ZIRON Pulse: Upscaling adoption and exploitation of a wide diversity of Iron and Zinc-rich beans by rural populations in Africa
Lead Research Organisation:
James Hutton Institute
Department Name: Enviromental & Biochemical Sciences
Abstract
In their report "The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World" (2017) the United Nations state that "The number of undernourished people in the world has been on the rise since 2014, reaching an estimated 821 million in 2017". Increases in population, the impacts of climate change long-term effects and extreme events, finite land and diminishing resources all point to the need for a step change if we are to deliver safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. The sustainable production of future crops has to be accomplished with decreased utilization of essential resources, particularly nitrogen fertilizers.
Grain legumes (pulses), such as common bean, provide an unparalleled solution to this problem because of their inherent capacity for symbiosis with bacteria that can fix atmospheric nitrogen, which minimizes the need for nitrogen fertilization. Grain legumes have a higher nutritional value and the amino acid composition than cereals. Improvement (biofortification) of the contents of micronutrients particularly iron and zinc in common bean is a feasible strategy to solve the problem of micronutrient deficiencies that are more widespread in developing countries. Micronutrient deficiencies are often referred to as 'hidden hunger' because the problem is often not obvious but, when considerable, leads to irreversible damage. While supplementation is effective for easy-to-reach groups and relatively low cost, this strategy often misses the hard-to-reach vulnerable groups such as the rural and urban poor.
Focussing on the development of iron and zinc rich beans, this project is founded on a long-established bean biofortification breeding program in Kenya that is in the process of developing new varieties with high levels of iron and zinc. Project research will firstly increase current knowledge of the genetic basis of high micronutrient accumulation and agronomic durability in common bean and improve the precision and efficiency of future molecular breeding for more nutritious and durable bean varieties. Secondly, the interdisciplinary research undertaken in this project will demonstrate to the nutritional benefits of the iron and zinc rich beans produced by the breeding program across the stakeholders in the supply and value chains including consumers, small holders and policy makers. It will deliver more nutritious foods in the form of widely eaten common beans in a manner that is culturally appropriate and suited to the common form of cooking and so improve physical and cognitive health in Kenya and ultimately other developing countries. Information concerning micronutrient rich bean varieties will be disseminated in Kenya and will form a platform for analogous activities in other African countries.
Project activities will also promote social welfare and provide science-based advice for policymakers. Our aim is to reach at least 10000 rural house-holds in Kenya, and enhance linkages and interactions with bean grain producers and the market, as well as improving the marketing and technical skills of local farmers. By providing African farmers with the means to produce high nutritional value beans as a feasible and sustainable solution for the alleviation of malnutrition, their revenue and economic wealth will also increase. The inclusion of farmers and local communities in this program of biofortification agriculture not only ensures community engagement at a local level but serves to protect sustainability and focuses on nutritional benefits to women and children in rural regions.
Grain legumes (pulses), such as common bean, provide an unparalleled solution to this problem because of their inherent capacity for symbiosis with bacteria that can fix atmospheric nitrogen, which minimizes the need for nitrogen fertilization. Grain legumes have a higher nutritional value and the amino acid composition than cereals. Improvement (biofortification) of the contents of micronutrients particularly iron and zinc in common bean is a feasible strategy to solve the problem of micronutrient deficiencies that are more widespread in developing countries. Micronutrient deficiencies are often referred to as 'hidden hunger' because the problem is often not obvious but, when considerable, leads to irreversible damage. While supplementation is effective for easy-to-reach groups and relatively low cost, this strategy often misses the hard-to-reach vulnerable groups such as the rural and urban poor.
Focussing on the development of iron and zinc rich beans, this project is founded on a long-established bean biofortification breeding program in Kenya that is in the process of developing new varieties with high levels of iron and zinc. Project research will firstly increase current knowledge of the genetic basis of high micronutrient accumulation and agronomic durability in common bean and improve the precision and efficiency of future molecular breeding for more nutritious and durable bean varieties. Secondly, the interdisciplinary research undertaken in this project will demonstrate to the nutritional benefits of the iron and zinc rich beans produced by the breeding program across the stakeholders in the supply and value chains including consumers, small holders and policy makers. It will deliver more nutritious foods in the form of widely eaten common beans in a manner that is culturally appropriate and suited to the common form of cooking and so improve physical and cognitive health in Kenya and ultimately other developing countries. Information concerning micronutrient rich bean varieties will be disseminated in Kenya and will form a platform for analogous activities in other African countries.
Project activities will also promote social welfare and provide science-based advice for policymakers. Our aim is to reach at least 10000 rural house-holds in Kenya, and enhance linkages and interactions with bean grain producers and the market, as well as improving the marketing and technical skills of local farmers. By providing African farmers with the means to produce high nutritional value beans as a feasible and sustainable solution for the alleviation of malnutrition, their revenue and economic wealth will also increase. The inclusion of farmers and local communities in this program of biofortification agriculture not only ensures community engagement at a local level but serves to protect sustainability and focuses on nutritional benefits to women and children in rural regions.
