Policy lab for innovative drone technologies in regulatory sandboxes

This service is designed to support agri-food companies that want to test and evaluate the use of innovative drone technologies in a controlled environment—a so-called regulatory sandbox. Setting up such a drone sandbox requires navigating complex airspace regulations, flight safety rules, environmental constraints (e.g., drift, pesticide use), and data protection standards. Our experts help you design and prepare a sandbox operation from A to Z: from selecting a test location and identifying legal permissions needed to preparing risk assessments, notifying authorities, and ensuring safe operational procedures. We also offer advice on sensor integration, traceability, and aligning with EU drone and agricultural regulations such as Regulation EU 2019/947 on the operation of unmanned aircraft. This is an ideal service for companies wishing to run trials with crop spraying or precision seeding drones before launching commercially. - Set up a regulatory sandbox to safely and legally test spraying or seeding drones. - Understand the full list of permissions, safety protocols, and risk assessments required. - Learn how to engage with authorities (e.g., airspace regulators, pesticide control bodies). - Get support in preparing the documentation to operate drones legally during the test phase.