TECHNOLOGY
Innovators – CPI ’ s Novel Food Innovation Centre boasts state-of-the-art technology and a workforce of highly-skilled experts .
THE REAL MEAL DEAL
Tees Valley bio-technologists at CPI celebrate a remarkable year of food innovation
WORDS : PHILIP TALLENTIRE
What a year it ’ s been for CPI since the formal opening of the Novel Food Innovation Centre at Wilton .
In September 2023 , Tees Valley mayor Ben Houchen opened the cutting-edge facility that enables companies to develop biological alternatives to meat products .
The centre boasts state-of-the-art technology and a workforce of highlyskilled experts and has attracted businesses , from around the UK and other parts of the world to the Tees Valley , to develop alternative food products to the animal-based products currently in the market .
Another milestone recognised this year is that CPI has been operating for 20 years and is a leader in its field .
For those not in the know , proteins that offer alternatives to meat products include brands like Quorn , and the market for viable alternative sources of protein that can replace meat is expanding rapidly .
CPI managing director of materials Kris Wadrop is rightly proud of the Novel Food Innovation Centre , which has earned the much sought-after FSSC 22000 food safety quality standard .
“ It ’ s a unique facility in terms of its scale , it ’ s open access and the capabilities it offers companies ,” says Kris .
“ The infrastructure we have here at Redcar for engineering biology would cost you £ 35m- £ 40m if you were to go out and build it today .
“ Being able to access that equipment is a key reason for companies to partner with CPI .
“ We are here to make life easier for entrepreneurs and large corporations to enable them to get their products to market more quickly with less risk .
“ Through the investment we ’ ve received from Tees Valley , we ’ ve brought state-ofthe-art technologies to Teesside , enabling rapid screening and rapid development of products .
“ What would take typically three to six months in a laboratory can be done in a couple of weeks and , from an SME perspective , time is often money .
“ As a consequence of that investment we ’ ve worked with a dozen new SMEs at our facilities in the North-East over the last 12 months .
“ They are companies that aren ’ t based on Teesside but they are companies spending money to create and sustain jobs here on Teesside .”
The search for tasty alternatives to meats such as beef , pork , chicken and also fish has never been more urgent .
That ’ s because , according to the latest data , current agricultural systems have a huge impact on climate change .
However , thanks to alternative proteins and biotechnology processes , there are an increasing number of non-animal based options that have the same nutritional value as meat and can be just as pleasurable to eat but , crucially , are manufactured in a way that is sustainable from a planetary perspective .
“ Here at Redcar , where the Novel Food Innovation Centre is based , is a team of 80 to 85 scientists and engineers who live and breathe engineering biology and one of the markets that they focus on is the development of alternative proteins and
Innovators – CPI managing director of materials Kris Wadrop is proud of the Novel Food Innovation Centre , which has earned the much sought after FSSC 22000 food safety quality standard .
cellular agriculture ,” explains Kris . “ It has to operate at a high quality standard and we are licensed by Redcar and Cleveland Council .
“ That means our clients can take the materials produced in our labs away , include them into a recipe , taste it , and offer it to customers or investors – that ’ s invaluable .
“ It allows the customer to demonstrate they have a product that is tasty and edible .”
Over the past 20 years , CPI has grown into one of the leading influences on innovation in the UK .
“ CPI is a leading UK innovation centre and this is our 20th year ,” says Kris , who ’ s been with CPI for half of that journey .
“ We started with three people and a cheque from OneNorthEast in the Wilton Centre in Redcar and we ’ ve grown to 750 staff operating from five different bases , four of which are in the North-East .
“ We ’ ve helped to unlock almost £ 3bnworth of private investment , have a 60 per cent SME customer base , and are helping to transform industrial landscapes in the North-East and beyond .”
For more information visit uk-cpi . com
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