Protein, made smarter.
Cultivating Protein Diversity for a Secure, Sustainable, and Resilient Future of Food
The alternative protein sector is at the forefront of global food innovation, with major benefits for people, planet, and profit. Making foods that taste the same or better and cost the same or less than their animal-derived counterparts, with vastly lower impacts on planetary and public health – now that’s smart protein.
Around the world, innovators are creating the meat, eggs, and dairy foods of the future – made directly from plants, cells, or microorganisms. In India, a diversity of people, crops, models, technologies, and solutions can drive a regional food solution and infuse much-needed resilience into our global food system. The promise of smart protein will usher in a new protein economy in the country, yielding lasting economic, environmental, and societal benefits in the long term.
Plant-based meat
Cultivated meat
Fermentation
What are alternative proteins?
Given how essential alternative proteins are to a global protein transition, the term itself needs to be universally understood, on the tip of more tongues, and at the top of more agendas.
Here’s how we do it.
At the Good Food Institute India, we believe that small-scale farmers, indigenous crops, low-cost technologies, and self-reliant biomanufacturing will be key to the success of alternative proteins. We’re laying the groundwork for this sunrise industry in one of the world’s most important countries and demonstrating a model for a more secure, sustainable, and just food system in the developing world.
GFI India’s team of experts across science and technology, business, and policy works to build the smart protein sector from the ground up. We build pivotal networks, conduct and freely disseminate high-impact research, and provide critical advisory support.
By working with governments, entrepreneurs, researchers, large food and biotech corporations, civil society, universities, and other partners across the smart protein value chain, we’re putting sustainable protein on the menu.
Accelerate innovation and scale the industry
We partner with companies throughout the supply chain to identify the most impactful business activities that will grow the bottom line and advance the next generation of alternative proteins to compete with conventional animal products on the key drivers of consumer choice: taste, price, and convenience.
We analyse the market to identify key white spaces and emerging opportunities and provide actionable, open-source market data and consumer insights. We work with global partners across the private sector to enable market breakthroughs.
Advance the foundational science of smart protein
We are dedicated to advancing foundational, open-access research in alternative proteins and creating a thriving research and training ecosystem around the game-changing field of smart proteins. We bring together scientific minds from diverse backgrounds to better understand the foundational sciences of smart protein.
We connect students, scientists, and academicians with institutional and for-profit opportunities to create a consortium of research talent pools that can ignite the next generation of smart protein innovation.
Secure government and institutional support
We engage at the highest levels of government, civil society, and grant-making institutions in academia to advance smart protein through direct strategic advisory, knowledge partnerships, and media communications to establish India as a key player in the global transition to a more sustainable food future.
We represent at multilateral forums to ensure that the global south narrative around alternative proteins is part of the climate and sustainability discourse.
Convene, educate, and build the ecosystem
We convene the early-stage smart protein ecosystem in India and foster the next generation of talent through our various initiatives.
To build the technology-driven ecosystem for smart proteins in India, we empower students, entrepreneurs, and ecosystem-players to actively engage in knowledge sharing and network with each other to find collaboration opportunities through the GFIdeas India Community, the Smart Protein Summit, and the Smart Protein Project.
Developing the roadmap
Explore startup ideas, commercial opportunities, research projects, and investment priorities throughout the alternative protein supply chain.
Access current insights into the state of the smart protein industry, including commercial landscape, consumer and investment insights, technical advancements, and regulatory updates.
Discover ideas for your R&D work in plant-based, fermentation-derived alternative proteins, and cultivated meat.
Explore India-specific opportunities and challenges with actionable recommendations across economic growth, public health, government support, and more.
Check out our informative suite of regulatory resources, created to help keep you informed on the various regulatory developments in India’s smart protein sector.
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