TUDATOS VASARLOK KOZHASZNU EGYESULETE

Their core work

Tudatos Vásárlók (Association of Conscious Consumers) is a Hungarian public-benefit NGO that advocates for sustainable consumption and empowers consumers to make informed food choices. In EU research projects, they function as the civil society voice — contributing consumer insights, running engagement activities, and connecting scientific work to real household behavior and public acceptance. Their participation in food system research centers on how consumers relate to agrobiodiversity, plant-based diets, and short food supply chains. They are not a research institute producing data, but a mission-driven organization that bridges the gap between food scientists and the people who actually eat the food.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

Their first H2020 engagement (DYNAVERSITY, 2017–2021) was as a third party — a supporting role in a seed diversity network project, with no recorded keywords, suggesting a narrow participation focused on public outreach or consumer awareness. By their second project (DIVINFOOD, starting 2022), they stepped up to full participant status and the keyword set became considerably richer: healthy diets, digital tools, territorial approaches, organisational innovation. The shift is from passive third-party contributor to an active node in a complex food systems research project.

They are moving from background participation toward a recognized specialist role in consumer-side food systems research, particularly where agrobiodiversity and sustainable diet transitions require genuine civil society input.

How they like to work

They have never led an H2020 project — both participations were as a third party or participant within large consortia. DIVINFOOD alone appears to involve partners across 11 countries, indicating they are comfortable operating inside complex, multi-partner European projects. Their role is not technical leadership but providing consumer perspective and civil society legitimacy, which makes them a niche but often required partner in food system projects with a public engagement component.

Despite only two projects, they have reached 41 unique consortium partners across 11 countries — reflecting participation in large, broadly-networked European consortia rather than bilateral or small-group arrangements. Their network is geographically European with a natural anchor in Central and Eastern Europe through their Hungarian base.

What sets them apart

Consumer NGOs are comparatively rare in H2020 food research consortia, which makes Tudatos Vásárlók a specific asset when a project needs to demonstrate public engagement, demand-side validation, or civil society representation. Their Hungarian location also offers access to a Central and Eastern European consumer perspective that is often underrepresented in food systems projects dominated by Western European partners. For coordinators building consortia under Horizon Europe food calls that require societal actor involvement, this organization fills a slot that most research institutes or companies cannot credibly fill.

Highlights from their portfolio

• DIVINFOOD
  Their only funded participation (EUR 159,875) and a long-running project (2022–2027) that positions them at the intersection of agrobiodiversity, healthy diets, and food chain co-design — the most substantive evidence of their research role.
• DYNAVERSITY
  Their entry into H2020 as a third party in a seed diversity network project, demonstrating early connections to the agrobiodiversity research community before they became a full participant.