenarios for sustainable, health-promoting European agricultural and food systems based on microorganisms. These scenarios will be based on contrasting hypotheses related to the evolution of the various components of the system under study, for example: production methods for microorganisms, their uses, consumer behavior, public policies and regulations, knowledge, techniques and innovations, etc. The final phase of the project will be dedicated to presenting and debating the scenarios with different audiences.

This project is supported by INRAE and by three programs: the INRAE Holoflux metaprogram, the “Ferments du Futur” Grand Challenge supported by INRAE and ANIA, and the “Food Systems, Microbiomes and Health” Priority Research Program and Equipment co-sponsored by Inserm and INRAE.

European projec STEP UP : Sustainable Livestock Systems Transition and Evidence Platform for Upgrading Policies

This european project brings together a consortium of 16 organizations from European Union countries (universities, research institutes and technical institutes), coordinated by the Irish agency TEAGASC. It responds to the HORIZON-CL6-2023-FARM2FORK-01-6 Research and Innovation call for tenders. STEP UP aims to produce a platform of quantified knowledge to promote the development of sustainable livestock production systems. It is intended to help European decision-makers by providing them with scientific data on the impacts and externalities of environmentally-friendly livestock production systems within the food system. Existing knowledge on the positive and negative impacts of European livestock production systems will be gathered following an analysis of scientific literature and public policies. Data gaps for assessing the sustainability of livestock production systems in various social and environmental contexts will be identified. An in-depth analysis of case studies will be carried out to harmonize existing data, identify deficits and opportunities for new data collection and system development. New indicators to assess the externalities of sustainable livestock systems, taking into account all relevant factors in the value chain, will be developed. The multi-stakeholder approach (MAA) will be used to obtain contextual reference points for these new indicators, followed by a comprehensive impact assessment and cost-benefit analysis, and a quantification of the costs and benefits of sustainable livestock systems.

As part of this program, the DEPE will be in charge of mapping existing forecasts on livestock issues on a national, regional (multi-national) or European scale, in order to identify the archetypal scenarios that this literature outlines. DEPE will also coordinate the construction of sustainability scenarios for European livestock farming up to 2050, which will then be assessed using relevant indicators.

Organic Targets 4EU : Building as part of the European OrganicTargets4EU project

With the Farm-to-Fork strategy, the European Union has set the target of achieving at least 25% of EU agricultural land in organic farming (OF) and significantly increasing organic aquaculture by 2030.

The Horizon Europe project OrganicTargets4EU, coordinated by IFOAM Organics Europe, is developing policy options and recommendations to support the achievement of these objectives through a multi-stakeholder approach. It aims to achieve the goal of expanding organic farming to 25% of European agricultural land through the development of transformative scenarios.

In this context, a participatory approach based on participatory workshops with organic stakeholders was conducted by the DEPE in five European countries in order to identify transition pathways to achieve this goal by 2040. Changes in agricultural production, knowledge and innovation systems, value chains, consumption, and public policies were examined. This approach, led by the DEPE with the support of the Ecodev unit, was carried out with institutional organic partners in five countries: ITAB for France, ÖMKi for Hungary, ICOEL for Denmark, CIHEAM Bari for Italy, and NaturLand for Germany. The results identify the actions that need to be implemented at national and European level to develop organic farming by 2040 while addressing the health, environmental, and climate change challenges associated with the food system.

Website of the European project: https://organictargets.eu/

Report of the national transition pathways for the organic sector in France by 2040: https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-05098683v1

Project contact : Olivier Mora, olivier.mora@inrae.fr , Etienne Schultz, etienne.schultz@inrae.fr

Duration: September 2022 - March 2026

WHY JOIN US ?

Participating in a collective scientific assessment, an advanced study or a foresight operation is an opportunity to capitalize on one's scientific skills to respond to a request from public authorities, through an interdisciplinary approach combining life sciences and social sciences, based on an exhaustive state of the art of scientific knowledge on a complex subject.

If you are interested in our expertise and foresight activities, in the work we have already carried out, or in working in a research organization at the service of public decision-making and societal debate (as a civil servant or contract employee), write to us at depe-contact[@]inrae.fr.

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