Ensuring healthy diets for an expected global population of 10 billion people in 2050, while at the same time securing a healthy planet for those people to live on, will require sweeping changes to farming and how we produce food.
Innovative solutions are highly needed to address this major societal challenge. Thus, the Bio Studio program is calling for established PI’s with a minimum of three years experience of leading an independent research group to express interest in entering the program, if they have an innovative idea for a biotechnology project in Food Tech. The PI should have a strong academic track record considering the career stage and demonstrated translational experience.
“The environmental burden of agriculture and a global rise in malnutrition with undernourishment on one side and the obesity epidemic on the other requires transformation towards healthier and more sustainable food systems to secure food for a growing population,” says Louise Clemmensen, Bio Studio Lead at BII.
High-risk projects in focus
Especially projects in the following three areas are of interest to BII: 1) Carbon-neutral or negative platforms for producing food ingredients with higher nutritional value 2) Sustainable and scalable platforms using fungi for producing food analogues 3) Platforms for producing innovative food ingredients that bring health benefits.
“With the Bio Studio program, we are looking for high-risk projects. So, if you have a bold and ambitious idea to change the way we produce and consume food, you should not hesitate to send your expression of interest,” says Louise Clemmensen.
The goal of each Bio Studio project is the creation of a viable start-up by the end of the program that can raise seed or Series A investment. The funded projects will be incubated at BII’s state-of-the-art facilities in central Copenhagen. However, PIs themselves are not expected to relocate to BII and will remain at their host institution. Any IP generated during the Bio Studio project will remain with the PI’s host institution or with the inventors depending on appropriate legislation.