Government ministers have announced a £5 million package of grants to help deliver food which is healthier, tastier and safer.
The funding, from Defra, will be spent over the next five years to support scientific research under a new Food Quality and Innovation programme.
The scheme is designed to encourage industry and academics to work together on ground-breaking projects to improve food quality, especially between the farm gate and retail shelf.
The project is placing particular emphasis on sustainability and waste reduction, with funding most likely to be allocated to research scheme which word towards those goals.
Food and farming minister, Lord Bach, said: “This money will help improve the quality of our food. At the same time it will fund research projects which deliver environmental and social benefits and improve efficiency.
“Good science which takes these into account will help us meet the targets in our Food Industry Sustainability Strategy, which include a better national diet coupled with a thriving food industry that uses less power and water and produces less waste.”
Defra said it will be making research grants on the condition that funding is matched by industrial partners.
The project is being co-funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and the Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department.
Professor Howard Dalton, Defra’s chief scientific advisor said: “We now want people to bring us their ideas for research projects to be funded by the new programme.
“We have identified five key research themes which reflect Defra’s priorities for sustainable farming and food and we hope these will be included in many of the applications for funding.”
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