Planned Impact
ZIRON Pulse - Impact Summary
Micronutrient malnutrition is one of the most serious health challenges facing vast sectors of Africa's population, particularly resource-poor women and children. Development and utilization of biofortified common bean cultivars enriched in iron and zinc is an effective and sustainable strategy for reducing micronutrient deficiencies in Africa, ensuring wide availability, affordability regular access and is low cost. The biofortification of common bean varieties provides a unique opportunity for improving micronutrient nutrition because it is widely grown (>5.1 million ha annually in Africa) and consumed in Africa with reports identifying that Kenya, the target country for ZIRON Pulse, has the highest per capita consumption of beans estimated at 14 kg/annum but can be as high as 66 kg/annum in western Kenya. Common beans are already widely consumed, because they are rich in protein (>20%), dietary fibre, minerals and calories, and are relatively cheap and highly marketable. Consumption of grain legumes has been shown to have multiple health benefits including reduced obesity, CVD, metabolic syndrome etc, with improved protein and mineral nutrition compared to cereals (Rebellow et al. 2014. J.Agri. Food Chem. 62, 7029). This project builds on a regional breeding program led by the University of Nairobi that was initiated in 2004 to develop and disseminate micronutrient dense bean varieties. These biofortified beans have nearly 5 times more iron (>80ppm) and zinc (>40ppm) compared to fortified maize meal (15ppm iron and 7 ppm zinc). The activities of the proposed research will have immediate impact on these efforts by facilitating more rapid progress in the bean improvement program supporting agricultural policy (Ministry of Agriculture). Building on the solid evidence of biofortification as a route to nutritional efficacy, we will have direct impact on this program, and greatly assist existing in-country efforts to ensure that the new varieties have a meaningful impact on food security and nutrition in Kenya (National Food and Nutrition Security Policy, 2011: Kenya Health Policy 2014-30). These activities will help deliver the goals in the Kenya Vision 2030 and its realisation plan the Big 4 Agenda: a prosperous, middle income country with high quality of life and improved food security, universal health and enhanced manufacturing. ZIRON Pulse will enhance the development of iron and zinc rich common beans and demonstrate their efficacy and utility to the supply and value chains. It will serve to integrate the new biofortified varieties with their improved nutritional benefits seamlessly and sustainably into local and national food chains, as well as societal, urban and technical infrastructures within future communities. Farmers will not only benefit from the availability of affordable seeds of micronutrient dense, biofortified bean varieties but also from reduced agrochemical inputs (less fertiliser), increased productivity and better returns on their labour. The consumption of micronutrient-rich beans will have a direct impact on the local population because of the reduced incidence of iron deficiency anaemia and zinc deficiency conditions, particularly in the most vulnerable groups. Communities will benefit from employment, and better incomes and livelihoods. Consumers of beans will save on energy costs since the new varieties cook much faster compared to present varieties which require 2-3 hours to cook. Seed companies and processors will benefit from higher productivity and new market demanded products. This project will have additional impact by boosting the transfer of knowledge from fundamental research to other sectors of the bio-economy and participate actively in advice to policymakers to promote sustainable, science-based solutions to micronutrient deficiency-based challenges to the health and wellbeing of African citizens and society.
Micronutrient malnutrition is one of the most serious health challenges facing vast sectors of Africa's population, particularly resource-poor women and children. Development and utilization of biofortified common bean cultivars enriched in iron and zinc is an effective and sustainable strategy for reducing micronutrient deficiencies in Africa, ensuring wide availability, affordability regular access and is low cost. The biofortification of common bean varieties provides a unique opportunity for improving micronutrient nutrition because it is widely grown (>5.1 million ha annually in Africa) and consumed in Africa with reports identifying that Kenya, the target country for ZIRON Pulse, has the highest per capita consumption of beans estimated at 14 kg/annum but can be as high as 66 kg/annum in western Kenya. Common beans are already widely consumed, because they are rich in protein (>20%), dietary fibre, minerals and calories, and are relatively cheap and highly marketable. Consumption of grain legumes has been shown to have multiple health benefits including reduced obesity, CVD, metabolic syndrome etc, with improved protein and mineral nutrition compared to cereals (Rebellow et al. 2014. J.Agri. Food Chem. 62, 7029). This project builds on a regional breeding program led by the University of Nairobi that was initiated in 2004 to develop and disseminate micronutrient dense bean varieties. These biofortified beans have nearly 5 times more iron (>80ppm) and zinc (>40ppm) compared to fortified maize meal (15ppm iron and 7 ppm zinc). The activities of the proposed research will have immediate impact on these efforts by facilitating more rapid progress in the bean improvement program supporting agricultural policy (Ministry of Agriculture). Building on the solid evidence of biofortification as a route to nutritional efficacy, we will have direct impact on this program, and greatly assist existing in-country efforts to ensure that the new varieties have a meaningful impact on food security and nutrition in Kenya (National Food and Nutrition Security Policy, 2011: Kenya Health Policy 2014-30). These activities will help deliver the goals in the Kenya Vision 2030 and its realisation plan the Big 4 Agenda: a prosperous, middle income country with high quality of life and improved food security, universal health and enhanced manufacturing. ZIRON Pulse will enhance the development of iron and zinc rich common beans and demonstrate their efficacy and utility to the supply and value chains. It will serve to integrate the new biofortified varieties with their improved nutritional benefits seamlessly and sustainably into local and national food chains, as well as societal, urban and technical infrastructures within future communities. Farmers will not only benefit from the availability of affordable seeds of micronutrient dense, biofortified bean varieties but also from reduced agrochemical inputs (less fertiliser), increased productivity and better returns on their labour. The consumption of micronutrient-rich beans will have a direct impact on the local population because of the reduced incidence of iron deficiency anaemia and zinc deficiency conditions, particularly in the most vulnerable groups. Communities will benefit from employment, and better incomes and livelihoods. Consumers of beans will save on energy costs since the new varieties cook much faster compared to present varieties which require 2-3 hours to cook. Seed companies and processors will benefit from higher productivity and new market demanded products. This project will have additional impact by boosting the transfer of knowledge from fundamental research to other sectors of the bio-economy and participate actively in advice to policymakers to promote sustainable, science-based solutions to micronutrient deficiency-based challenges to the health and wellbeing of African citizens and society.
Organisations
- James Hutton Institute (Lead Research Organisation)
- Makerere University (Collaboration)
- Syngenta International AG (Collaboration)
- Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (Collaboration)
- Haramaya University (Collaboration)
- Kenya Seed Company (Collaboration)
- University of Queensland (Collaboration)
- University of Western Australia (Collaboration)
- University of Ghana (Collaboration)
- Bioversity International (Collaboration)
- West African Research Center (Collaboration)
- University of KwaZulu-Natal (Collaboration)
Publications
Alomrani S
(2021)
Papain-like cysteine proteases are required for the regulation of photosynthetic gene expression and acclimation to high light stress.
in Journal of experimental botany
Anders S
(2021)
Gaining Acceptance of Novel Plant Breeding Technologies.
in Trends in plant science
Blair M
(2021)
Plant Breeding Reviews
Blair, M.W
(2021)
Plant Breeding Reviews, Volume 45
Considine MJ
(2023)
Metabolic regulation of quiescence in plants.
in The Plant journal : for cell and molecular biology
Considine MJ
(2021)
Stress effects on the reactive oxygen species-dependent regulation of plant growth and development.
in Journal of experimental botany
Foyer CH
(2020)
Vitamin C in Plants: Novel Concepts, New Perspectives, and Outstanding Issues.
in Antioxidants & redox signaling
Foyer CH
(2024)
The ascorbate-glutathione cycle coming of age.
in Journal of experimental botany
Foyer CH
(2020)
How plant cells sense the outside world through hydrogen peroxide.
