Food industry backer faces funding fears

The Food and Drink Innovation Network (iNet) co-ordinates a range of schemes providing advice and support to food and drink processors across the Midlands and sourcing academic solutions to challenges they face. The group claims it has saved firms thousands of pounds through its work.

The organisation secured European funding for several projects, which will come to fruition at the end of this month. Plans for future schemes have already been drawn up. “They really hinge around around the environment, resources, lack of wastage,” said Food and Drink iNet director Richard Worrall. “Another big area is health and obesity, such as ways of reducing salt in diets.”

But, these activities remain uncertain as the Food and Drink iNet loses the bulk of its funding imminently. “We were getting 60% of our funding from the East Midlands Regional Development Agency, but we lose that at the end of this month,”​ said Worrall.

Off the radar​

The Food and Drink iNet will keep the 40% of funds it gets from the European Regional Development Fund, but it will be forced to generate the rest from private and public sector projects. “We are trying to make sure we will be around for another 18 months at least, rather than slipping off the radar. I am very conscious we could be like one of those quangos that disappears, but we have better things to do. I am very confident, but we’ll wait and see.​”

One venture, which was announced earlier this week, aimed to link East Midlands ice cream makers with UK ingredients suppliers, cutting the costs of relying on costlier imported ready-mixed components. This could save firms thousands of pounds on raw materials, said Worrall.

“Small, relatively new, ice cream producers usually start their business using several branded ready-mixed ingredients in order to enter the market place quickly and easily. These products are of good quality but some, for example, are currently manufactured in Italy, imported and sold via wholesalers. The cost of these ingredients is significant and influenced by exchange rates,” ​he said.

Profitable​

“Several ice cream producers have requested support in finding alternatives that, ideally, are available locally, are cheaper and enable production of similar or better quality ice cream. We are very pleased to be able to launch a project which will help this sector of the food industry in the East Midlands to become more profitable and more sustainable​.”

In August the Food and Drink iNet announced it had channelled £37,000 worth of funding, matched by businesses it worked with, into schemes ranging from product rebranding and development to engineering solutions.