Plant-based infant formula and toddler drink product development

Little Iris is a plant-based, allergen-free, fortified babyfood powder formula. For the past two years, we have worked with a food product developer to create recipes for four products: two for infants (0-6 and 6-12 months) and two for toddlers (12+ months, 'Wakey Wakey' and 'Night Night' drinks). These will be sold in biodegradable pouches. Our aim is to provide parents with more choice, whether they follow a plant-based lifestyle, are 'plant-curious', have children with allergies or simply want to live more sustainably. We have deliberately avoided soya, which is known to affect hormone development in infants and is less sustainable than pea protein.

There is a huge gap in the market, and very little choice for parents, when it comes to infant and toddler formulas -- an industry that is saturated with dairy products.

Veganism is hugely on the rise in the UK. Interest in 'veganism' increased seven fold in the five years between 2014 and 2019, according to Google trends. A global switch to diets that rely less on meat and more on fruit and vegetables could save up to 8 million lives by 2050, reduce greenhouse gas emissions by two thirds, and lead to healthcare-related savings and avoided climate damages of $1.5 trillion (US).

Allergies are also on the rise, with 7% of children living with food allergies. Cows' milk allergy (CMA) is one of the most common childhood food allergies. It is estimated to affect around 7% of babies under 1\.

And even before the arrival of COVID19, only 34% of babies in the UK were receiving breast milk at the age of six months. This figure is set to rise hugely, with fewer mothers able to access breastfeeding support as a result of COVID19\.

Now we need funding to go into our next stage of R&D: working with experts to test each formula, make sure they meet nutritional requirements and adhere to food safety standards. Another challenge is to pass a new legislation for our key ingredient: hydrolized pea protein, which has never before been used in babyfood because since there is currently no legislation in place in the UK to use pea protein in this area.

This project is innovative as we are working to get new legislation passed for pea protein to be used in babyfood for the first time. The output, alongside our products, will be scientifically proven legislation, from which we can educate and reassure audiences about the properties of pea protein and all of the ingredients in our products, dispelling myths and opening minds using studies and testimonials from clinicians, nutritionists and midwives. This legislation will be a gamechanger for babyfood: for manufacturers it will make it more widely useable and therefore reduce its costs for brands wanting to use it. For parents, there will be an allergen-free, healthy and sustainable choice for their children.