IFT - "Seeding the Future Global Food System Challenge"

Hosted by the Institute of Food Technologists and funded by the Seeding The Future Foundation, the Challenge is intended to support innovations that have the potential for significant impact at scale and over time, and benefit at least one or more of the following intersecting domains: nutritious food for a healthy diet; sustainably produced; and accessible, appealing, affordable, and trusted by consumers.

Eligibility

To be eligible for an award, the project must be innovative and lead to new advances that benefit at least one but ideally more than one of the intersecting domains of the Innovation Focus Area, shown in the diagram below, while not negatively affecting any of the other domains. Innovations that benefit two or more domains and are at an advanced development stage are eligible for the highest award levels.

What are the Criteria?

The Global Food System Challenge is intended to support innovations that benefit at least one of the intersecting domains and that have the potential for significant impact at scale and over time.

What the Challenge Won't Fund

• Projects that have a negative effect on either the safety or healthfulness of food, the sustainability of the food supply chain or, that are unlikely to be accepted by the end-user or consumer
• Theoretical concepts or ideas without any experiments or a reduction to practice
• Individual persons
• Projects where funds will be used to support large for-profit entities in their commercial activities such as R&D, Innovation, Manufacturing or Sales/Marketing.
• Local, community-based initiatives which are not scaleable beyond the initial project scope and limited projected impact over time.
• Projects associated with political campaigns or lobbying
• Capital campaigns
• For profit entities with significant financial assets or which passed Series A financing round

Award Levels

The Seeding The Future Global Food System Challenge will provide monetary awards in the form of grants and prizes totaling up to one million US dollars annually. We invite applicants from national or international universities, research institutions, or nonprofit organizations, as well as small or early-stage US-based for-profit businesses.

The Challenge will provide three levels of awards to incentivize transformative food system innovations at different stages of their development:

• Seed Grants ($25,000 each) will be awarded to organizations that are planting and nurturing high-potential, innovative ideas and have developed a prototype and/or initial proof of concept demonstrating feasibility. Innovation must benefit at least one, ideally two domains of the Innovation Focus Area without negatively impacting the others.
• Growth Grants ($100,000 each) will be awarded to organizations that have demonstrated that their innovation is doable and have projected both economic feasibility at scale and high-impact potential to transform the food system. The innovation must benefit at least two, ideally three domains with no negative impact on the others.
• Seeding The Future Grand Prizes ($250,000 each) will be awarded to organizations that have created innovations that are scalable, economically feasible at scale, trusted, and compelling to consumers, and have demonstrated major impact potential to transform the food system. The innovation must benefit at least two, ideally three domains with no negative impact on the others.