Innovate UK

Headshot of Illtud Dunsford from Cellular Agriculture Ltd

Illtud Dunsford © Cellular Agriculture Ltd
Guest Posts

Guest Post: Making Cultivated Meat Scalable and Sustainable with New Bioprocess Technology

The global food system is at a pivotal juncture, with growing populations, environmental pressures, and rising demand for sustainable, ethical protein sources converging to create both challenges and opportunities. Cultivated meat, a promising innovation, allows the production of real animal protein without the environmental burden. However, scaling cultivated meat to commercial viability while ensuring food safety and reducing environmental impact remains a key industry challenge. In the following guest post, Illtud Dunsford, CEO and Co-Founder of Cellular Agriculture Ltd, delves deeper into these complexities, exploring the advancements, hurdles, and future prospects of cultivated meat as a transformative solution within the global food landscape. Cellular Agriculture Ltd, in partnership with Campden BRI, has launched a ground-breaking Innovate UK-funded project to address these issues. The aim is …

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© Ivy Farm
Investments & Finance

UK Government Invests £15M to Establish Alternative Protein Innovation Centre With Global Reach

Two UK government funding bodies — the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and Innovate UK — have announced a £15 million investment into a new innovation centre for plant-based, cultivated, and fermentation-derived foods. The National Alternative Protein Innovation Centre (NAPIC), which will be hosted at the University of Leeds, will also receive £23 million of investment from public and private sector partners. The centre will be co-led with the James Hutton Institute, the University of Sheffield, and Imperial College London. At NAPIC, over 30 interdisciplinary researchers and 120 international partners will develop new alternative protein products and ingredients, along with investigating how they can be incorporated into consumers’ diets. Working with businesses, academia, regulators, and investors, the researchers will focus on four key …

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Sustainable microalgae protein

Image courtesy of the Natural Resources Institute
Algae, Microalgae & Seaweed

UK Project Develops Sustainable Microalgae Protein With Improved Flavour

The UK’s Natural Resources Institute (NRI) is collaborating with Imperial College London (ICL) and biotech startup Arborea to develop technology capable of producing sustainable microalgae protein with an improved flavour profile. Algae has attracted significant interest in recent years as a highly sustainable protein source. However, current protein extraction methods are inefficient, expensive, and produce a final product with undesirable off-notes. NRI will work to identify the compounds responsible for these flavours, and examine how they can be altered through changes in growth conditions and extraction methods. Meanwhile, ICL will develop cost-effective and environmentally friendly methods of producing algal protein extract, while Arborea — which has develped patented bioreactor technology — will contribute its expertise in the industrial growth and harvesting of microalgae. The two-year …

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Protein Industries Canada Partners with UK for Plant-Based Protein

©Protein Industries Canada
Protein

Protein Industries Canada and Innovate UK Partner to Catalyze Plant-Based Food Growth in Both Nations

Protein Industries Canada (PIC) and Innovate UK, the UK’s national innovation agency, announce a new bilateral partnership to advance the connections between both countries’ food sectors.  Through the collaboration, Canada and the UK say they will work together to support innovation of plant-based food and ingredients.  According to PIC, the UK is a “natural partner” given Canada’s position as a top grower and processor of high-protein crops and plant-based ingredients. Canada states it can help supply UK companies with the ingredients they need to create healthy plant-based foods, while giving Canadian companies access to new markets, research and customers.  Meeting in Ottawa The partnership officially launched with a webinar on June 7, which introduced UK and Canadian companies to the opportunities and benefits of cross-country …

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A plate with sausages

© Ivy Farm

Science

UK Government Commits £16M to Sustainable Protein Research

The UK’s Biotechnical and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) has joined forces with Innovate UK for a £16 million funding call dedicated to novel foods and sustainable protein research. This will include alt proteins such as cultivated meat, plant-based foods, and products made using precision fermentation. The two government funding bodies intend to support research that enables novel, resource-efficient, and low-emission food production systems. Selected British companies and projects will be able to use the funding to scale up production and bring their sustainable proteins to market. The news comes after the BBSRC reported in September that it planned to jointly allocate £20 million to alt protein research and development. UK government support for alt proteins While the UK government has previously provided funding to …

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Fish Alternative Made With Food Byproducts

© Better Nature
Meat- and Fish Alternatives

Better Nature Bags £350K to Create Fish Alternative From Upcycled Food Byproducts

UK tempeh brand Better Nature has received a £350,000 grant from Innovate UK, a governmental agency which provides funds and support those innovating new products, to develop a fish alternative made with food byproducts. The company will use a new tempeh-inspired proprietary fermentation method to give the industry byproducts the taste and texture of fish. Better Nature says it is hoping to achieve a product that is “physically, visually, nutritionally, and sensorially equivalent, if not superior, to fish”. The project is set to run until 2024, with support from leading European fermentation companies such as Nucaps Nanotechnology, Neoalgae Micro Seaweeds Products, and Estonia’s Centre of Food and Fermentation Technologies. Better Nature hopes to commercialise the fish alternative by 2026. Better Nature’s continuing success story In …

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