The Good Food Programme (GFP) is a collaboration between Mission Ventures and Impact on Urban Health with the goal of supporting healthier food and drink brands. One of the main challenges is the affordability of healthier options, as lower-income households in the UK spend £250m more on unhealthy products. GFP believes that challenger brands have the potential to make healthier options more accessible, especially for families on lower incomes. To support this, GFP has chosen seven new start-ups in various categories, including ready meals, meat alternatives, and sparkling drinks.
One of the selected brands is Vegbloc, which offers a meat replacement using alternative proteins such as quinoa, lentils, and flaxseed. SweetAble, an ingredients supplier, has developed a paste that reduces calories, sugar, fat, and egg in final products. Funki aims to address the lack of fiber consumption in the UK by offering a prebiotic sparkling beverage with half the recommended daily intake of fiber. The Savourists focuses on sustainable snacking by offering high-fiber, high-protein, and low-sugar options. Root Kitchen provides plant-based frozen ready meals as an affordable alternative to mass-produced supermarket options. Origin Kitchen creates cashew nut-based desserts that are lower in sugar and higher in fiber and protein. Oddbox tackles food waste by collecting out-of-spec produce and delivering it to consumers via a subscription model.
Each brand selected for GFP will receive £15,000 in equity-free funding and two years of business support, including marketing, brand strategy, supply chain, and retailer listings. These start-ups are considered industry innovators that address core problems in the food industry. By supporting these ventures, GFP hopes to bring much-needed change to where families buy and consume their food.
In conclusion, the Good Food Programme is working towards making healthier food and drink options more accessible and affordable. By partnering with challenger brands, GFP aims to disrupt the market and create healthier shopping baskets for consumers.