in Nature
Ganie S
(2023)
Environmental stress in crops: Effects and responses during reproduction
in Food and Energy Security
| Description | 1. Studies into bean nutrient bioavailability - Raw beans exhibited diversity in iron content (50 to > 90 mg kg-1) although zinc content was similar (30-40 mg kg-1). Following preparation by different household cooking methods < 5% of the iron in raw beans was recovered in the bioavailable fraction following in vitro digestion. However, up to 20% of zinc present in dry seeds was bioavailable. A high proportion of iron and zinc in raw beans (up to 40%) was lost by leaching into cooking water when beans were prepared by boiling. Our data highlight the need to consider losses during domestic processing and the related physicochemical traits in biofortification programmes. 2. Food survey and consumer engagement in Kenya. Work undertaken by project partner FANRPAN on the development of a nutritional toolkit found that : Plant-based foods were commonly consumed; Yellow beans were the most preferred variety; There is a rise of bean consumption in the recent years but there here were misconceptions and myths on biofortified beans. Allied to this farmers and consumers understood Nutritional and health benefits of beans but not fully. This highlighted that there was a preference for varieties that cook fast, have less gastric gas, affordable as seed, and that there were many myths and misconceptions due to lack of adequate and proper information. This will inform the engagement work going forward |
| Exploitation Route | The findings are already driving engagement with breeding and food companies and other research groups and initiatives in Kenya and more broadly in Africa. These include the following: • Simlaw Seeds Ltd, Nairobi • Kenya Seed Company, Kitale, Kenya • Njoro Canning Ltd, Nakuru, Kenya • Elgon Kenya Ltd, Nairobi, Kenya • Trufood Ltd, Nairobi, Kenya • Qualibasic Seed Company, Nairobi, Kenya • West African Centre for Crop Improvement, Accra, Ghana • Demand Led Breeding, CIAT, Nairobi, Kenya • Tsavo Seed Company, Taveta, Kenya • African Centre for Crop Improvement (ACCI), University of KwaZulu Natal, South Africa |
| Sectors | Agriculture Food and Drink |
| Description | 1. Mapping work was undertaken by the project partners Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization to create background information on the study counties and status of Malnutrition/. This identified that in the target Kenyan county of Elgeyo Marakwt (Population of 454465; ~1:1 Male:Female) that Wasting (% of children aged 6-59.9 month whose weight for height score is below the WHO recommended scores) and Underweight (% of children aged 6-59.9 months whose weight for age score is below the WHO recommended scores) indicator scores were worse that the Kenyan national averages. The national Wasting and Underweight scores are 4 and 11% respectively whilst in Elgeyo Marakwt country the values are 4.3 and 12.6% respectively. This supported the targeting of this country by Ziron Pulse for nutrition based activities based around beans. Already the KALRO team has generated significant interest and identified potential new products from bean to lift protein intake in the target population 2. As part of ZIRON Pulse studies were undertaken to understand the effects low nitrogen and phosphorous availability on the accumulation of iron and zinc in the leaves and seeds of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) using fur genotypes (Nizok Chimbolos, Edar and Colorado) that differ in seed iron contents. The accumulation of phytate and the levels of the iron-binding proteins ferritin and the late-embryogenesis abundant (LEA) 4 were similar in the seeds of the lines prior to germination. Seeds were germinated in petri dishes for 3-4 days at 22-23°C in the dark and then transplanted into vermiculite in pots, provided with three types of nutrient solutions (full nutrients, low nitrogen or low phosphate). Two-week-old plants grown with low nitrogen showed symptoms of severe nutrient deficiency (reduced size, pale leaves, low chlorophyll contents, decreased rates of photosynthesis). The plants grown to maturity did not produce pods or seeds. Plants grown on low phosphate showed less severe visible symptoms of nutrient deficiency than those grown with low nitrogen. However, photosynthetic electron transport rates were lower than those grown on full nutrients. The leaves of plants grown on low N and low P showed a greater accumulation of superoxide and hydrogen peroxide than the leaves of plants grown on full nutrients. However, the accumulation of iron and zinc in the leaves was similar to the levels obtained on plants grown to maturity. Hence, low nutrient (nitrogen or phosphorus) availability does not impair iron and zinc uptake and accumulation by leaves. The plants grown on low phosphate were grown to maturity. After 6 weeks of growth the plants were smaller with fewer leaves than the plants grown with full nutrients. After 8 weeks of growth the plants grown with full nutrient were larger, with more leaves, flowers and pods than those grown on limiting phosphate. However, the plants grown on low phosphate were able to generate seeds. The seeds of the plants grown on low phosphate accumulated less iron than those grown with full nutrients. The lower levels of iron in the low phosphorus seeds may be related to the absence of phytate. 3. Translation through to nutritional uplift - To support the bean variety trials and cookery demonstrations work, a baseline survey was carried out to collect key data on both bean production, marketing and consumption before implementation of activities was carried out so that at the end of the project impact created by the project could be measured. The intent was to know which bean varieties were being grown and or consumed and assess if the farmers were already using some of the micronutrient-fortified bean varieties. The study was also to find out if farmers were growing those varieties or they are buying them. At the end we should find out if the situation will change after the trainings and demonstration, and if the eating habits will change. The baseline survey was carried out in Nyeri County, Kieni East Sub County. Nyeri County was selected because it is one of the counties where the project was implemented, and intensive demonstrations and training were carried out there. The survey also covered the four wards of Kieni East as they are beans are a major crop produce in the area. The baseline survey has brought out some important observations on production, marketing and consumption of beans. The results show that beans are an important value chain to the sample households. The variety preferences discussed in this report should be considered when developing and promoting varieties to farmers in the region and similar areas. Data from the survey was also useful in developing different bean recipes. The challenges mentioned should be dealt with from both the research angle (variety development and recipe development) and the policy angle to for example deal with high fertilizer prices. 4. Nutritional Toolkit development and validation - After identifying various actors in the bean value chain (consumers, traders, farmers, policy makers, leaders etc), the content for different actors was identified and packaged in different forms of fliers, manuals, comics, and dissemination approaches were also different, ranging from group sessions, to campaigns, to workshops. This resource manual on bean utilization and consumption aimed to provide nutrition information to the farmers participating in ZIRON trials but specifically information on Zinc and Iron rich bean nutrition. The manual was custom developed for extension workers and other practitioners who promote good nutrition. The knowledge gained from this resource manual will enhance understanding of biofortification and influence the choice of the seed and beans for food. Multiple routes were taken for the toolkit and ones was the recipe book for beans. This recipe book also seeks to serve as a nutrition education tool in providing guidance in the provision of healthy diets to households and individuals. These recipes will contribute in improving nutrition status of the target population. This beans recipe book should be promoted hand in hand with nutrition and health education and the bean nutrition resource kit. The book was designed for extension officers, community nutritionists and Community Health Volunteers (CHVs) to help