The Smart Protein Summit 2022 by the Good Food Institute India in partnership with FICCI with support from the MoFPI, GOI, is poised to transform the future of food on October 13 & 14 in New Delhi

The essential summit for this sunrise sector is going into ‘mission mode’ to establish smart protein as a key pillar of India’s new green economy

• Smart Protein Corridors Event: representatives from the embassies of Israel, the Netherlands, and Canada, among other countries, explore how India can deepen bilateral relationships and build synergies in smart protein research, manufacturing, and investment.
• Economic Analysis Launch: unveiling the most up-to-date numbers on the market size and export potential of plant-based meat and other smart protein categories by the year 2030 – from a rigorous joint study by GFI India and Deloitte India.
• Innovators Showcase and Startup Bootcamp: smart protein startups Urban Tiller, Klever Meat, Devigere Biosolutions, and others pitch their solutions to a seasoned panel of investors from Brinc, Beyond Impact, Good Startup, and CIIE.CO with the intent to impress and forge meaningful partnerships.

The Good Food Institute India (GFI India), the central expert organization and convening body in the ‘smart protein’ sector, is gearing up to host its annual flagship event, the Smart Protein Summit in collaboration with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) and with support from the Ministry of Food Processing Industries, Government of India (MoFPI). The two-day long event that brings together experts, thought leaders, and industry professionals will be held in-person at Eros Hotel, Nehru Place, New Delhi, on October 13-14, 2022.

The last two years have seen encouraging developments in smart protein technologies, startups, and investments, as consumer appetite for sustainable alternatives to conventional animal proteins continues to grow. The Indian smart protein ecosystem has grown at a remarkable rate – from just a handful of stakeholders to a thriving sunrise sector with 50+ startups, 80+ supporting companies, investments poised to grow exponentially, and policy advancements beginning to take clear shape. The Smart Protein Summit has been critical to bringing together this ecosystem annually – and with this year’s theme of going ‘mission mode’, GFI India is poised to host its most impressive summit yet. 

Varun Deshpande, managing director, The Good Food Institute India, says, “Safeguarding human and planetary health demands the collective ingenuity of entire ecosystems, and nowhere is this more true than in our journey to build a better protein supply. With the right impetus, a National Mission for Smart Protein could be a new engine for sustainable economic prosperity, stewarding farmer welfare, tackling malnutrition, catalyzing entrepreneurship, and centering India in the global food system of the future.

The time for bold, visionary action is now, and we are delighted to once again bring together leading research universities, innovation and biotechnology hubs, multilateral and government institutions, business consortia, and a host of crucial collaborators at the Smart Protein Summit 2022 – all integral to the growth of this transformative industry in India.” 

This year’s in-person Summit envisions propelling India to the forefront of the global race for smart protein innovation, kicking off the two day event with an unveiling of topline numbers on market size and export potential of smart protein from a rigorous study by GFI India and Deloitte India. ‘The Smart Protein Economic Analysis Targets’ launch will delve deeper into the smart protein economic opportunity for India, shedding light on avenues for job creation and India’s potential to become a leading manufacturer and supplier of raw materials, and equipment for smart protein globally by 2030.

Across two days of deliberative panel discussions and highly curated, outcome-oriented roundtables, over 100 speakers – thought leaders across science, government, venture capital, enterprise, and industry will share diverse perspectives on one common platform. Following the re-launch of a first-of-its-kind Smart Protein Ecosystem Database the Summit will also provide an opportunity for focused networking and matchmaking for startups, investors, distributors, and other stakeholders.

The event is expected to have an interesting round of addresses on subjects such as ‘A Springboard for Innovation: Smart protein for every plate’ where pioneers such as Prakash MG (Managing Director – India, IFF), Dheeraj Talreja (President, AAK India) and PB Chinnappa (MD, Griffith Foods) will explore the opportunity to advance the smart protein industry beyond early adopters and metros, to the true mass market.

Discussing novel technologies in ‘From Bench to Billions: Nurturing biotech to mega-scale’, experts such as GS Krishnan (President, Association of Biotechnology Led Enterprises), Vinod Kumar (MD, String Bio), Dr Manish Diwan (Head – SPED, BIRAC, Department of Biotechnology, GOI), Subramani Ramachandrappa (Founder & MD, Laurus Bio) and others will share key insights on critical levers for product innovation and building a roadmap towards the commercialization of bio-enabled solutions, particularly cultivated, fermentation-derived, and hybrid smart proteins. 

