The European Commission has placed microbiome science one of the main pillars of its new life sciences strategy, marking the first time the field has received formal political backing as a strategic research and innovation priority in the European Union.

Released on July 2, the Choose Europe for Life Sciences strategy aims to position the EU as the most attractive region for life sciences development by 2030. Among its flagship actions: “to make the EU a world-class innovator in One Health microbiome-based solutions” slated for 2026-2027, and the mobilisation “of close to €100 million under Horizon Europe funding” to support development and deployment of such solutions.

The strategy situates microbiome research within a broader policy context that includes sustainable food systems, biomanufacturing, and the forthcoming EU Biotech Act, areas where microbiome-based innovation is expected to play a key role. According to the Commission, this alignment reflects an urgent need to “promote a holistic approach to life sciences research and innovation (R&I) to connect life sciences to societal and planetary health challenges”

Long-anticipated recognition

Microbiome researchers and policy advocates welcomed the announcement as a milestone.

As a pan-European network of institutions, the European Microbiome Centres Consortium (EUROMCC) is working to build the infrastructure and community needed to advance microbiome science into policy and practice. With microbiomes now explicitly mentioned in the EU’s life sciences strategy, the consortium’s priorities (standardisation, education, and regulatory alignment) are more relevant than ever. EUROMCC is committed to ensuring that robust, validated science underpins the next generation of microbiome-based solutions in health and nutrition.

Until recently, microbiome research in Europe was supported through targeted Horizon 2020 projects, but remained largely fragmented across health, food, and biotech domains. And while the scientific relevance of the microbiome was widely acknowledged, it had not yet been reflected in overarching EU strategies. With the release of Choose Europe for Life Sciences, microbiomes are now formally recognised as foundational tools for health and sustainability, spanning diagnostics, therapeutics, sustainable food systems, and industrial biotechnology.

The Commission’s language also reflects a clear shift toward systems-level thinking, particularly through its adoption of the One Health approach, which recognises the deep interconnections between human, animal, and environmental health. This perspective aligns strongly with how the microbiome field understands its role: not as a siloed discipline, but as a framework for understanding complex biological systems and interactions.

At Human Microbiome Action and through the EUROMCC network, this integrated, transdisciplinary view has shaped our work from the start. Whether in developing harmonised standards, informing regulatory policy, or enabling translational innovation, we see the microbiome as a bridge across domains, central to achieving both planetary and population health.

What comes next

With implementation beginning in 2026, the One Health Microbiome Initiative is expected to bring more structured support for microbiome research, particularly in cross-disciplinary areas. The strategy also calls for pilot actions to better coordinate European biotech clusters, scale up sustainable bioprocessing methods, and boost regulatory foresight for emerging biological technologies.

For researchers and innovators, the strategy signals an opportunity, but also a call to action. With microbiomes now on the strategic agenda, the challenge is to ensure that scientific advances translate into credible, safe, and effective innovations.