The future of food is being decided now

A critical window for food innovation

Right now, decisions are being made that will shape the future of food for decades.

Around the world, governments are investing billions into biotechnology—processes that use microorganisms or plants for everything from making insulin and vaccines to crop production and brewing beer. At the same time, scientists are developing entirely new ways to produce food, from precision fermentation to cultivated meat, that would protect ecosystems and the climate, feed more people, and improve public health. 

However, food, and specifically alternative proteins, are often missing from rooms where critical decisions are made about biotechnology and research. Biotech discussions tend to focus on pharmaceuticals, energy, or agricultural inputs, rather than reimagining how food itself is produced. Without deliberate effort, alternative proteins risk being left out of the funding, infrastructure, and policy support needed to scale.

Policymakers are actively shaping funding programs, infrastructure investments, and regulatory pathways right now, deciding which technologies thrive and which are left behind.

In other words, the future of food is being decided in real time, and it could move forward without alternative proteins at the table. But not if GFI and our global community of donors have anything to do with it. Positioned at the intersection of science, policy, and industry, we act as a catalyst—translating technical insights into policy action, aligning stakeholders who don’t traditionally collaborate, and identifying the gaps that still hold the field back.

A once-in-a-generation opportunity for alternative meats globally

In 2025, the U.S. National Commission on Emerging Biotechnology called for a $15 billion investment to strengthen national leadership in biotech. Congress has made it clear that we have just a two- to three-year window to influence which technologies receive this investment. 

Similarly, Europe is at a pivotal moment in determining how biotechnology will evolve over the next decade. Major policies, including a forthcoming European Biotech Act, are being actively shaped, with decisions expected over the next 18 months. This is a critical window: once priorities are set, they will guide long-term funding allocations and infrastructure development, like the EU’s seven-year research programs. We are at a pivotal point in the future of transforming how meat is made.

GFI is actively working to ensure that food is not overlooked on the biotech agenda. Our staff is engaging directly with policymakers (including a growing bipartisan coalition in Congress) and building relationships with influential bodies like the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology.

GFI’s policy work is already delivering tangible results, both by shifting how decision-makers think and by unlocking real investment. In the U.S., GFI has helped reframe conversations within agencies like the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, shifting the focus beyond traditional agricultural inputs to recognize alternative proteins as a powerful tool for food system resilience—capable of diversifying production and rapidly scaling through technologies like fermentation.

That shift is translating into action: in 2024, the Department of Defense awarded $19 million to alternative protein companies through its Distributed Bioindustrial Manufacturing Program, a milestone that underscores growing recognition of protein diversification as a matter of national security and supply chain strength.

At the same time, GFI has supported major infrastructure wins, including a $51 million federal investment in the Illinois Fermentation and Agriculture Biomanufacturing (iFAB) Tech Hub, demonstrating how food biotech can drive regional economic growth and workforce development.

Globally, GFI Europe is strengthening the case with data by mapping the economic potential of alternative proteins across key markets to show policymakers not just why this sector matters, but exactly what it will take to scale it. Together, these efforts illustrate GFI’s ability to turn bipartisan partnerships into outcomes, ensuring alternative proteins are part of the conversation and backed by serious public investment.

However, even the most ambitious policy vision can’t succeed without strong science behind it. Policymakers need promising science that addresses key industry bottlenecks and translates research into tasty, affordable, nutritious products that can compete in restaurants and on grocery shelves. That’s why a significant portion of GFI’s work centers around research funding.

Turning seeds into scalable science

The Research Grant Program is designed to fund high-risk, high-impact science that can unlock progress across entire industries. Instead of focusing on incremental improvements, the program targets critical technical bottlenecks and supports research that benefits the entire field. Importantly, the work is shared openly, allowing others to build on it and accelerate innovation globally. And the impact is already clear.

GFI-funded researchers have:

• Published more than 160 scientific papers focused on alternative proteins and enabling factors, including primary research, review articles, and contributions to academic textbooks and journals.
• Delivered over 265 presentations across conferences, media platforms, and other forums, often serving as an early mechanism for sharing findings, sparking new collaborations, and accelerating the dissemination of knowledge across institutions and geographies.
• Helped launch at least 17 companies, several of which have secured significant capital—collectively exceeding $100 million raised between financing rounds and secured loans.

Together, these efforts have catalyzed over $75 million in follow-on research funding and supported innovations that are now shaping the alternative protein landscape. But perhaps the most powerful impact of early funding is what it makes possible next.

Seed funding allows researchers to generate the first proof of concept—the critical step needed to unlock larger grants, attract partners, and move ideas toward commercialization. Without that initial support, many promising ideas could struggle to move forward.

One example from our Research Grant Program illustrates just how powerful early funding can be. In 2020, GFI awarded Paragon Pure a $50,000 exploratory grant to investigate the use of rice bran oil oleogels in plant-based meat. While modest in size, the grant proved transformative.

It enabled key scientific breakthroughs, from some of the first research into how fats behave during cooking to the development of structured oils tailored for plant-based meat. This work laid the foundation for a patent and, importantly, established the proof of concept needed to advance the technology.

The impact extended well beyond the lab. The project helped spark partnerships with consumer packaged goods companies and suppliers, and ultimately contributed to Paragon Pure securing more than $3 million in venture funding.

Perhaps most notably, the grant changed the company’s trajectory. CEO Dr. Chris Gregson later reflected that without this early support, the team likely wouldn’t have pursued this line of research at all. What began as an exploratory project revealed a critical opportunity to address fat functionality, which is a key challenge for plant-based meat.

This is a clear example of how targeted, early-stage funding doesn’t just advance individual projects but also redirects talent, unlocks new applications, and accelerates progress across the entire field.