Innovative food development faces regulatory delays due to EU approval process

In the heart of Europe, a growing chorus of voices is calling for reform in the EU's Novel Food Regulation, a system governing the approval of innovative food products since 1997. The regulation, criticised for being complex, time-consuming, and opaque, has left many start-ups in the food sector at a competitive disadvantage.

One such voice belongs to Patrick Noller, Managing Director of Berlin-based start-up investor Foodlabs, who described the current EU novel food approval process as a "nightmare". Noller argues that the process "does not fit the current pace of innovation", especially compared to the USA or Asian markets. He fears that Europe risks falling behind in the next promising billion-dollar market, a sentiment shared by Ivo Rzegotta from the think tank Good Food Institute (GFI Europe).

Rzegotta sees Europe's competitive edge at risk. He believes that the community risks falling behind in the next promising billion-dollar market after the solar and chip industries. Start-ups in the food sector are facing frustration with the current EU novel food approval process, which they find very time-consuming and opaque.

One of these start-ups is Formo, a Berlin-based company that biotechnologically produces milk proteins and develops cheese alternatives. Raffael Wohlgensinger, founder and CEO of Formo, needs to commercialize the company's technology quickly due to the time and capital lost every month waiting for the EU novel food approval process.

Formo believes that an Experimentierklausel could create a legally secure, low-threshold pilot space for testing novel foods in a short period, sending a strong signal to the industry and investors. The planned Real-Lab Law in Germany could potentially be used to implement a sandbox program for testing novel foods.

The German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) has announced that with the planned Real-Lab-Gesetz, it will introduce a sandbox program allowing young food companies to test experimental foods with consumers while the official approval process for novel foods is still ongoing. This move follows similar calls from affected start-ups, who are looking to the Dutch example of a sandbox program as a model for reform.

In Hamburg, Infinite Roots, a start-up that cultivates the root network of mushrooms in fermenters to produce alternative foods, also voices similar criticisms about the Novel Food Regulation's implementation. Christian Dammann, Chief Technical Officer of the company Bluu Seafood, which produces so-called cultivated fish in bioreactors, shares these concerns.

The industry representatives' calls for reform are not falling on deaf ears. The potential for the Real-Lab Law to introduce a sandbox program in Germany offers a glimmer of hope for the start-ups. However, whether this will lead to a broader reform of the EU's Novel Food Regulation remains to be seen.

As the clock ticks, the start-ups are facing a difficult decision: stay and fight for reform or move abroad to more welcoming markets. Many companies are considering moving abroad due to the EU's current novel food approval process, which could lead to a loss of innovation and jobs in Europe. The future of the EU's food sector hangs in the balance.