Helping Alternative Proteins Go Mainstream for a Sustainable Planet
A £38m centre dedicated to developing acceptable and planet-friendly alternatives to animal proteins is to be headed up by the University of Leeds.
BBSRC and Innovate UK have announced £15m funding over the next five years for a National Alternative Protein Innovation Centre (NAPIC), with the remainder of the support coming from partners. The centre will be hosted by the University of Leeds and co-led by the James Hutton Institute, the University of Sheffield, and Imperial College London.
The researchers aim to create a pan-UK innovation centre to secure a continuous supply of safe, tasty, affordable, and healthy proteins which also support Net Zero goals and futureproof the UK’s food and animal feed security.
NAPIC’s partners believe the centre will revolutionise the agri-food sector by harnessing world-leading science to create a strategy for alternative proteins which will take them from the discovery and innovation phase, right through to commercialisation.
The centre will be led by (left to right) Professor Karen Polizzi of Imperial College London, Professor Derek Stewart of the James Hutton Institute, Professor Anwesha Sarkar of the University of Leeds and Professor Louise Dye of the University of Sheffield.
Professor Anwesha Sarkar, Director of Research and Innovation for Leeds’ School of Food Science and Nutrition, is the Project Leader for NAPIC said,
“There are many challenges though, and population-level access to, and acceptance of, alternative proteins is currently hindered by a highly complex marketplace, and there are worries about taste, nutritional equivalence and cost, as well as health and safety concerns for consumers and the fear of diminished livelihoods for farmers”
“NAPIC will provide a robust and sustainable platform for open innovation and responsible data exchange and collaboration with partners from industry, regulators, academic partners and policy makers that mitigates the risks associated with this emerging sector, and also addresses the short- and longer-term concerns of consumers and producers”.
Bridging the gap between the UK’s trailblazing science and innovation in alternative proteins with production power will be key to NAPIC’s success. Those behind the project believe it could be a true catalyst to realising a projected UK growth potential in alternative proteins of £6.8B annually, with 25,000 jobs created across multiple sectors, as predicted by the Environmental Group, Green Alliance in 2023.
Over 30 researchers from the four institutions and more than 120 NAPIC partners will work closely with industry, regulators, investors, and policymakers to create a vibrant alternative protein innovation ecosystem and produce a clear roadmap for the development of a National Protein Strategy for the UK.
Together they will work on four interdisciplinary knowledge pillars (Produce, Process, People, Perform) to efficiently and safely translate the groundbreaking new technologies which could unlock the benefits of alternative proteins. You can find out more about these pillars on the University of Leeds website.
NBIC have been strong supporters of the centre since the initial bid. NBIC’s CEO Professor Jo Slater-Jefferies will sit on NAPIC’s Science Management Board to help manage and support proposals that focus on microbial proteins and precision fermentation. Professor Slater-Jefferies said,
“It is clear that NAPIC will benefit NBIC’s research and innovation objectives, through the synergistic Perform and Process pillars. We are very much looking forward to working with NAPIC and their partners on this important mission”.
Read the full article on the University of Leeds website.