Research funding
Get inspired by ongoing research into the most pressing pre-competitive challenges for alternative protein science, and find funding opportunities for your own research.
Find research funding
GFI’s research funding database provides curated grant opportunities for alternative protein research and innovation. Learn how to use this database in this 2-minute tutorial.
Collaborations with external research projects
Learn more about how we can support research projects here. We work with a number of exciting projects innovating in alternative protein science.
Smart Protein project
This project aims to develop plant-rich foods from plants, fungi, and byproducts from regeneratively farmed organic legumes grown in Europe.
Giant Leaps
Giant Leaps develop methodology, datasets and innovations to accelerate the dietary shift towards sustainability and circularity, focussing on allergenicity, nutrition and food safety.
HealthFerm
HealthFerm is working to understand the impact of fermentation on human health and how fermentation can be leveraged to enhance the use of sustainable plant-based raw materials. It funds research exploring these topics.
ValPro Path
ValPro Path is a European Comission funded project aiming to establish a concrete pathway and necessary tools to facilitate the future European Partnership for Sustainable Food Systems, to be launched in 2024.
CARMA
CARMA (Cellular Agriculture Manufacturing Hub) is a £12M research centre at the University of Bath, focused on scaling and commercialising cellular agriculture technologies such as cultivated meat and precision fermentation.
NextGen
NextGen is a now finished project that supported the creation of a sustainable, affordable protein supply chain, with a focus on scientific life cycles and circular approaches. The outputs of the project can be found on their website linked below.
Circalgae
Circalgae aims to develop sustainable algae-based biorefineries and products supporting the health of aquatic ecosystems for a healthy planet and people.
CellFood Hub
The CellFood Hub is a Danish project seeking to expand and support the fledgeling cultivated meat sector in Denmark.
Research grant opportunities
GFI’s research grant programme
Powered by donations from a small number of generous donors, our research grant programme funds open-access alternative protein research. Learn about the projects we’re funding and find funding opportunities for your own research.
Research grants tracker
Explore our alternative protein research grants tracker to discover insights about open-access research across Europe, including what’s being funded, who is funding it, at what levels, and more.
Investment in research and innovation is a key priority for our policy work, find out more about our policy work to boost research into alternative proteins, and check out our Global Policy Report, to see how Europe fits into the global research landscape.
Priority research areas
Advancing Solutions for Alternative Proteins (ASAP) is GFI’s database of research gaps, commercial whitespaces, technological needs, and investment priorities along the alternative protein value chain.
Latest science news
Meet the researchers: Tapping into the unexplored potential of an ancient technology
A technological twist on a widely used food production system is enabling researchers to develop tasty and nutritious new products.
APP 2024: join the student movement shaping the future of food
From Portugal to Türkiye – students across Europe are taking a leading role in a global movement turning universities into…
Meet the researcher: Expanding the tentacles of alternative seafood research with Frederico Ferreira
A researcher working to develop the first cultivated octopus product is at the heart of a €7 million project bringing…
“Per me, ora è molto peggio”. L’Italia alla prese con una fuga dei cervelli sulla scia del controverso divieto di utilizzo della carne coltivata
Dopo che l’Italia è diventata l’unico paese al mondo ad aver vietato la carne coltivata, parliamo con i ricercatori del…
“We will have to leave because we don’t have a future here.” Italian researchers fear brain drain in wake of controversial cultivated meat ban
Following the controversial cultivated meat ban, some fear an exodus of talented young scientists – particularly unwelcome given nearly 10%…
2023 was a record-breaking year for UK alternative protein research funding – here’s a recap
The results of a £15.6 million funding call round out a bumper year for British alternative protein researchers and entrepreneurs.
2023 round-up: finding the levers to move alternative proteins forward
This year has been pivotal for alternative proteins, particularly in Europe. Here is our round-up of GFI Europe’s 2023 highlights.
Cultivated meat backed by UK government’s new National Vision for Engineering Biology
The UK’s Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) has today highlighted the critical role that alternative proteins like cultivated…
Explore more of our science resources
Resources for students and educators
Learn more about available courses, how to get alternative proteins on the curriculum at your institution, and our Alternative Protein Project university chapters.
Open access tools and resources
Explore our library of free-to access resources on plant-based, cultivated and fermentation-made meat, seafood, eggs and dairy.
Research community
Join our community of researchers today to forge connections, find industry and academic collaborators, and learn about the latest science.
Get in touch
Stella Child
Research and Grants Manager
Stella leads our work to grow the alternative proteins research ecosystem across Europe secure grant funding for open-access research.
