Our Venture Exchange Program (VEP) supports entrepreneurs to engage with research and industry partners in both countries with complementary capabilities through first class events, coaching and mentoring.
Applications for the Venture Exchange Program: Future Food 2.0 cohort are now closed
About the VEP
The VEP offers a three-month opportunity for Australian and Singaporean deep-tech startups and small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) in emerging agrifood industries to engage with the innovation ecosystems in both countries and access to complimentary research capabilities to accelerate industry development.
Through intensive coaching, mentoring and market familiarisation visits, participating teams are supported to:
- explore new reciprocal market opportunities
- develop go-to-market strategies
- engage across the value chain in both countries to identify synergies and build partnerships.
VEP Future Food 2.0 Cohort
Meet our entrepreneurs from Australia and Singapore who will form our new Future Food 2.0 cohort, starting the program in February 2025.
| Team | Description |
|---|---|
| Hi-D | Hi-D focusses on producing whole-food organic high vitamin D from mushrooms. Their technology retains beneficial components such as Beta-Glucans and others, and their production process is sustainable, using no chemicals or water. |
| Infinite Bioworks | Infinite Bioworks specialises in ethical alternatives such as cultivated seafood, in vitro leather, and collagen protein (for traditional Chinese medicines). They use developing starter cells and media to generate cultivated fish and leather products, as well as marine collagens. |
| Meatiply | Meatiply's core strength lies in cell development, allowing them to develop functional cells for companies to overcome barriers in flavour, nutrition, and labelling. Their multi-cell type approach develops each cell to full maturity, whether it’s muscle fibres, fat droplets, or collagen. |
| PPB Technology | PPB Technology has developed CYBERTONGUE®, an innovative biotech testing platform for dairy and other food and beverage processors. Their technology allows processors to quickly and easily identify contaminants that reduce the shelf life of UHT milk. |
| Protein Plus Group | Protein Plus Group focusses on plant-based proteins and ingredients, particularly in the dairy alternative sector using coconuts. Their technology leverages the creamy and high-fat texture of coconuts to create high-value spreads and condiments. |
| Rainstick | Rainstick uses variable electrical field technology to stimulate seeds, resulting in accelerated growth and increased yields. Their technology mimics the effects of lightning and thunderstorms to enhance agricultural productivity. |
| Reclaim Foods | Reclaim Foods develops scientifically based, high-protein food formulations designed to meet the unique nutritional needs of older adults. Their formulations combine fruit puree with various proteins, including whey, dairy, plant, and precision-fermented animal-free proteins. |
| Whole. | Whole. focusses on plant-based ingredients and flavours, using WINX® ‘cellbursting’ technology to reduce whole ingredients to sub-20 micron particle sizes. This process converts a significant proportion of insoluble fibre to soluble and bioavailable fibre. |
Value of the VEP
The VEP program supports participants to:
- Generate new, world-leading knowledge and technology in novel food that can be translated into marketing insights, business products, new companies and development for the agriculture and food industry.
- Build novel food and future protein scientific capability for both countries to address major challenges for the economy (food security, industry development), environment (food system sustainability), and society (reducing impact of chronic diseases, ageing and food safety threats).
- Bring together complementary capability and capacity to support innovation ecosystem development.
- Facilitate connections between science and technology professionals, entrepreneurs and businesses to drive the development of research and commercial applications for future protein innovations.
- Connect key players across the value chain, for example, to help ensure Australian food ingredients are tailored to match the specific needs of Asian food manufacturers.
Participants benefit from
- Access to world-class R&D facilities and collaboration opportunities with leading scientists both countries.
- Coaching sessions identifying potential research collaboration and value chain opportunities.
- Pitching opportunities at Food and Hotel Asia trade show in Singapore and the Protein Futures Symposium in Australia.
- Networking sessions with cohort peers and key ecosystem stakeholders.
- Specialist consultations with relevant providers of legal, marketing, commercialisation and other services to facilitate know-how and connections.