them provide step by step instructions to communities and households on how to prepare and consume common bean using various recipes. The use of various recipes is vital in promoting the upscaling, consumption and adoption of common bean. The book therefore provides recipes for preparing bean purees of various types, bean flour for preparing porridges and other products. The purees and porridge are good for children and other population groups that are not able to eat solid food. The recipes are presented in the following order; Bean purees, Bean flour and porridge, Bean snacks, Bean dishes and Bean soups (the book has been uploaded in the Other section. Regarding evaluation of the toolkit, it was developed to address these nutrition and health information gaps that had been identified from a formative research that was done in Kiambu, Nyeri and Meru counties of Kenya. The evaluation was conducted using Focus group discussions (FGD) and in-depth interviews to collect information related to knowledge, attitude, and practices on biofortified beans, and bean processing methods adopted by the communities, sources of information on biofortified beans, availability of biofortified beans, recipes tried at home, barriers to biofortified bean consumption and what consumers like most about biofortified beans. This information was gathered in order to evaluate the performance of the nutrition toolkit in terms of addressing gaps identified in formative research. The study found out that the high cost of the biofortified beans was a major hinderance to their consumption and adoption and hence suggested that the price should be reduction to make them accessible. Additionally, there was lack of information on where to buy the beans. Participants also needed information on different planting techniques that can be used to maximize on the yield of biofortified beans. Overall, the rural communities were aware of and generally had a positive perception towards consumption, benefits and utilization of biofortified beans. The knowledge of biofortified beans was found to significantly influence their perception and utilization of biofortified beans. There was still low knowledge on the health and nutrition benefits of biofortified beans meaning that more awareness needs to be made. The number of recipes being tried were still low and more cooking demonstrations are needed. There was still lack of knowledge on where to source biofortified beans. Therefore, research institutes and relevant stakeholders should ensure that rural sensitization is promoted at a higher scale with accompanying cooking demonstration, and availing the biofortified beans to improve acceptability and utilization. There is still need for sensitization and education for the members of Nyeri County on the ZIRON-Pulse beans varieties. Consecutively, more seeds should be made available for the farmers to plant and distribute once harvested. 5. FANRPAN Regional Multi-stakeholder Policy Dialogue: Resilient African Food Systems - Solutions for Climate Change, Livelihoods, Food and Nutrition Security. The Policy Dialogue came at the tail-end of FANRPAN's 2016-2023 strategy, which focused on "building resilient African agriculture and food systems, securing prosperity and health for all". The dialogue presented an excellent opportunity for the network to reflect on achievements and progress registered so far. It also provided a dynamic platform for stakeholders to come together to take stock of key processes, identify their roles and how they can be linked to accelerate transformation. The Policy Dialogue showcased solutions and elevated pathways to food systems transformation. FANRPAN's sub themes of focus in the dialogue were on Accelerating Climate Resilience, Shifting to Sustainable and Healthier diets and Strengthening Institutions and Systems for Resilient Food Systems. The ZIRON pulse research trial is one of the FANRPAN's projects under Nutrition Sensitive Agriculture whose research activities aimed to generate evidence on addressing micronutrient deficiencies through nutrient dense -food based interventions(biofortification). The research processes and results fed into the understanding of how to support local communities and food systems make a shift to sustainable and healthier diets while building capacity of national and local institutions for resilient food systems in Kenya. The FANRPAN Regional Multi-stakeholder Policy dialogue offered a platform where ZIRON Pulse research information was widely disseminated beyond Kenya. These lessons and results are relevant and applicable across Africa, especially for countries that are currently finding challenges addressing child and maternal micronutrient deficiencies. 6. The crop protein work has underpinned the development and funding of the National Alternative Protein Innovation Centre (https://napic.ac.uk/; BB/Z516119/1), funded by BBSRC and Innovate UK, within which Prof Derek Stewart leads the produce theme centred on feedstock and products |
| First Year Of Impact | 2023 |
| Sector | Agriculture, Food and Drink,Manufacturing, including Industrial Biotechology |
| Impact Types | Cultural Societal Economic Policy & public services |
| Description | Advanced Plant Growth Centre/International Barley Hub Data Centre |
| Amount | £1,220,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | United Kingdom Research and Innovation |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2023 |
| End | 04/2023 |
| Description | CEA Heirloom Optimisation & Pathogen Control for Seeds (CHOPS) |
| Amount | £629,943 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | 55310 |
| Organisation | Innovate UK |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 08/2020 |
| End | 09/2022 |
| Description | Crop Wild Relatives utilisation and conservation for sustainable agriculture |
| Amount | € 567,769,750 (EUR) |
| Funding ID | 101135314 |
| Organisation | European Commission |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | Belgium |
| Start | 01/2024 |
| End | 12/2028 |
| Description | Hutton Molecular Phenotyping Centre |
| Amount | £500,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Garfield Weston Foundation |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 05/2023 |
| End | 06/2024 |
| Description | Hybrid Advanced Research Vertical-Farming Environment Systems and Technology (HARVEST) |
| Amount | £518,623 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | 93802 |
| Organisation | Innovate UK |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2021 |
| End | 02/2023 |
| Description | NAPIC: National Alternative Protein Innovation Centre |
| Amount | £20,000,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | BB/Z516119/1 |
| Organisation | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 07/2024 |
| End | 08/2029 |
| Description | Root2Resilience: Root phenotyping and genetic improvement for rotational crops resilient to environmental change |
| Amount | € 6,367,651 (EUR) |
| Funding ID | 101060124 |
| Organisation | European Commission |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | Belgium |
| Start | 08/2022 |
| End | 08/2027 |
| Description | Scottish Alliance for Food: Health, equity and sustainability |
| Amount | £310,915 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Government of Scotland |
| Department | Scottish Funding Council |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2023 |
| End | 03/2027 |
| Description | SusProt : Sustainable Plant Protein from Vegetable Crop Sidestreams |
| Amount | £980,779 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | 10049047 |
| Organisation | Innovate UK |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2023 |
| End | 01/2025 |
| Description | System Sensing in Vertical Farming and Controlled Environment Agriculture (Sys-Sens) |
| Amount | £486,882 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | 10008565 |
| Organisation | Innovate UK |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2021 |
| End | 04/2022 |
| Description | The Advanced Plant Growth Centre |
| Amount | £27,000,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Government of Scotland |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 12/2020 |
| End | 12/2030 |
| Description | Unlocking the Potential of the soils for carbon farming to meet net zero through real time GHG predictions |
| Amount | £117,839 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | BB/Y513647/1 |
| Organisation | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 08/2023 |
