Giving recognition for innovative solutions in the food and beverage ingredients industry, the Fi Europe Innovation Awards and Startup Innovation Challenge has announced its list of nominees for this year’s event. Plant-based and sustainability are the two sectors dominating the shortlist, mirroring current market trends and developments.
The finalists will present their submissions in a final pitch to the jury behind closed doors, and winners will be announced live during Fi Europe 2021 on 30 November and 1 December.
The top plant-based innovations on the shortlist are:
Most Innovative Plant-Based or Alternative Ingredient
- Moolec Science (UK) for producing real animal proteins in plants to develop affordable, animal-free ingredients
- SACCHA (Germany) for extracting proteins from microorganisms such as brewer’s yeast that are similar to egg protein, only without the egg, allowing manufacturers to create authentic alternatives to animal products
- Sophie’s BioNutrients (The Netherlands/Singapore) for developing a new and sustainable plant-based protein from microalgae
- Time-Travelling Milkman (The Netherlands) for producing and distributing plant-based fat components for creamier, healthier and more sustainable plant-based products
- Update Foods (France) for producing the next generation of alternative dairy powered by algae and faba protein
Plant-based Innovation Award
- DSM (The Netherlands) for Delvo®Plant, a unique portfolio of enzymes helping to improve the nutritional value of plant-based drinks, and create gluten-reduced dairy alternative varieties with optimized taste, texture and mouthfeel
- DSM (The Netherlands) for Maxavor® Fish YE, a natural fish flavour derived from algal oil for producing authentic fish alternatives, including vegetarian fish nuggets and vegan fish sauce
- Sprau (Finland) for the germinated faba bean Sprau. Germination allows the full nutritional potential of the faba bean to unfold without digestive discomfort or a ‘beany’ flavour
Clean Label & Natural Innovation Award
- MartinoRossi Spa (Italy) for its Meat Substitute Mix Ragù, a plant-based Bolognese- style sauce mix that is allergen-, GMO- and gluten-free
Says Julien Bonvallet, Brand Director, Informa Markets: “What we can clearly see is that for many companies, innovation and further development continue even in the current climate, which is by no means an easy task. And the results are impressive: With their solutions, the shortlisted companies are all making an important contribution to the issues and demands that are driving the industry,”
