Food Fermentation Europe launches
16 March 2023
Agronomics Limited
("Agronomics" or the "Company")
Food Fermentation Europe launches, calling on EU to speed up in global race on sustainable food innovation
Agronomics (ANIC:LSE), the leading listed company focused on the field of cellular agriculture, is pleased to announce that two of its portfolio companies, precision fermentation egg producer Onego Bio and precision fermentation dairy producer Formo, have joined other European leaders in this category in the formation of Food Fermentation Europe ("FFE"). The alliance will work with policymakers and stakeholders to create the right market and regulatory conditions to embrace fermentation as one of the most sustainable pathways for the agri-food sector in Europe.
The full announcement is set out below without any material changes.
Food Fermentation Europe launches, calling on EU to speed up in global race on sustainable food innovation
With Europe in the midst of severe drought and food security at risk again, it is clear that a more resilient and sustainable food production system is needed. Precision Fermentation is a key technology to enable this. Leading precision fermentation players have come together to establish a new alliance, Food Fermentation Europe (FFE). FFE will work towards a forward looking regulatory environment that can help bring more sustainable animal-free foods and ingredients to the European market and enable a resilient and sustainable food system in Europe.
Better Dairy, Formo, Imagindairy, Onego Bio and Those Vegan Cowboys have joined forces to establish Food Fermentation Europe.
Precision Fermentation as key to a sustainable food framework
FFE's founding members use the centuries-old technique of fermentation, evolved to a high-tech form called precision fermentation, to produce specific animal-free products such as proteins or fats leading to high quality alternatives for milk, eggs, cheese and other products. The technology, already used for decades in enzyme and additive production, can deliver a major positive impact on emissions, biodiversity and water use. Our food production technologies - all developed in Europe - can help to mitigate the climate crisis Europe is witnessing.
Opportunity for Europe to step up on sustainable food innovation
This alliance forms at a time when:
● The EU is looking to develop a new Sustainable Food Systems Framework for how we produce and consume food in Europe.
● Demand for tasty and nutritious animal-free, sustainable foods options is rising rapidly among people.
● Despite this, the policy objectives of the Green New Deal and the regulatory process for Novel Foods (which includes food made via precision fermentation) are not aligned.
● The current regulatory processes are far too lengthy and opaque and changes are urgently needed to facilitate market access.
It's clear that the EU needs to enable innovative solutions to come to market sooner rather than later, or risks falling behind in the global race on sustainable food innovation.
Towards a new blend of the EU food system
Food Fermentation Europe's vision is a new blend within the EU's food system, which combines sustainable tradition and technology. FFE looks forward to working with policymakers and stakeholders to create the right market and regulatory conditions to embrace fermentation as one of the most sustainable pathways for the agri-food sector, secure the EU's competitiveness in food innovation and create a sustainable food framework which is aligned with the Green New Deal.
Christian Poppe, Spokesperson for Food Fermentation Europe and Director Global Public Affairs at Formo: "This is a critical time for the EU's agri-food sector. Not only do we need to become more sustainable, but we also need to ensure that new innovations can break through and come to market to make sure the EU remains competitive globally. Food fermentation products can meet both of these challenges by providing great new animal-free products for people, with drastically less environmental footprint than their alternatives. Now is the right time for our Alliance and we are committed to working with EU decision makers and stakeholders to identify the policies needed to facilitate the food system transition."
What's next:
Food Fermentation Europe will hold its launch event this summer in Brussels. Other companies across the fermentation sector are encouraged to reach out to the alliance. To keep track of all developments, visit the website: www.foodfermentation.eu
About Food Fermentation Europe
Food Fermentation Europe is the industry alliance representing the transformative fermentation food and food ingredient sector. Founded by Better Dairy, Formo, Imagindairy, Onego Bio and Those Vegan Cowboys, our alliance works to raise awareness and build a supportive, forward-looking policy framework to enable the rollout of innovative fermentation technology and products in Europe. We are committed to working with additional stakeholders to ensure a smooth transition to more sustainable food systems.
