CUES: A new Horizon Europe project kicked-off!

We are delighted to announce the official start of CUES, under the Horizon Europe programme, which aims to revolutionize food consumption towards more sustainable patterns by fostering a ‘Triple Change’ in culture, food value chain, and policy. The project started in March 2024 and will last 48 months. On March 7th and 8th 2024, the project’s kick-off meeting (KoM) was held in Rotterdam, Netherlands. During the meeting, all partners presented their involvement and responsibilities in the project and shared their ideas and ambitions for a successful implementation to achieve the specific project objectives.

Fostering a significant Triple Change concerning culture, food value chain, and policy in the food system is crucial for ensuring that sustainable food is desirable and trustworthy for consumers. To address the urgent need for a more sustainable food system that benefits the environment, society, and the economy, CUES sets to foster the Triple Change through co-designing scientific methods and approaches to transmit and present sustainability related information to guide consumer knowledge and behaviour, and to determine the persuasive cues to promote sustainable consumer behaviour most effectively. CUES will develop nine interventions and a series of policy dialogues through a multi-actor participatory approach. This innovative approach goes beyond the state-of-the-art by addressing the complex interplay of factors in the food system and actively involving consumers, food value chain actors, and policymakers. The learning community, communication and behaviour change toolkits developed by CUES aim to remove the bottlenecks in current practice with respect to informing, motivating, and engaging consumers, and to reach at least three million consumers, increasing their consumption of sustainable food.

The official start of the project was accompanied by the organization of the Symposium “CUES in Action: Shaping the Future of Food with Cutting-Edge Research and Sustainable Practices” hosted in Erasmus Paviljoen on 8th of March to introduce the project to the wider public. The Symposium was framed by enlightening presentations and discussions on Food Sustainability, Sustainable Food Systems, and Sustainable Eating. From revolutionary research to sustainable practices, this symposium was a unique chance to be part of shaping the future of our global food landscape.

The CUES consortium, led by Erasmus University of Rotterdam, consists of 21 partners across 10 European countries (Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Hungary, Italy, Croatia, Iceland, Portugal, and Greece). The consortium consists of: Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR), University of Heidelberg (UHEI), KU Leuven (KUL), Wageningen University (WU), Fair Trade Advocacy Office (FTAO), University of Valencia (UV), Kislepteku Termekeloallitok Orszagos Erdekkepviseletenek Egyesulete (KLT), Tecnoalimenti SCPA (TCA), Faculty of Economics and Business University of Zagreb (UNIZG), European Football for Development Network (EFDN), OpenDot SRL (DOT), Loki Foods (LOKI), Federacao Portuguesa dos Bancos Alimentares Contra a Fome (FBPA), Future Intelligence Erevna Tilepikiniakon ke Pliroforiakon Systimaton EPE (FINT), Tudatos Vasarlok Egyesulete (TVE), Q-PLAN International Advisors PC (Q-PLAN), Kentro Prostasias Katanaloton (KEPKA), ICLEI – European Secretariat GmbH (ICLEI), Asociación de usuarios financieros (ASUFIN), Eindhoven University of Technology (TUe) and EIT Food (EIT FOOD).