| End | 09/2027 |
| Description | Bean breeding |
| Organisation | Kenya Seed Company |
| Country | Kenya |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | Prof Kimani has (re)established and/or initiated collaboration with breeding companies and researchers for new bean varieties |
| Collaborator Contribution | Collaborating on bean breeding and the they are interested in the outputs of the Ziron Pulse project |
| Impact | Collaboration is purely discussion based to date |
| Start Year | 2021 |
| Description | Bean breeding |
| Organisation | University of KwaZulu-Natal |
| Department | African Centre for Crop Improvement |
| Country | South Africa |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Prof Kimani has (re)established and/or initiated collaboration with breeding companies and researchers for new bean varieties |
| Collaborator Contribution | Collaborating on bean breeding and the they are interested in the outputs of the Ziron Pulse project |
| Impact | Collaboration is purely discussion based to date |
| Start Year | 2021 |
| Description | Bean breeding |
| Organisation | West African Research Center |
| Country | Senegal |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | Prof Kimani has (re)established and/or initiated collaboration with breeding companies and researchers for new bean varieties |
| Collaborator Contribution | Collaborating on bean breeding and the they are interested in the outputs of the Ziron Pulse project |
| Impact | Collaboration is purely discussion based to date |
| Start Year | 2021 |
| Description | Demand Led Breeding |
| Organisation | Bioversity International |
| Country | Italy |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | Contributions for this are driven by Prof Kimani's team in Kenya |
| Collaborator Contribution | The intent of DLB is to lead to greater availability of new, high performing crop varieties that respond to customer needs and market demand, and which will, in the longer term, lead to increased adoption of new high performing varieties by farmers in Africa, contributing to food and nutritional security and income generation. In this collaboration between many African breeding and crop science institution as well as analogous organisations in Thailand, Australia and Switzerland the aim is to provide the tools and resources (as protocols0 to deliver demand led breeding. Here Prof Kimani, University of Nairobi, delivers the bean breeding aspects |
| Impact | Product Profile - Practitioners tool-kit; A Practitioners Guide: Overview; A Practitioners' Guide: Creating product profile summaries; Practitioners summary template (https://www.demandledbreeding.org/resources) |
| Start Year | 2020 |
| Description | Demand Led Breeding |
| Organisation | Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research |
| Country | Ethiopia |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Contributions for this are driven by Prof Kimani's team in Kenya |
| Collaborator Contribution | The intent of DLB is to lead to greater availability of new, high performing crop varieties that respond to customer needs and market demand, and which will, in the longer term, lead to increased adoption of new high performing varieties by farmers in Africa, contributing to food and nutritional security and income generation. In this collaboration between many African breeding and crop science institution as well as analogous organisations in Thailand, Australia and Switzerland the aim is to provide the tools and resources (as protocols0 to deliver demand led breeding. Here Prof Kimani, University of Nairobi, delivers the bean breeding aspects |
| Impact | Product Profile - Practitioners tool-kit; A Practitioners Guide: Overview; A Practitioners' Guide: Creating product profile summaries; Practitioners summary template (https://www.demandledbreeding.org/resources) |
| Start Year | 2020 |
| Description | Demand Led Breeding |
| Organisation | Haramaya University |
| Country | Ethiopia |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Contributions for this are driven by Prof Kimani's team in Kenya |
| Collaborator Contribution | The intent of DLB is to lead to greater availability of new, high performing crop varieties that respond to customer needs and market demand, and which will, in the longer term, lead to increased adoption of new high performing varieties by farmers in Africa, contributing to food and nutritional security and income generation. In this collaboration between many African breeding and crop science institution as well as analogous organisations in Thailand, Australia and Switzerland the aim is to provide the tools and resources (as protocols0 to deliver demand led breeding. Here Prof Kimani, University of Nairobi, delivers the bean breeding aspects |
| Impact | Product Profile - Practitioners tool-kit; A Practitioners Guide: Overview; A Practitioners' Guide: Creating product profile summaries; Practitioners summary template (https://www.demandledbreeding.org/resources) |
| Start Year | 2020 |
| Description | Demand Led Breeding |
| Organisation | Makerere University |
| Country | Uganda |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Contributions for this are driven by Prof Kimani's team in Kenya |
| Collaborator Contribution | The intent of DLB is to lead to greater availability of new, high performing crop varieties that respond to customer needs and market demand, and which will, in the longer term, lead to increased adoption of new high performing varieties by farmers in Africa, contributing to food and nutritional security and income generation. In this collaboration between many African breeding and crop science institution as well as analogous organisations in Thailand, Australia and Switzerland the aim is to provide the tools and resources (as protocols0 to deliver demand led breeding. Here Prof Kimani, University of Nairobi, delivers the bean breeding aspects |
| Impact | Product Profile - Practitioners tool-kit; A Practitioners Guide: Overview; A Practitioners' Guide: Creating product profile summaries; Practitioners summary template (https://www.demandledbreeding.org/resources) |
| Start Year | 2020 |
| Description | Demand Led Breeding |
| Organisation | Syngenta International AG |
| Department | Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture |
| Country | Switzerland |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | Contributions for this are driven by Prof Kimani's team in Kenya |
| Collaborator Contribution | The intent of DLB is to lead to greater availability of new, high performing crop varieties that respond to customer needs and market demand, and which will, in the longer term, lead to increased adoption of new high performing varieties by farmers in Africa, contributing to food and nutritional security and income generation. In this collaboration between many African breeding and crop science institution as well as analogous organisations in Thailand, Australia and Switzerland the aim is to provide the tools and resources (as protocols0 to deliver demand led breeding. Here Prof Kimani, University of Nairobi, delivers the bean breeding aspects |
| Impact | Product Profile - Practitioners tool-kit; A Practitioners Guide: Overview; A Practitioners' Guide: Creating product profile summaries; Practitioners summary template (https://www.demandledbreeding.org/resources) |
| Start Year | 2020 |
| Description | Demand Led Breeding |
| Organisation | University of Ghana |
| Country | Ghana |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Contributions for this are driven by Prof Kimani's team in Kenya |
| Collaborator Contribution | The intent of DLB is to lead to greater availability of new, high performing crop varieties that respond to customer needs and market demand, and which will, in the longer term, lead to increased adoption of new high performing varieties by farmers in Africa, contributing to food and nutritional security and income generation. In this collaboration between many African breeding and crop science institution as well as analogous organisations in Thailand, Australia and Switzerland the aim is to provide the tools and resources (as protocols0 to deliver demand led breeding. Here Prof Kimani, University of Nairobi, delivers the bean breeding aspects |
| Impact | Product Profile - Practitioners tool-kit; A Practitioners Guide: Overview; A Practitioners' Guide: Creating product profile summaries; Practitioners summary template (https://www.demandledbreeding.org/resources) |
| Start Year | 2020 |
