NFX UK, a dedicated network of experts backing the novel foods sector, has secured $650,000 in funding to accelerate regulatory approvals in the UK and expand its work into Europe.
Just as the UK government publishes its latest set of guidance documents for novel food dossiers, a network of experts has secured funding to accelerate approvals for food tech companies.
NFX UK, established by Reading Scientific Services Ltd (RSSL), combines analytical and contract research capabilities with regulatory science expertise and active ecosystem coordination to address the systematic challenges that make it expensive and slow for alternative protein startups to get to market.
It has now raised $650,000 from philanthropic funding organisation Coefficient Giving to scale its impact across the UK and apply its domestic model and learnings to expand into Europe for the first time. It marks the beginning of the network’s broader international expansion strategy.
“Accelerating the development of alternative proteins has significant potential to support more sustainable and resilient food systems. NFX UK’s combination of scientific expertise and ecosystem leadership makes it a strong partner for driving systemic change,” said Abhi Kumar, associate programme officer at Coefficient Giving.
“We are excited to support NFX UK’s work to strengthen regulatory readiness, foster collaboration across the sector and help translate scientific innovation into real-world impact,” he added.
How NFX UK aims to fast-track novel food approvals
RSSL is a contract research organisation that offers rigorous analytical testing, state-of-the-art research and development, customised consultancy, and training services. Novel foods are a key focus area, with its work spanning regulatory gap assessment, product characterisation, stability, in-use assessments and dossier submissions.
It set up NFX UK last year in partnership with Imperial College London and The Supplant Company to accelerate the development and commercialisation of novel foods like cultivated meat and precision-fermented proteins.
Backed by a £472,000 ($592,000) grant from UK Research & Innovation, the network connects innovators with leading scientific, technical and regulatory experts to enhance their regulatory readiness and support more efficient market access for these products.
NFX UK aims to serve as a central hub for learning resources by developing and providing access to regulatory science tools to help companies get a clearer understanding of regulatory processes, data requirements, risk, and safety assessments necessary for their specific ingredients.
Another goal is to foster a positive exchange with regulatory authorities, especially the Food Standards Agency (FSA), offering insights into industry challenges and emerging technologies. Informed data from horizon scanning will help supplement information for regulators to enable informed, data-driven decision-making and proportionate regulation in response to innovation.
Finally, in an effort to aid novel food commercialisation, the network looks to promote connections for novel food innovators with experts and service providers, including analytical and technology organisations, scale-up and manufacturing facilities, expert consultants, and research institutions.
Since its launch in September 2025, the novel foods expert network has engaged stakeholders across 14 countries, built a community of over 260 organisations and individuals, facilitated more than 15 structured regulator engagement activities, and driven two-way engagement with the FSA and Food Standards Scotland.
Uncertainty looms for novel food regulation in the UK
According to NFX UK, the development of the novel foods ecosystem has become a national priority, and its work is helping support a more innovation-friendly regulatory environment. That, in turn, is contributing to the British government’s engineering biology ambitions and helping establish the country as a global leader in novel food regulation.
“This investment allows us to scale what we have built and strengthen our role in accelerating faster, higher-quality and more responsible regulatory approvals in the UK, across Europe and, ultimately, worldwide,” Jacinta George, managing director and VP at RSSL.
The investment comes amid the FSA’s ongoing regulatory sandbox programme for cultivated meat, through which it’s working with businesses and researchers to design standards and guidance for new products. This has been viewed as a major step forward for the country’s novel food regulatory framework, which was limited by EU-era rules for years post-Brexit.
However, the FSA’s aim of fast-tracking cultivated meat approvals could be sidetracked by the new Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) agreement between the UK and the EU, which would make it easier and cheaper for goods to move between the two geographies.
That could have a knock-on effect on cultivated meat startups, with the FSA reportedly warning around 600 approval holders and businesses that the new trade deal could render UK authorisations void and require them to follow the EU’s process instead, which is notoriously complex and long (it can take up to six years).
So far, Aleph Farms, Ivy Farm Technologies, Mosa Meat, and Parima‘s Gourmey and Vital Meat have all filed for approval, with the latter two the furthest ahead.
“The sandbox programme runs until February 2027, and we’re focused on delivering its objectives of answering regulatory questions and providing clarity to the cell-cultivated product industry,” Joshua Ravenhill, head of the FSA sandbox, told Green Queen last week.
“We’ll consider next steps in due course. We are proud of what the programme has delivered for food safety and the industry, and will consider how its outcomes have a legacy beyond February.”
