Project description
A safer and more sustainable alternative for ethephon
Climate change is bad for crops. Devastating frost events can cause a complete loss of fruit yield. To miminise the risk of spring frost, many farmers turn to ethephon (ET) to delay bloom time. However, ET has detrimental effects on tree growth, and it can also cause skin and eye irritation. Therefore, an alternative plant growth regulator is needed. In this context, the EU-funded Safer ACC project will develop a safer alternative to ET. It will bring to market an optimised synthesis path of 1-Aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC), an ethylene releaser bioinspired by the self-produced ethylene synthesis cycle in plants. The project plans to make this ACC both cost-efficient and more sustainable.
Objective
Ethylene is a natural vegetal hormone that plays a key role in the ripening process of vegetables and fruits, since is the precursor of the ripening response that induces and regulates all the physiological changes during maturation. Due to the well-known importance of fruit’s flavour and colour for consumers’ market acceptance, most of growers usually must use different artificial techniques to accelerate or promote such ripening, which basically are all based on ethylene. Being a gas substance, ethylene can be easily applied in a chamber, but cannot be dosed in the field, thus the direct application in crops must be carried out using a liquid ethylene-releasing compound. The most widely used one is ethephon (2-hloroethylphosphonic acid, 70.000 tonnes yearly produced worldwide, accounting for a turnover of €M400 for the active ingredient), a synthetic chemical substance that in aqueous solutions is absorbed inside the plant, where it slowly releases ethylene. Unfortunately, Ethephon is a potentially harmful substance, already legally regulated in most developed countries (in all Europe and US, for instance). Both human and environment health demand innovative, efficient, harmless options for artificial ripening, but end-users (growers) simply do not have any available healthier alternative. Just Global identified this scenario 5 years ago, so started intensive research on new sustainable, environmental-friendly and safer molecule. As a result, we developed and optimized the synthesis path of 1-Aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC), a plant growth regulator alternative to Ethephon. ACC is an ethylene-releaser bioinspired by the self-produced ethylene synthesis cycle in plants. In order to disrupt the market we need to optimize the synthesis process to decrease ACC selling price, to make it more competitive in front of the cheaper Ethephon. In addition, field trials series must be carried out and submit the registration application of ACC in EUROPE.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- engineering and technology electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering electronic engineering control systems
- engineering and technology materials engineering colors
- agricultural sciences agriculture, forestry, and fisheries agriculture horticulture fruit growing
- engineering and technology electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering electronic engineering sensors
- natural sciences chemical sciences organic chemistry aliphatic compounds
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Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.3.5. - SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Climate action, Environment, Resource Efficiency and Raw Materials
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.2.3.1. - Mainstreaming SME support, especially through a dedicated instrument
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
SME-2 - SME instrument phase 2
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-SMEInst-2016-2017
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
25003 LLEIDA
Spain
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.