UK-Kenya Alternative Proteins Lead Customer Programme

About the competition

The aim of this competition is to accelerate innovations needed to create new or improved alternative proteins innovation for the sector through UK-Kenya partnerships.

The aim of this competition is to accelerate innovations needed to create new or improved alternative proteins innovation for the sector through UK-Kenya partnerships.

Your project must focus on one or more of the following three areas:

• Insects for human consumption
• Fermentation
• Plant-based proteins, including seaweed and algae

Innovate UK Global Alliance Africa

Innovate UK exists to connect innovators with new partners and new opportunities beyond their existing thinking – accelerating ambitious ideas into real world solutions. Innovate UK is delivering the 6-year (2019 – 2025) UK International Development funded, Global Alliance Africa project, which aims to build new and stronger UK-African partnerships to maximise the creation of inclusive market access, funding, and investment opportunities through innovation knowledge transfer between the UK, Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya.

The project aligns with the UK’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) objectives by building stronger local innovation ecosystems and enhanced UK-Africa collaborations that lead to self-sustaining economic growth in Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa, by harnessing the potential of innovation to meet current and future socio-economic challenges. The project is focused around three key pillars, one of which focuses on ‘Connected Innovation’ where Global Innovation Networks will be forged to facilitate UK, African and International networks to deliver collaborative research, innovation and funding solutions that address key global innovation challenges.

Diversifying sources of dietary protein is vital to address a number of economic, environmental and social challenges globally. Markets for alternative proteins are growing globally, presenting an opportunity for the UK and Kenya to gain competitive advantage whilst improving social and environmental outcomes. This Global Innovation Network seeks to use collaborative innovation to harness these opportunities and bring improved market access, nutrition and climate resilience to both countries.

UK-Kenya Innovation Lead Customer Programme Background

Through knowledge exchange and discussion with key stakeholders, we have narrowed down the focus areas of this Global Innovation Network to three specific opportunities within the alternative proteins space which present the best collaborative innovation opportunities: edible insects, fermentation, plant-based proteins.

Insects for human consumption can contain very high levels of protein and can increase resource circularity by feeding them with waste products. However, issues remain around cost and consumer acceptance. By scaling up demand and supply, insects can provide a high-quality source of alternative proteins to address many challenges.

Fermentation can produce protein in multiple ways, including biomass and precision fermentation. These technologies have huge potential, because they can run under controlled conditions indoors, making them less exposed to climate vulnerabilities. Innovating and scaling-up fermentation production can unlock significant amounts of protein to address malnutrition and dietary diversification.

Both land and water-based crops like seaweed and algae can provide cheap and effective sources of protein. The UK and Kenya both grow a range of plants that would benefit from development. Developing innovations to enhance production and consumption of these will help diversity protein sources and improve general nutrition.

This Lead Customer Programme aims to address these challenges in both countries through a partnership model, thus accelerating innovations needed to create new or improved water access technologies for the sector and contributing towards the UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6.

A Lead Customer is a Kenyan and/or UK supplier, company or top-tier end-user that shows support or commitment to the proposed innovations by presenting demonstrable deployment routes. The Lead Customer must provide a Letter of Endorsement with your application.

Funding Type and Project Size

Innovate UK will fund 70% of a total project value up to £40,000 per project. An in-kind contribution of 30% is required from the project partners. Higher in-kind contributions by project partners are encouraged to boost the scale of the projects, and will be viewed favourably in the selection process.

A project must involve at least one partner from the UK and one partner from Kenya.

Rewards & Benefits

• Technology Testing & Validation, 6-month project: Grant funding of pp to £40,000 for the UK/Kenya lead registered organisation per project (subject to T&C).
• Technology Demonstration & Scale-up, 6-month project: Grant funding of pp to £40,000 for the UK/Kenya lead registered organisation per project (subject to T&C).
• Access to international collaboration and innovation through UK-Kenya partnership.
• Support in facilitating industry engagement to seize future commercialisation opportunities and enhance market access.
• Sector expertise support from Innovate UK and Lead Country Partner (i.e. KENIA).

Before you start:

• Understand the Scope and Eligibility criteria on the application portal.
• You must download and complete both of the following:
  • Application template.
  • Project plan and finances template.
• Register on the application portal.