As the finance minister gears up to announce the Union Budget 2025 amidst an economic downturn, the government’s continued long-term thinking towards  sustainable economic development with its net zero commitment in sight, would be welcomed. With increasing pressure on our natural resources, the country faces a major challenge in growing food sustainably to feed the population. To become ‘Viksit Bharat’ by 2047 in our centennial year of independence as envisioned by the Prime Minister, India’s population will need access to nutritious food that reduces pressure on our agricultural systems and environment. The upcoming budget will be critical to furthering policy measures that drive us towards progress.

The government’s forward-thinking leap with the BioE3 policy is commendable, and as continued progress, the government should leverage the policy and initiatives like the Bio RIDE scheme to strengthen the nexus between food production and biotechnology and promote nutritious, high-yielding, climate-hardy crops like pulses and millets. These indigenous crops have global application in plant-based protein products that could meet the demand for sustainable nutrition in a protein-deficient country. There is also limited research in promising areas like fermentation-derived proteins, particularly biomass fermentation, to create nutrient-dense food at scale and viable costs. Clear resource allocation for R&D in smart protein as envisioned in the BioE3 Policy could help fill this whitespace. Building robust infrastructure and state-of-the-art manufacturing units while creating pathways for commercial translation of research is a prerequisite for innovation in food systems. It is optimistic to see state policies like the Karnataka Biotechnology Policy 2024-2029 aim to boost MSMEs, create high-quality jobs, and accelerate growth in novel foods such as precision-fermented proteins and cultivated meat. Moreover, it is crucial to build on the success of such state-specific biotechnology policies as in Karnataka by laying a nationwide emphasis on scaling sectors like smart proteins. 

To address critical knowledge gaps and encourage technology transfer, there is a need for multilateral research to jumpstart the sector in India. It is important to nurture and fund international research collaborations in smart protein under long-running existing schemes like the Indo-German Science & Technology Centre, Indo-U.S. Science & Technology Forum, and India-UK Collaborative R&D for Industrial Sustainability 2024, among others. 

India could focus on setting up a network of translational research & innovation facilities, like the Catapult Network in the UK, that provides access to cutting-edge research and development facilities and innovation ecosystems to support businesses with innovations. This month, the European Sustainable Protein Research Network hosted an industry-academia workshop on the Indian alternative protein supply chain network, exploring interdisciplinary partnerships between Indian and European stakeholders at IIT Bombay. Workshops like these help develop actionable bilateral strategies along the entire alternative protein supply chain for emerging regions like India.

To grow the value chain, all the way down to the farmer, we need policies and incentive mechanisms to promote contract farming away from cereal crops towards protein-rich crops and attract participation of MSMEs in the processing and value addition of these crops. There is a massive international market for plant proteins where India can lead the charge. Support for this industry will translate into better returns for farmers, renewed interest in growing pulses, and improved sustainability and resilience in Indian agriculture. Furthermore, export promotion policies like subsidies and international trade agreements could enhance the global competitiveness of Indian-made alternative proteins, supported by certification schemes aligned with international standards to ease market entry.

Through last year’s budget, the finance minister allocated significant resources to bolster the green energy sector and strengthen the manufacturing capabilities of EVs. EVs are to the transport sector what smart proteins can be for food systems—addressing anthropogenic emissions while fulfilling consumer needs and demands.