Launchpad: Agri-tech and Food tech in Eastern England – R1 CR&D (UK)

Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation, is to invest up to £2 million in innovation projects.

The funding will support projects across the three Launchpad competition strands that target the innovation cluster in Eastern England. The aim of this competition is to support outstanding innovation projects led by businesses. Your business must be active or growing work activities in the agri-tech and food technology innovation cluster in Eastern England.

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

• enhancing the productivity of primary crops, the bioeconomy, livestock, aquaculture or ornamental plants
• biotechnologies related to agriculture, food and nutrition
• food that promotes safe, healthy and nutritious diets
• resource efficient production methods for low emission foods

Specific Themes

Your project can focus on one or more of the following:

• sustainability in the context of environmental challenges such as climate change and resource scarcity
• protecting, maintaining or enhancing animal welfare within current UK regulatory standard
• nutritional composition, food manufacturing and processing, packaging, and safety
• minimising negative effects such as pollution, food loss and waste
• resilience and responsiveness in the supply chain, mitigating risks, interruptions or disruptions

Project Size

• Your project’s total grant funding request must be between £150,000 and £300,000.

Projects they will not fund

• They are not funding projects that:
  • do not contribute to innovation activity in the agri-tech and food technology cluster in Eastern England
  • are aimed solely at equine markets
  • involve wild caught fisheries
  • involve primary production in fishery and aquaculture, or in agriculture; meaning the project must be undertaking research and development, the solution must be for exploitation by the wider business community and the funding cannot be used for capital asset acquisition
  • have activities relating to the purchase of road freight transport
  • are within scope of the Cluster management strand of this Launchpad competition
  • request grant funding of less than £150,000 or more than £300,000
• They cannot fund projects that are:
  • dependent on export performance, for example giving a subsidy to a baker on the condition that it exports a certain quantity of bread to another country
  • dependent on domestic inputs usage, for example giving a subsidy to a baker on the condition that it uses 50% UK flour in their product

Who can apply?

• Your project must:
  • last between 6 and 18 months
  • intend to exploit the results from or in the UK
  • start at the earliest on 1 April 2024
  • end by 31 March 2026
• Projects must always start on the first of the month and this must be stated within your application. Your project start date will be reflected in your grant offer letter if you are successful.
• To lead a project your organisation must:
  • be a UK registered business of any size
  • be or involve at least one grant claiming micro, small or medium-sized enterprise (SME)
  • collaborate with other UK registered organisations
  • be active or growing your work activities in the agri-tech and food technology innovation cluster in Eastern England
  • have a demonstrable ambition for business growth
• Academic institutions cannot lead or work alone.
• To collaborate with the lead, your organisation must be one of the following UK registered:
  • business of any size
  • academic institution
  • charity
  • not for profit
  • public sector organisation
  • research and technology organisation (RTO)
• The contribution of project partners must add to the innovation led growth of the cluster.
• Each partner organisation must be invited into the Innovation Funding Service by the lead to collaborate on a project.
• To be an eligible collaboration, the lead and at least one other organisation must apply for funding when entering their costs into the application.
• Your project can include partners that do not receive any of this competition’s funding, for example non-UK businesses. Their costs will count towards the total project costs.
• Subcontractors are allowed in this competition. Their contribution must add to the innovation led growth of the cluster.
• Subcontractors can be from anywhere in the UK and you must select them through your usual procurement process.
• All subcontractor costs must be justified and appropriate to the total project costs.
• A business can lead on only one CR&D strand application for this competition, but can be included as a collaborator in any number of applications.
• If an organisation is not leading any application, it can collaborate in any number of applications.

For more information, visit Innovate UK.