Harvest for Health Breakthrough Crop Challenge (Award up to $1 million)

Deadline: 7th August 2024

The Harvest for Health Initiative is accelerating the development of underutilized crops to increase the diversity of foods in the marketplace. The initiative focuses on crops that are nutritious and have properties of interest to food and ingredient companies.

Of more than 50,000 known edible plant species, the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that only three crops – rice, wheat and maize – account for two-thirds of the world’s food supply. As a result, many nutritious, resilient crops remain underutilized, contributing to poor dietary diversity and health outcomes.

FFAR partnered with the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) to launch the Harvest for Health Initiative to accelerate the development of underutilized crops, increasing the diversity of foods in the marketplace. The model developed through this initiative will predict underutilized crops’ potential as sources of functional and nutritious ingredients that could replace, complement or aid in reformulating the existing food products or developing new ones.

The Breakthrough Crop Challenge consists of two parts.

• Part 1: Seed Funding
  • • Phase I focuses on a concept note for building a predictive model to identify underutilized crops with properties of interest to food and ingredient companies.
• Part 2: Predictive Model and Validation
  • Part 2 focuses on developing and validating predictive models that effectively identify underutilized crops with properties of interest to food and ingredient companies.
  • Criteria Announced: August 2023
  • Applications open: June 12, 2024
  • Applications due: August 7, 2024

Award

All applications will be reviewed by an expert review panel and $1 million will be awarded to the selected predictive model that meets all outlined criteria.

Eligibility

• Any individual(s) with the skills, knowledge and resources necessary to carry out the Breakthrough Crop Challenge as Program Director(s)/Principal Investigator(s) may apply through their home institution or organization.
• The Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research welcomes applications from all domestic and international higher education institutions, non-profit and for-profit organizations and U.S. government-affiliated research agencies.
• All applications will be reviewed by an expert review panel for eligibility to receive the U.S. $1.0 million award.

For more information or Download Submission Criteria