Crop production systems in Europe have largely evolved to accommodate productivity-enhancing technologies. Today, however, a new generation of potentially game-changing agricultural technologies is emerging—technologies that could enable a fundamental transformation toward more sustainable cropping systems. These new systems have the potential to better account for societal costs and benefits, going beyond productivity alone.

Realizing this transformation requires a co-created vision: a shared understanding of what future European crop production systems should look like, and a coordinated effort to align technological, institutional, business, and policy innovation around this vision. The success of such an innovation system will depend on progress across several interlinked areas:

(1) Developing visions of agricultural production systems that are locally well adapted
(2) Identifying key enabling technologies that can support these future systems.
(3) Incorporating societal preferences and ensuring broad public support for agricultural innovation.
(4) Addressing social implications for farming communities, through co-design, inclusion, and responsiveness to farmers’ needs.
(5) Understanding the economic conditions—both macro-economic and local—under which new technologies can become profitable and attractive for farmers.
(6) Designing cost-effective policies and viable business models that reduce technology-related risks and create incentives for sustainable adoption.

This implies a need for an inter- and trans-disciplinary research agenda, evaluating potentials and risks, jointly(!) developing technologies, policies, and business models.

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