Protein transition a priority for EU investment

Why is plant-based protein key to EU food security? SummaryEurope’s strategic autonomy depends on reducing reliance on animal proteinsEIC funds innovation in plant-based protein to boost food resilienceProtein from mushroom fermentation is one example of funded technologyObservational tech tracks soil health, biodiversity and climate impactsUpcoming EUDR will benefit from satellite and sensor-based monitoringThe world is a more dangerous place than it was a decade ago. At least, it is for Europe, whose position looks increasingly precarious as the war in Ukraine threatens to spill into the wider continent.

Food security is at the centre of this. As relations with its neighbours become more hostile, the EU must be able to rely on its own food supply.

A protein transition for food security“Overall, there is a policy of Europe to increase its strategic autonomy,” explains Michiel Scheffer, president of the European Innovation Council (EIC). Europe is looking to fund technology that can provide this autonomy.

The European Innovation Council is a funding instrument of the European Commission, putting cash into areas in which the Commission wants to innovate. It funds both research projects and existing businesses. Its food portfolio is around 5% of its total.

While in food, the EU is fairly balanced compared with other sectors (it both imports and exports a sizeable amount of food), it is heavily reliant on fertilisers and feedstocks from overseas, as well as energy, Scheffer explains.

More autonomy for Europe will require more biobased energy, which will in turn require more land for crops. This means that there will be less space for animals.

It follows from this, Scheffer suggests, that a protein transition will be necessary: that Europeans will need to shift to a diet richer in plant-based proteins, and consume fewer proteins from animals.

Investing in the protein transitionBecause of this, the EIC is funding research and innovation in the protein transition, exploring technology that can utilise plant-based proteins for human consumption.

The EU must “create a production basis” for the companies in which it invests, to ensure it has food security. “The first thing is to have alternatives, the second thing is to scale up,” says Scheffer.

Funding from the EIC gives companies the capability to scale up, building small factories, he explains.

EIC is investing in plant-based proteins both in meat alternatives and in other products that do not aim to resemble meat.

Investing in observational technologyThe EIC is also putting a lot of investment into understanding food and agriculture through observational technology.

“What we see a lot in our portfolios is an increased interest in what happens in and on the ground. That ranges from deforestation to biodiversity to quality of soil to the impact of climate change”.

This level of understanding can be achieved from very far away or very near – through space-level drones or through sensors placed within the soil itself.

The form of observation depends on what needs to be observed. For example, deforestation is extensively monitored by satellite technology, while soil health is better monitored by in-the-ground sensors.

Such observation will be particularly useful when the upcoming EUDR comes into force.