2024 Future Foods cohort
The inaugural VEP cohort supported six Australian teams and three Singapore-based start-up companies.
| Team | Description |
|---|---|
| Allium Bio | Allium Bio are creating a platform for better ingredients, for better products, for people and the planet. They bring together the powers of multiple microorganisms, using a proprietary model to discover symbiotic combinations of algae, fungi, and other species to create high-value food ingredients at lower cost. |
| Cellular Agriculture Ltd | Cellular Agriculture Ltd revolutionises cultivated protein production with their high-density, low-footprint bioreactors and advanced bioprocess technology. They provide efficient, sustainable solutions that ensure high-quality protein output, bridging the gap to industrial-scale production and transforming the future of food. |
| Eclipse Ingredients | Eclipse Ingredients is a cutting-edge biotech ingredients startup incubated in CSIRO making high-value, hard-to-source ingredients important for health from yeast, using precision fermentation. Our first ingredient is human lactoferrin, which is a wonder protein found in breastmilk and immune cells with immune-building and iron-boosting properties important for health and well-being across the lifespan, from infants and children to adults and the elderly. |
| Evolve | Evolve's technology reduces the sugar content of fruit and vegetable based products using a natural fermentation process by up to 70 per cent. The company is currently working on commercialising the technology for the manufacture of reduced alcohol wine and low calorie/reduced sugar fruit juices, baby food, snacks and confectionary products. |
| Grainstone | Grainstone is developing integrated multi-product biorefining technology to revolutionise the barley value chain, including the ability to recover and upcycle brewers spent grain and support decarbonisation objectives. Building on Australia's major competitive advantages in grains they are working on technologies to produce a range of affordable in-demand ingredients, health supplements, animal feeds and bioproducts in a way that to maximises value and minimises waste. |
| Just Meat Co. | Just Meat Co. is turning red meat into a nutrient dense, high protein ingredient with a wide range of applications across the food and beverage market. |
| Mobius Farms | Mobius Farms turns waste into value using insects. From hyper local food waste recovery systems to natural substitutes for anti-biotics in animal production; from sustainable protein sources for livestock feed to functional fertilisers for farmers - Mobius Farms aims to build resilience into our food systems through insect derived technologies. |
| NutriV | NutriV focus on repurposing surplus vegetables from Australian farms and diverting the 'waste' to create shelf stable products for both consumers and businesses. NutriV aim to create a circular economy through seeing 100 per cent of what is planted and harvested, converted into nutrient dense powders that are then used in food manufacturing and home cooking. |
| Seadling | Seadling is a seaweed biotech company, developing functional ingredients that naturally enhance the well-being of animals, plants, and humans with an aim to revolutionise the agri-food sector through the power of seaweed nutrition. |
Our Venture Exchange Program (VEP) supports entrepreneurs to engage with research and industry partners in both countries with complementary capabilities through first class events, coaching and mentoring.
Applications for the Venture Exchange Program: Future Food 2.0 cohort are now closed
About the VEP
The VEP offers a three-month opportunity for Australian and Singaporean deep-tech startups and small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) in emerging agrifood industries to engage with the innovation ecosystems in both countries and access to complimentary research capabilities to accelerate industry development.
Through intensive coaching, mentoring and market familiarisation visits, participating teams are supported to:
- explore new reciprocal market opportunities
- develop go-to-market strategies
- engage across the value chain in both countries to identify synergies and build partnerships.
VEP Future Food 2.0 Cohort
Meet our entrepreneurs from Australia and Singapore who will form our new Future Food 2.0 cohort, starting the program in February 2025.
| Team | Description |
|---|---|
| Hi-D | Hi-D focusses on producing whole-food organic high vitamin D from mushrooms. Their technology retains beneficial components such as Beta-Glucans and others, and their production process is sustainable, using no chemicals or water. |
| Infinite Bioworks | Infinite Bioworks specialises in ethical alternatives such as cultivated seafood, in vitro leather, and collagen protein (for traditional Chinese medicines). They use developing starter cells and media to generate cultivated fish and leather products, as well as marine collagens. |
| Meatiply | Meatiply's core strength lies in cell development, allowing them to develop functional cells for companies to overcome barriers in flavour, nutrition, and labelling. Their multi-cell type approach develops each cell to full maturity, whether it’s muscle fibres, fat droplets, or collagen. |
| PPB Technology | PPB Technology has developed CYBERTONGUE®, an innovative biotech testing platform for dairy and other food and beverage processors. Their technology allows processors to quickly and easily identify contaminants that reduce the shelf life of UHT milk. |
| Protein Plus Group | Protein Plus Group focusses on plant-based proteins and ingredients, particularly in the dairy alternative sector using coconuts. Their technology leverages the creamy and high-fat texture of coconuts to create high-value spreads and condiments. |
| Rainstick | Rainstick uses variable electrical field technology to stimulate seeds, resulting in accelerated growth and increased yields. Their technology mimics the effects of lightning and thunderstorms to enhance agricultural productivity. |
| Reclaim Foods | Reclaim Foods develops scientifically based, high-protein food formulations designed to meet the unique nutritional needs of older adults. Their formulations combine fruit puree with various proteins, including whey, dairy, plant, and precision-fermented animal-free proteins. |
| Whole. | Whole. focusses on plant-based ingredients and flavours, using WINX® ‘cellbursting’ technology to reduce whole ingredients to sub-20 micron particle sizes. This process converts a significant proportion of insoluble fibre to soluble and bioavailable fibre. |
Value of the VEP
The VEP program supports participants to:
- Generate new, world-leading knowledge and technology in novel food that can be translated into marketing insights, business products, new companies and development for the agriculture and food industry.
