RSSL establishes UK’s first Novel Foods Expert Network

RSSL, a leading food and life science contract research organisation, has today announced that it has secured funding from Innovate UK, the UK’s national innovation agency, to establish the country’s first Novel Foods Expert Network for Regulatory Challenges (NFX UK).

Developed in partnership with Imperial College London and The Supplant Company, NFX UK will foster innovation and collaboration across the novel foods sector, serving as a pioneering platform to accelerate the development and commercialisation of new food technologies and products.

NFX UK will also play a central role in supporting the UK government's vision of establishing more transparent and streamlined regulatory processes for novel foods. This will be essential to help the UK become a global leader in novel foods research, design, and delivery, as well as facilitate the swift market entry of groundbreaking solutions.

To help achieve its mission of driving novel food innovation, NFX UK has three main objectives:

• Act as a central hub for learning resources: Collation and development of central resources. Providing access for the industry to regulatory science tools to enable a clearer understanding of regulatory processes, data requirements, risk, and safety assessments for novel food ingredients.
• Promote connections for novel foods innovators: Facilitating collaborations across the sector, between analytical and technology organisations, scale-up and manufacturing facilities, consultants, and research institutions.
• Foster positive exchange with regulatory authorities: Offering insights into industry challenges and emerging technologies to help inform decision making for agile and proportionate regulation in response to innovation.

By bringing together food companies, service providers, academics, and regulators, NFX UK will create a collaborative environment to advance regulatory science in the novel foods sector. Combining industry-leading expertise and cutting-edge technology with robust regulatory frameworks, NFX UK will provide dedicated resources, training, and guidance to ensure novel foods are brought to market safely, efficiently, and responsibly.

Jacinta George, Managing Director & VP at RSSL, commented:

We are proud to lead the creation of NFX UK. At RSSL, we recognise the transformative potential of novel food innovation and are excited to support the vital cross-sector collaborations necessary to accelerate the delivery of more cost-effective, sustainable, and healthy food options.

Dr. Tom Simmons, CEO of The Supplant Company, added: “We at The Supplant Company are thrilled to be part of this project and believe that the network will provide invaluable resources to help companies navigate the requirements for novel foods applications”.

Rodrigo Ledesma-Amaro, Director of BEZOS Centre for Sustainable Protein and Microbial Food Hub at Imperial College London, said:

We are thrilled to start this project to support companies in the alternative protein and novel food space navigate regulation. This partnership fully aligns with our goals of the Bezos Centre for Sustainable Protein and the Microbial Food Hub at Imperial College London and we are very thankful to Innovate UK for their support.