First projects chosen for the Catch the Carbon R&I programme – ten projects to receive EUR 10.7m

The funding decisions for the Catch the Carbon research and innovation programme’s first round of applications have been made by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. A total of EUR 10.7 million was granted to ten research and innovation projects. This funding is part of the government programme’s climate action package for the land use sector. It is a significant public investment in the sector’s climate objectives, including agriculture and forestry. 

The chosen projects will conduct scientific research to produce solutions that can reduce carbon emissions from land use, as well as maintain and supplement carbon sinks and reservoirs. In addition, the projects will support the use of renewable natural resources and the overall sustainability of agriculture, forestry and other forms of land use. 

The projects’ topics include crop land carbon sequestration; food production solutions independent of agricultural land; good practices and policy instruments for enhancing carbon sequestration in farmland, forests and wood products; ways to enforce climate-proof land use; and the systemic sustainability of livestock production. 

“These are high-quality research projects with a down-to-earth approach. They will produce information about emission reduction and carbon sequestration solutions for farmers, forest owners, businesses and other operators. Everything is based on overall sustainability,” says Jari Leppä, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry. 

The chosen projects are interdisciplinary consortiums formed by multiple organisations. The projects involve close cooperation, joint development, and pilots between different research organisations, field operators and businesses. This ensures that the innovative solutions can be converted into actual measures as quickly as possible. 

Applications were open in late 2020, with 50 funding applications received, requesting EUR 51 million in total. The applications were reviewed in January by a broad panel of ten experts. The primary selection criteria were the projects’ scientific quality and potential for producing effective solutions to support the objective of carbon neutrality. As originally specified, all chosen projects will include researchers who are at the start of their careers. 

Supplementary applications for the Catch the Carbon research and innovation programme will be open later this year for a further EUR 5 million in funding. 

The purpose of the Catch the Carbon climate action package is to support farmers, forest owners and others who make land use decisions in developing and deploying climate-proof operating methods. The deployment of information and best practices in the field is crucial to this end. The package includes a comprehensive interdisciplinary research and innovation programme, a separate information programme, and a development project scheme that aims to produce new information through various experiments and other avenues. The target net impact of the measures is a reduction of three million tonnes in CO2 equivalent by 2035.

Climate measures in the land use sector on the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry website

Further information
Elina Nikkola, Ministerial Adviser, tel. +358 2 9516 2333, firstname.lastname(at)mmm.fi
Reetta Sorsa, Senior Specialist, tel. +358 2 9516 2118, firstname.lastname(at)mmm.fi
Eeva Karjalainen, Special Expert, tel. +358 2 9516 2137, firstname.lastname(at)mmm.fi

Projects chosen to receive funding

Dairy and beef industries in Finland: Progressing pathways to carbon neutrality by 2035, NC-GRASS

• Project coordinator: Narasinha Shurpali, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) 
• Other consortium parties: University of Eastern Finland, Helsinki University, National Land Survey of Finland, Finnish Meteorological Institute
• Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry funding for 2021–2023, total: EUR 1,051,968

Disruptive food production technologies as part of achieving Finland’s carbon neutrality objectives, Food without Fields

• Project coordinator: Emilia Nordlund, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland
• Other consortium parties: Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), EniferBio
• Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry funding for 2021–2023, total: EUR 1,000,386

Carbon sinks and climate benefits with managed risks: Policy instruments for forests and wood products, HILMARI

• Project coordinator: Jussi Uusivuori, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke)
• Other consortium parties: Finnish Environment Institute, University of Lapland, Finnish Forest Centre
• Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry funding for 2021–2023, total: EUR 1,085,359

Comprehensive climate action evaluation in catchment areas – carbon-neutral land use through system analysis, SysteemiHiili

• Project coordinator: Mika Marttunen, Finnish Environment Institute
• Other consortium parties: Savonia University of Applied Sciences, University of Eastern Finland, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke)
• Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry funding for 2021–2023, total: EUR 1,201,109

Forests in peatlands – solutions for reducing emissions and growing carbon sinks, TURNEE

• Project coordinator: Annalea Lohila, University of Helsinki
• Other consortium parties: Finnish Meteorological Institute, University of Oulu, Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences
• Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry funding for 2021–2023, total: EUR 1,170,400

Basing targeted carbon sequestration on farmland processes, HiiletIn

• Project coordinator: Helena Soinne, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke)
• Other consortium parties: Häme University of Applied Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, University of Helsinki, ProAgria, Soilfood Oy, Finnish Environment Institute
• Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry funding for 2021–2023, total: EUR 1,126,982

Future multi-purpose forests and associated risks in a changing climate, FOSTER

• Project coordinator: Juha Honkaniemi, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke)
• Other consortium parties: Finnish Meteorological Institute, University of Helsinki
• Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry funding for 2021–2023, total: EUR 954,844

Reducing peat field carbon emissions by innovative water management, Vesihiisi

• Project coordinator: Kristiina Regina, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke)
• Other consortium parties: University of Oulu, National Land Survey of Finland, Finnish Field Drainage Association
• Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry funding for 2021–2023, total: EUR 890,700

Wind, forests and wetlands – supporting a carbon-neutral society with land use, LandUseZero

• Project coordinator: Anne Tolvanen, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke)
• Other consortium parties: University of Eastern Finland, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Geological Survey of Finland
• Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry funding for 2021–2023, total: EUR 1,110,378

Driving climate-aware land use in agriculture and forestry, TUIMA

• Project coordinator: Olli-Pekka Ruuskanen, Pellervo Economic Research PTT
• Other consortium parties: Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), University of Turku, LUT University 
• Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry funding for 2021–2023, total: EUR 1,097,633