| Description | Demand Led Breeding |
| Organisation | University of Queensland |
| Country | Australia |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Contributions for this are driven by Prof Kimani's team in Kenya |
| Collaborator Contribution | The intent of DLB is to lead to greater availability of new, high performing crop varieties that respond to customer needs and market demand, and which will, in the longer term, lead to increased adoption of new high performing varieties by farmers in Africa, contributing to food and nutritional security and income generation. In this collaboration between many African breeding and crop science institution as well as analogous organisations in Thailand, Australia and Switzerland the aim is to provide the tools and resources (as protocols0 to deliver demand led breeding. Here Prof Kimani, University of Nairobi, delivers the bean breeding aspects |
| Impact | Product Profile - Practitioners tool-kit; A Practitioners Guide: Overview; A Practitioners' Guide: Creating product profile summaries; Practitioners summary template (https://www.demandledbreeding.org/resources) |
| Start Year | 2020 |
| Description | Demand Led Breeding |
| Organisation | University of Western Australia |
| Department | School of Agriculture and Environment |
| Country | Australia |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Contributions for this are driven by Prof Kimani's team in Kenya |
| Collaborator Contribution | The intent of DLB is to lead to greater availability of new, high performing crop varieties that respond to customer needs and market demand, and which will, in the longer term, lead to increased adoption of new high performing varieties by farmers in Africa, contributing to food and nutritional security and income generation. In this collaboration between many African breeding and crop science institution as well as analogous organisations in Thailand, Australia and Switzerland the aim is to provide the tools and resources (as protocols0 to deliver demand led breeding. Here Prof Kimani, University of Nairobi, delivers the bean breeding aspects |
| Impact | Product Profile - Practitioners tool-kit; A Practitioners Guide: Overview; A Practitioners' Guide: Creating product profile summaries; Practitioners summary template (https://www.demandledbreeding.org/resources) |
| Start Year | 2020 |
| Title | Plant Breeders rights for several bean varieties |
| Description | Plant Breeders rights: • KENYA TAMU- RED MOTTLED CLIMBING BEAN VARIETY (BEA1447) • KENYA SAFI- SPECKLED SUGAR CLIMBING BEAN VARIETY (BEA1448) • KENYA MAVUNO- RED MOTTLED CLIMBING BEAN VARIETY (BEA1449) • ROSECOCO MADINI- BIOFORTIFIED RED MOTTLED VARIETY(BEA 1451) • KENYA MAUA- BIOFORTIFIED RED MOTTLED BEAN (BEA 1452) |
| IP Reference | |
| Protection | Trade Mark |
| Year Protection Granted | 2020 |
| Licensed | Yes |
| Impact | Technology licensing agreements signed/or being negotiated with: • Qualibasic Seed Company • Kenya Seed Company • Simlaw Seed Company • Tsavo Seed Company • Cooper Kenya Ltd |
| Description | AgriTech 4.0: Crops, Seeds, & Soil |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | The online industry engagement event, AgriTech 4.0: Crops, Seeds, & Soil, was attended by >250 participants on 15th November. The event chaired by Professor Derek Stewart was split into two parallel sessions: 1. Smart Solutions and Support for Enhancing Farming and Growing & 2. mart Solutions and Support for Enhancing Crops, Seeds, and Soil. The sessions covered topics such as systems sustainability, data capture and use in agriculture, breeding for sustainability, crop phenotyping and soil health. However sustainability as an issue featured in almost all talks. To this end Prof Stewart did highlights aspects of the RESAS SRP research and highlighted the need for collaborative and interdisciplinary approaches to deliver tractable outcomes |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.tech40.net/crops-seeds--soil |
| Description | Arable Scotland 2024 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | At the annual Arable Scotland event, this time a marquee talk/discussion forum was established to engage with stakeholders and disseminate advances (and problems) centred on arable crops. As part of this, and with respect to the RESAS SRP, talks were given on Novel and minor crops - their potential in Scotland (Prof Derek Stewart), Making soils resilient to extreme weather (Dr Kenneth Loades), The BARiTONE Barley Industrial Training Network (Prof Robbie Waugh) etc. Also a more direct and conversational engagement session was held to discuss "Which practices will create resilience in Scottish arable farming?" and "Exploring the markets in Natural Capital", the outcomes of which centred on sustainability/emissions and REACT (B5-1) |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.arablescotland.org.uk/programme |
| Description | Association of Applied Biologists Presidential Look-Forward Conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Presented work regarding the evaluation of the bioavailable mineral content to facilitate breeding in common bean to a mixed audience of academics, postgraduates, policy makers, industry, practitioners and third sector participants comprising 60 people in person and 60 people on line. Questions were asked and discussions initiated. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.aab.org.uk/event/biennial-aab-presidential-look-forward-nature-based-and-engineered-biol... |
| Description | From field to forks: Innovating our food future through research |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | More than just a necessity, food represents a grand challenge for societies worldwide, impacting the well-being of our planet and all its inhabitants. In this interactive workshop, part of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Curious Festival, held on 11/09/2024 and attended by ~15 participants, the challenges and opportunities surrounding food were discussed by exploring new and existing viewpoints, asking questions, and evaluating priorities. The ongoing Scottish, and wider research, innovation, and collaboration was discussed including diverse voices across sectors and disciplines. The approaches to accelerating the transition toward a food future focused on health, sustainability and equity was discussed using a citizens assembly-like approach. This employed critical challenge questions and these were then discussed in terms of importance and practical implications for their delivery/resolution. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://rse.org.uk/event/from-field-to-forks-innovating-our-food-future-through-research/ |
| Description | Industrial workshop with Ceferta Ltd |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | A full days engagement with CEFETRA Ltd. a global supplier of agricultural and food ingredients. They identified their unique position to impact vital supply chains. Underpinning their activities and those of their customers is sustainability and the development of sustainable supply chains, which will be increasingly transparent. The workshop with the 6 CEFETRA Ltdstaff on 6th November concentrated on key crops such as barley as well as more food oriented crops such as beans etc, the developing of sustainable processing approaches and the concept of speed breeding using approaches such as vertical farming. This identified a significant desire for future collaborative efforts. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Industry workshop - Forging New Horizons: Facilitating A Successful Protein Diversification Strategy |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | As part of the Future Food-Tech event in London 02/10/2024, Professor Stewart was part of the event "Forging New Horizons: Facilitating A Successful Protein Diversification Strategy". This was a workshop with 40 industry, regulators, professional practitioners etc. The event centred on the issue of protein as the sector strives to feed the growing population more sustainably, and with more nutritious food. In terms of primary sources, the role of protein diversification and the implications for the food industry was discussed. The event was a discussion panel with inputs from the audience, wherein it was discussed how companies across the value chain are adopting and championing protein diversification as a strategy, and what more is needed for the concept of protein diversification to become reality. The outcomes of crop processing sustainability modelling were discussed as was the exploitation of new/alternative technologies such as vertical farming. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://futurefoodtechlondon.com/breakout-sessions/ |