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Founding member CEOs
Jevan Nagarajah, CEO of Better Dairy:
"Our supply chains are being tested to the extreme by a range of issues including the climate crisis, war in Ukraine and diseases such as bird flu. Europe's population, as is the right of every population, deserves to be food-secure in a world where droughts are expected to rise in both frequency and intensity. Precision Fermentation is a powerful means to creating a resilient food system, and our alliance is ready to engage with the stakeholder ecosystem on much needed policy changes and attitudes towards this technology."
Raffael Wohlgensinger, CEO of Formo:
"Establishing Food Fermentation Europe is a timely and much needed step towards giving fermentation-enabled food technologies a voice in key policy arenas and debates. We are excited to launch this with our industry peers and can't wait to engage with everyone who shares our vision of creating an innovation-friendly policy framework that enables the emergence of a sustainable, equitable and resilient agri-food system. Europe still has a chance to become an accelerator of helping the bioeconomy to be a catalyst for safe, sustainable and animal-free fermentation foods - but it needs to take radical policy action immediately."
Dr. Eyal Afergan, CEO of Imagindairy:
"Emissions reduction is an urgent global challenge, but it also presents a unique opportunity for the agri-food sector to embrace new sustainable practices. Precision fermentation holds multiple environmental benefits, including a low carbon footprint and thus offers a promising solution for reducing emissions while creating new opportunities for farmers and entrepreneurs to innovate and contribute to a more sustainable food system. It is our mission as an alliance to explore and build these opportunities together with all relevant stakeholders."
Maija Itkonen, CEO of Onego Bio:
"As Food Fermentation Europe we will advocate for a predictable and more efficient market approval process. Regulations and policies need to be aligned with the legislative framework for Sustainable Food Systems if Europe wants to stay globally competitive with regard to sustainable food innovation. The members of Food Fermentation Europe all have excellent science-based products with high market traction and great sustainable impact potential. Contrary to the assumption of the EU, we are well funded and know how to make money out of science. The question is, how can the EU improve its market approval process for sustainable food innovation?"
Jaap Korteweg, Organic Farmer, CEO Those Vegan Cowboys, founder The Vegetarian Butcher:
"If we're smart about fermentation, 8 billion people can eat well, off just 40% of the farmland in use today. Circular, organic, plant-based and in balance. Freeing the animal from our food system relieves our farmers from the societal burdens they've come to bear - they can reclaim their role as true herders of the land. The faster we can make this happen, the better, and this alliance will definitely make a difference."
For media inquiries please contact: media@foodfermentation.eu
About Agronomics
Agronomics is a leading listed alternative proteins company with a focus on cellular agriculture and cultivated meat. The Company has established a portfolio of over 20 companies in this rapidly advancing sector. It seeks to secure minority stakes in companies owning technologies with defensible intellectual property that offer new ways of producing food and materials with a focus on products historically derived from animals. These technologies are driving a major disruption in agriculture, offering solutions to improve sustainability, as well as addressing human health, animal welfare and environmental damage. This disruption will decouple supply chains from the environment and animals and be fundamental to feeding the world's expanding population. A full list of Agronomics' portfolio companies is available at https://agronomics.im/ .
About Cellular Agriculture
Cellular Agriculture is the production of agriculture products directly from cells, as opposed to raising an animal for slaughter or growing crops. This encompasses cell culture to produce cultivated meat and materials, and fermentation processes that harness a combination of molecular biology, synthetic biology, tissue engineering and biotechnology to massively simplify production methods in a sustainable manner.
Over the coming decades, the source of the world's food supply traditionally derived from conventional agriculture is going to change dramatically. We have already witnessed the first wave of this shift with the consumer adoption of plant-based alternative proteins but today, we are on the cusp of an even bigger wave of change. This is being facilitated by advances in cellular agriculture. This change is necessary, given scientists' claims that if we maintain existing animal protein consumption patterns, then we will not meet the Paris Agreement's goal of limiting warming to 1.5℃.
AT Kearney, a global consultancy firm projects that cultivated meat's market share will reach 35% by 2040. This combined with the Good Food Institute's estimate that a US $1.8 trillion investment will be required in order to produce just 10% of the world's protein using this technology, means that we are on the cusp of a multi-decade flow of capital to build out manufacturing facilities. Funding in the field of cellular agriculture is accelerating, however, still, less than US$ 5 billion has been invested worldwide since the industry's inception in 2016.
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