FONDATSIYA ZA BIOLOGICHNO ZEMEDELIE BIOSELENA

Their core work

Bioselena is a Bulgarian NGO dedicated to promoting and developing organic agriculture. They work on practical knowledge transfer for organic farming — from arable crop systems to organic seed production and livestock management. Their core contribution to EU projects lies in bridging organic farming practice with research, particularly in replacing controversial chemical inputs and improving organic seed availability across Europe.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

Bioselena's H2020 journey started with broad organic arable knowledge networking (OK-Net Arable, 2015) and moved toward more specialized, applied work in organic seed systems (LIVESEED, 2017) and input replacement for organic livestock and crops (RELACS, 2018). The keyword data confirms this shift: recent projects show explicit focus on livestock, animal husbandry, and plant nutrition — topics absent from earlier work. The trajectory moves from general organic knowledge exchange toward concrete, practice-oriented solutions for organic farming challenges.

Bioselena is moving from broad organic farming advocacy toward hands-on work on specific organic production challenges — expect continued focus on practical solutions for organic livestock, seed availability, and input substitution.

How they like to work

Bioselena operates exclusively as a participant or third party — they have never coordinated an H2020 project. They contribute to large, multi-partner consortia (85 unique partners across 20 countries), which suggests they serve as a national practice partner bringing Bulgarian organic farming context into pan-European research networks. Their role pattern indicates they are valued for on-the-ground expertise and farmer connections rather than project management capacity.

Despite being a small NGO, Bioselena has built connections with 85 unique consortium partners across 20 countries — a remarkably wide network for an organization with only 3 projects, reflecting the large-scale nature of the organic farming research consortia they join.

What sets them apart

Bioselena fills a specific niche as a Bulgarian civil society voice in European organic agriculture research. In a field dominated by Western European research institutes and universities, they provide Eastern European organic farming perspective and farmer-level practical knowledge. For consortium builders needing a Bulgarian organic agriculture partner with proven EU project experience, they are one of very few credible options.

Highlights from their portfolio

• LIVESEED
  Largest funding (EUR 60,500) and most strategically important — organic seed availability is a regulatory bottleneck across the EU, making this work highly relevant to the sector.
• RELACS
  Addressed one of organic farming's most politically sensitive issues — replacing copper-based pesticides and antibiotics — with Bioselena contributing as a third-party specialist.