| Description | Innovation in sustainable agriculture |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Professor Stewart gave a talk to >100 investors and bankers, on 1st October 2024, interested in the sustainable investment options in agriculture. Multiple topics were discussed and these included aspects of B5-1 in terms of sustainability in primary agriculture and processing as well as B1-6, specifically vertical farming for speed breeding and food production. The talk encompassed discussion the consequences of climate change and associated extremes, new technologies on climate change prediction and the implications for technology to deliver solutions now and in the future to not only maintain productivity but in some cases increase this. The audience was very engaged in the talk and there has been significant post-talk interaction on the topics discussed with sustainability central to all of these. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Innovations in Horticulture: UK-Dutch routes forward |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | 10/12/2024 - Innovations in Horticulture. The Netherlands is interested to identify key strategic opportunities for establishing a stronger Dutch-British collaboration in the area of Horticulture. The aim of the meeting was to identify and advance ideas to pave the way towards potential future research alliances when opportunities may arise. The meeting was to set the scene for areas of future collaboration uniting complementary cross-national expertise to design a more resilient and sustainable future for both outdoor and controlled - environment horticulture in the UK and NL. The meeting was held at Embassy of the Kingdom of The Netherlands, 38 Hyde Park gate, London and attended by leaders in UK and Dutch Horticculture. From the meeting the following was identified: General vision: Already, even before the meeting, and what immediately became visible from the introductory presentations from NL and the UK, it was clearly evident that there are many common goals and a joint strong desire for collaboration. There is considerable mutual respect between experts from both sides and a strong desire to create more critical mass to tackle key challenges - especially in the area of horticulture production where recent developments in biology and technology potentially offer valuable novel solutions. It was also agreed that we need to manage expectations and avoid having undesirably broad topics which will lead to unnecessary over-subscribing and a too low success rate for proposals. As a result, the main part of the workshop discussions directly focused on which areas are the most valuable to select, should opportunities arise for joint programming in the near future. These should be aimed specifically to close important knowledge and innovation gaps. The following choices arose as being those which 1) are of joint high level interest; 2) are poorly covered in current Horizon Europe planning and 3) are envisaged to maximise innovation impact. These choices are deliberately theme-based and not crop-based. Identified jointly-proposed strategic targets: 1. Breeding targets a. Breeding for automation (e.g. architecture, ripening) b. Breeding for resistance to new disease threats and climate resilience c. Gene editing / NGT approaches including new transformation techniques for recalcitrant crops d. Breeding for quality / nutritional density / reduced waste / shelf-life 2. Automation, data and deep learning a. Robotics for complex plant traits such a clustered fruiting b. Create digital twin of entire cropping process c. Robotics simulation using synthetic crops d. Exploiting AI potential e.g. LLM's or GenAI. 3. Cultivation, propagation etc a. Crop management / ICPM practices for new (non-native) disease threats and climate resilience b. Cropping / rotation methods (what are the important traits for intercropping strategies?): a systems approach c. Vertical farming for plant propagation d. Regenerative agriculture and soil types (UK vs NL). Focus on root crops. These outcomes are now being followed with the UK , NL and devolved governments to pursue mutual outcomes and routes to support progress. The impacts of the UK an Scottish Government funded projects on Vertical farming were identified here |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Launch of the Scottish Alliance for Food (SCAF) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | On October 11-12th, we held our official launch exhibition at the University of Glasgow Advanced Research Centre. Our 'Food Lenses' exhibition explored the different lenses through which we interact with food research, including Data, Sustainability, and Identity. Each lens also showcased research examples from SCAF members, which will be available to browse online soon. People browsing the SCAF exhibition and engaging in discussions over lunch ~70 attendees were welcomed at networking lunches over the two days, discussing topics such as designing transformative research and facilitating skills development in the Scottish food research space. As part of the is the RESAS food and sustainabiulity research was discussed with participants |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://mailchi.mp/2424a7506692/newsletter-01-september-2023-scottish-alliance-for-food-12664840 |
| Description | Meeting with the Crown Estate Scotland |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Crown Estate Scotland (CES) is the self-financing public corporation of the Scottish Government responsible for the management of land and property in Scotland owned by the monarch 'in right of the Crown'. It was separated from the Crown Estate of the United Kingdom under the Scotland Act 2016. It is responsible for a range of rural, coastal, urban and marine assets across Scotland. The meeting with them on 30th January was to discuss common goals and areas of interest. In the meeting with the six CES representatives including their CEO, reveal issues were discussed including climate change and land use which impacts on the properties owned by CES. As part of this the change in land use with respect to how we grow crops using e.g., vertical farming, and what we crop food crops, protein crops etc were discussed as well as the implications for associated supply chain emissions. This spark a lively discussion on what CES may want to do with their land and support their tenants based on existing and possible projects with JHI |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2025 |
| Description | Next steps for policy on novel foods and alternative proteins in the UK |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | This conference examined next steps for novel foods and alternative proteins - looking at the latest sector developments, and the outlook for regulation and policy in the UK. It was an opportunity for stakeholders, regulators and policymakers to discuss priorities for the new Government, and implications for novel foods and the wider UK agri-food sector. Delegates examined the regulatory approach going forward, with plans set out by the FSA to speed up the approval process of regulated novel food products, including introducing a proposed sliding scale based on an assessment of international approvals. Practicalities for implementation were considered, looking at alignment with EU and international regulation, and implications of new regulatory processes on trade -alongside issues around cross-border regulatory divergence, reducing red tape and priorities for safety assurance of products being approved. Delegates discussed priorities for investment, as well as opportunities for innovation in the agri-food sector, following the £20.4bn allocated to DSIT in the Budget to boost UK R&D, including engineering biology scale up. We expected discussion on strategic pathways for achieving the aim of making the UK a world leader in the alternative protein industry, in light of the FSA launching a new sandbox programme to evaluate the safety for cell-cultivated products, as well as the launch of the new Regulatory Innovation Office to accelerate public access to new technologies. Attendees also considered opportunities for the sector in the context of the Government's wider policy agenda, including the potential