Chicken, fish alternatives to be developed in UAE as part of $15m challenge
Four-year competition driven forward by Abu Dhabi’s Advanced Technology Research Council
Abu Dhabi: A four-year international competition driven forward by Abu Dhabi’s Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC) will see teams compete to develop chicken and fish alternatives.
The ATRC’s Aspire technology management division has partnered with the United States’ non-profit organisation, XPrize, to revolutionise the global food supply chain through its $15 million (Dh55.09 million) challenge. Entitled ‘XPrize Feed the Nect Billion’, the contest will challenge teams of global innovators to develop alternatives that ensure the world’s growing population has access to nutritious, quality food.
New technologies
“Even though it seems like a formidable challenge, global hunger is one of the most solvable problems in today’s society. With XPrize Feed the Next Billion, we have a unique opportunity to enable innovators to develop solutions that improve yield, productivity and sustainability across the entire global food ecosystem. Abu Dhabi has been instrumental in developing the global food security ecosystem, and we are continuously uncovering cutting-edge agriculture solutions that will shape the future of food production. Through our partnership with XPRIZE, we seek to unearth new technologies that will become solutions for all,” Faisal Al Bannai, secretary general at the ATRC
The contest is funded by Ghadan 21, Abu Dhabi’s accelerator programme.
Lower cost
“Billions of individuals do and will desire higher quality protein as a food source, but the earth is incapable of providing this with traditional livestock. A much more sustainable, scalable methodology is required. [This challenge] seeks to create poultry and fish that is affordable, sustainable, more nutritious, and a lower cost than mechanisms now in place. We believe hundreds of entrepreneurs will focus on driving breakthroughs in this critical and important area to help feed the world,” XPrize founder, Dr Peter H. Diamandis.
The competition is also supported by The Tony Robbins Foundation, an American non-profit organisation which helps provide millions of meals globally each year, and awards grants and other resources to health and human services organisations. The Good Food Institute, an international non-profit focused on meat and plant-based alternatives, will also act as a team success partner throughout the competition.
Registrations have already kicked off, and will continue until April 28, 2021. Grand Prize Winners will be announced in 2024.