On Day 2 of the Summit, following the formal introduction of the ‘The Delhi University Smart Protein Project’ – India’s first chapter within a global student movement dedicated to turning universities into engines for alternative protein education, research, and innovation – leading academicians and researchers such as Dr Ravishankar CN (Director, ICAR-CIFE), Dr Gurmeet Singh (Professor & Center Head, TDU), Sunil Marwah (CEO, FICSI), and Dr N Madhusudhana Rao (CEO, AIC-CCMB) will deliberate pathways toward effectively attracting high caliber talent to this sunrise sector in the panel – ‘Building the Talent Pool: Indian leaders powering the global landscape’.

Following two years of virtual iterations, the 2022 summit will also witness a sensorial experience of delicious plant-based offerings from established plant-based brands such as Blue Tribe Foods, Shaka Harry, GoodDot, Greenest, BVeg Foods, Alt Foods, OneGood, and others. Startups will also get the opportunity to present their solutions to a seasoned panel of investors at the Innovators showcase, and will also get a chance to participate in a ‘Bootcamp on Scaling your Smart Protein Startup’ with Rajeev Chitrabhanu, CEO & Founder of lead investment firm, MAGNETIC. 

A Smart Protein Tasting Tour will also give key collaborators, value-chain partners, and media an opportunity to taste and experience ‘next generation’ smart protein products from new and upcoming startups including OatMlk, Evo Foods, ProMeat, Mighty, Evolved Foods, Plantish, Soft Spot Foods, and more.

In keeping with the objective of the Summit to serve as a novel platform that highlights smart protein’s untapped potential by forging collaborations, the Smart Protein Summit 2022 will also host dedicated events around GFI India’s Smart Protein Corridors project. In partnership with Invest India – the Government of India’s National Investment Promotion and Facilitation Agency – GFI India will host a Pre-Summit multi-embassy consultation on October 11 followed by a closing session at the summit dedicated to ‘Smart Protein Corridors: Building competitive advantages’.  

“After years of laying the groundwork for cross-border knowledge and technology transfer between India and other smart protein hubs like Israel, the Netherlands, USA, Canada, and others, we’re really looking forward to discussing opportunities for India to deepen bilateral relationships with countries that are pioneering research, manufacturing, and investment in this sunrise sector,” says GFI India’s Senior Innovation Specialist Nicole Rocque about the initiative. 

Speaking on GFI India’s collaboration with FICCI, Varun Deshpande, managing director, GFI India says, “Together with FICCI, we’ve designed the Summit to serve as a unique knowledge sharing platform that exhibits smart protein’s soaring potential, brings together leaders and key stakeholders across industry, academia, and government to move from dialogue to action, and lays out how the sector is poised to become a key pillar of India’s new green economy. We are deeply grateful for our partnerships with FICCI, the Ministry of Food Processing Industries, the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) and the hundreds of collaborators across business, science, and policy who are building a more resilient food future from the ground up.”

As the apex export trade promotion government body in India, APEDA’s concerted effort has been instrumental in building an enabling environment for plant-based exports. Speaking about their long standing partnership with GFI India, VK Vidyarthi, General Manager, APEDA, says, As the expert organization and thought leader in the smart protein sector, GFI India has been playing a pivotal role in building the plant-based sector, which has soaring potential in India.

The team at GFI India has been providing support to APEDA by sharing crucial sector specific information and also in helping establish standards for certification of vegan products and formulate export promotion strategies to make these foods competitive in the international market. We’re happy to be working with them to boost plant-based food exports which are the need of the hour, and we’re looking forward to participating in the Smart Protein Summit 2022, which we’re certain will be a huge success.” 

Taking the cue from countries like Canada, Israel, Singapore and Japan – who are increasingly bringing together publicly funded research and investment to accelerate a smart protein transformation, the Summit looks to nurture and fast-track the smart protein ecosystem in India by bringing government, academia, business, and industry experts into the dialogue and consequently laying the foundation for improving nutritional outcomes for roughly 8 billion people around the world, one-sixth of whom are Indian.