Call for expressions of interest in EFSA’s advice for Novel Food SMEs – 2026 edition

Call for expressions of interest in EFSA’s advice for Novel Food SMEs – 2026 edition

EFSA is launching a new call for expressions of interest from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) active in the area of novel foods that are interested in receiving EFSA's advice, through a tele-meeting, on the application requirements for novel food authorisation in the EU market. 

This initiative aims to raise awareness of the General Pre-Submission Advice (GPSA) service and facilitate access to it for SMEs. This service can be requested at any time before the submission of an application.

However, this call focuses on two key stages that may be particularly relevant for SMEs with limited or no experience in preparing and submitting a novel food application:

Early development stage, even before initiating the studies that will be part of the application.

Final preparation stages, when most of the information that will be included in the application is available.

Information submitted in response to the call, to request advice and during meetings will be treated as confidential. The only information EFSA will make publicly available is a summary of the advice, which will be released only if and when the application for authorisation subject to advice is declared valid, and alongside the non-confidential version of the application dossier.

This initiative is open to all SMEs active in the area of novel foods. Third parties, such as consultants or industry associations, may submit expressions of interest on behalf of novel food SMEs.

SMEs that received advice during past editions are welcome to apply again, as long as their request concerns a novel food different from the one previously addressed. 

Text of the call for expression of interest

We invite all interested SMEs to carefully read the full text of the call, which contains key information such as eligibility requirements and applicable timelines.  

The form to submit your interest can be found here.