role of novel foods and alternative proteins in food security. It came with the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology recently highlighting opportunities to utilise alternative protein sources to tackle climate change challenges, improve national health and address concerns around animal welfare. There was also a focus on strategies for encouraging consumer uptake of new protein sources, including mitigating concerns around the cost, safety and taste of new products, as well as public messaging on environmental and health benefits of alternative protein sources. With plans from the Government to invest £15m into a National Alternative Protein Innovation Centre, fronted by Prof Stewart, the NAPIC co-director., sessions discussed next steps for the UK's research strategy, with the PM signalling the intention of addressing red tape that could hamper innovation and market growth, as well as priorities for R&D, and supporting new product development and commercialisation. Further discussion examined the use of data to determine how standards in food safety and quality can be better measured and differentiated, as well as how these metrics can be applied accurately across the novel foods sector. It followed concerns raised by some stakeholders over whether measures for novel food safety can effectively communicate product transparency and encourage consumer acceptance. The work of the Scottish Government in this respect formed part of the discussion with VF a vehicle for protein crop growth and breeding forwarded. Also the consideration of emissions in the primary /secondary food supply chain were discussed with the alternative protein likely to make a large impact here for processors scope 2 and 3 emission and retailers scope 3 emissions also |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.westminsterforumprojects.co.uk/publication/Novel-Foods-Dec-24 |
| Description | Primary and secondary food production - the potential for alternative proteins |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | On 16/02/2024 and 18/01/2024 two workshops were held with the primary and secondary food processing industries to discuss the potential to transition to a blended protein economy with the reduction in livestock-derived protein and the emergence and evolution in alternative protein sources. The meeting attracted multinational to micro business and identified several criteria for the sector. This identified the need for protein functionality, digestibility and bioactivity. All identified a desire to deliver a more sustain protein-based product. The discussion identified the need for more suitable sustainability metrics that simple production emission and the need for more comparative metrics across protein sources. Here Prof Stewart identified the sustainability work of REACT (JHI-B5-1) in the crop processing, barley-to-drink and livestock industries and how these associated industries also wanted more nuanced metrics of sustainability. These interactions have fed into the future work of REACT and have help from a submission to the BBSRC/IUK call for a Alternative Proteins Innovation and Knowledge Centre. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Scotland Food and Drink - Net Zero External Advisory Group |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | The Net Zero Programme is providing guidance and support to the Scottish food and drink industry on its journey to net zero. The programme is hosted by the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) Scotland on behalf of the Scotland Food & Drink Partnership. As part of this there is a Net Zero External Advisory Group that meets regularly to collect information on innovations and problems around the Scottish Food sectors journey to net zero. At the meeting on 5th February Prof Stewart talks to the Advisory Group about the National Alternative Protein Innovation Centre (BB/Z516119/1) and Scottish Government research into supply chain emissions (RESAS B5-1), and vertical farming (RESAS B1-6) as a sustainable route to crop, food and ingredient production. The talks was followed by a deep discussion on the existing and potential outcomes of the projects and how they can be integrated into the groups vision and outcomes. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2025 |
| URL | https://foodanddrink.scot/helping-business/services/net-zero-and-the-environment/ |
| Description | Scottish Alliance for food Annual event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | THE SCAF, funded by SFC, was set up to bring together different perspectives from social, natural, formal and applied sciences, and arts and humanities to understand and address the complexity of food systems, helping bridge the gap between food producers, scientists, and consumers. At this first annual meeting many aspect of food was discussed with the focus for the meeting on "Expanding horizons in food, collaborating across disciplines and sectors". Across the two days multiple session encompassing talks and interactive workshops were undertaken. Supporting this was an invited lecture by Jill Muirie, Public Health Programme Manager | Glasgow Centre for Population Health: Improving the food system: Partnerships, policy and practice followed by facilitated discussion. Across this the outputs of the RESAS strategic programme were identified and explored. Crucially the development of SCAF resources in terms of a Citizens Assembly to both gather consumer opinions on ongoing and proposed advances but also to socialise food system change concepts. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://gla-my.sharepoint.com/:w:/g/personal/emilie_combetaspray_glasgow_ac_uk/EerdV_ZyRT9Pka3LAlO2n... |
| Description | Scottish Science Advisory Engineering Biology Working Group |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The working group was established to review current Scottish engineering biology expertise and collaborations and provide recommendations to highlight the future opportunities that are best aligned to the existing and potential strengths of Scottish industries, taking into consideration existing areas of industrial capability within and out-with those that have already engaged with the developing technology and its academic research. The project will also seek to set out the actions that the collective ecosystem should look to progress in order to position Scotland to maximise the emerging economic opportunities including setting out where the respective ownership of relevant actions best sit. The WG report report will identify: • A prioritised list of the cross-sector future opportunities presented by engineering biology, aligned with Scotland's research and industry strengths, and opportunities for commercial and social benefits. • An associated set of actions to enable Scotland to be well positioned to capture the identified opportunities, including where respective ownership best sits between industry, academia and government. • The main challenges that will need to be overcome and conflicts to be addressed across the identified opportunities. • A consideration of potential national & international collaboration partners that have complementary ambitions and/or capabilities. The WG met on several dates and will have a forma meeting with the stakeholders in March 2025 following feedback to a questionnaire sent to them in February. With respect to this reporting the engagements to date have considered vertical farming as a platform for crop engineering biology for many end uses (food (inc protein crops), ingredients and pharma and the project work to date was highlighted for comment |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2025 |
| URL | https://scottishscience.org.uk/node/506 |
| Description | Workshop into the Roles of Vertical Farming in the Scottish Food System |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | The aim of the workshop, held on 11/11/2024 at the V&A, Dundee, was to bring together key stakeholders to generate transdisciplinary insights and recommendations into the future role of vertical farming within the Scottish food system. With an audience of ~25 participants the meeting included talks from key stakeholder delegates with Q&A opportunities were followed by a facilitated workshop with the ultimate formulation of recommendations. The workshop will form the basis of a short report deliverable by the end of 2025 |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://x.com/rowett_abdn/status/1856645685875233054 |