- Build novel food and future protein scientific capability for both countries to address major challenges for the economy (food security, industry development), environment (food system sustainability), and society (reducing impact of chronic diseases, ageing and food safety threats).
- Bring together complementary capability and capacity to support innovation ecosystem development.
- Facilitate connections between science and technology professionals, entrepreneurs and businesses to drive the development of research and commercial applications for future protein innovations.
- Connect key players across the value chain, for example, to help ensure Australian food ingredients are tailored to match the specific needs of Asian food manufacturers.
Venture Exchange Program Future Food Cohort
Participants benefit from
- Access to world-class R&D facilities and collaboration opportunities with leading scientists both countries.
- Coaching sessions identifying potential research collaboration and value chain opportunities.
- Pitching opportunities at Food and Hotel Asia trade show in Singapore and the Protein Futures Symposium in Australia.
- Networking sessions with cohort peers and key ecosystem stakeholders.
- Specialist consultations with relevant providers of legal, marketing, commercialisation and other services to facilitate know-how and connections.
2024 Future Foods cohort
The inaugural VEP cohort supported six Australian teams and three Singapore-based start-up companies.
| Team | Description |
|---|---|
| Allium Bio | Allium Bio are creating a platform for better ingredients, for better products, for people and the planet. They bring together the powers of multiple microorganisms, using a proprietary model to discover symbiotic combinations of algae, fungi, and other species to create high-value food ingredients at lower cost. |
| Cellular Agriculture Ltd | Cellular Agriculture Ltd revolutionises cultivated protein production with their high-density, low-footprint bioreactors and advanced bioprocess technology. They provide efficient, sustainable solutions that ensure high-quality protein output, bridging the gap to industrial-scale production and transforming the future of food. |
| Eclipse Ingredients | Eclipse Ingredients is a cutting-edge biotech ingredients startup incubated in CSIRO making high-value, hard-to-source ingredients important for health from yeast, using precision fermentation. Our first ingredient is human lactoferrin, which is a wonder protein found in breastmilk and immune cells with immune-building and iron-boosting properties important for health and well-being across the lifespan, from infants and children to adults and the elderly. |
| Evolve | Evolve's technology reduces the sugar content of fruit and vegetable based products using a natural fermentation process by up to 70 per cent. The company is currently working on commercialising the technology for the manufacture of reduced alcohol wine and low calorie/reduced sugar fruit juices, baby food, snacks and confectionary products. |
| Grainstone | Grainstone is developing integrated multi-product biorefining technology to revolutionise the barley value chain, including the ability to recover and upcycle brewers spent grain and support decarbonisation objectives. Building on Australia's major competitive advantages in grains they are working on technologies to produce a range of affordable in-demand ingredients, health supplements, animal feeds and bioproducts in a way that to maximises value and minimises waste. |
| Just Meat Co. | Just Meat Co. is turning red meat into a nutrient dense, high protein ingredient with a wide range of applications across the food and beverage market. |
| Mobius Farms | Mobius Farms turns waste into value using insects. From hyper local food waste recovery systems to natural substitutes for anti-biotics in animal production; from sustainable protein sources for livestock feed to functional fertilisers for farmers - Mobius Farms aims to build resilience into our food systems through insect derived technologies. |
| NutriV | NutriV focus on repurposing surplus vegetables from Australian farms and diverting the 'waste' to create shelf stable products for both consumers and businesses. NutriV aim to create a circular economy through seeing 100 per cent of what is planted and harvested, converted into nutrient dense powders that are then used in food manufacturing and home cooking. |
| Seadling | Seadling is a seaweed biotech company, developing functional ingredients that naturally enhance the well-being of animals, plants, and humans with an aim to revolutionise the agri-food sector through the power of seaweed nutrition. |