BIV Funding

The Biofortification Hub offers funding to support innovative research via Business Interaction Vouchers (BIV) to encourage and support collaboration between academics and industry in the area of biofortification.  

The vouchers will help resource small, confidence-building activities between an academic partner and industry-based partner(s) that are likely to:

• Instigate an interaction
• Test the potential for a substantive interaction
• Lead to new research technology transfer projects

OPEN BIV call (2023): Biofortification of food, feed and fodder

Open 20-03-2023

Deadline to submit proposal 01-06-2023 – call closed

Application forms as well as the additional information requested (see BIV guidelines) should be sent to  biofortification.hub@nbi.ac.uk

BIV funding summary:

• Award up to £50K (£25K recommended)
• Project duration: up to 6-9 months
• Eligible costs include Directly Incurred costs + max 20% institution Overheads (Directly Allocated and Indirect Costs)
• Justification of why Overheads (if requested) are necessary to the project and should be covered
• Projects are costed at 100% Full Economic Cost (fEC) & funded at 80% fEC by BBSRC/Biofortification Hub
• Cash or in-kind contribution from an industrial partner(s) based in the UK is expected (Business partner contribution examples are available from the Hub Manager)
• Funding is only available to UK institutions and principal applicants who are both eligible to BBSRC funding
• Membership of the biofortification hub is encouraged but not mandatory to apply for BIV funding. You can become a member simply by filling the form online.
• Detailed guidelines about BIV funding and how to apply are available in the download section.

BIV funded projects:

• Successful applicant(s) will provide a public summary of the project (150 works)
• All successful applicants (including co-investigators and industry partners) must join the Biofortification Hub network. It only takes two minutes to apply for membership online.
• The academic applicant(s) and industrial partner(s) will agree a start date and will need to have a signed agreement in place prior to the project commencing
• A formal offer letter (including award Terms and Conditions) will be issued to the successful applicant
• A short report (authorised by the industrial partner for use in the public domain) and an expenditure statement (authorised by the applicant’s Institution) should be sent to the Hub Manager within one month of project ending
• Once a project has been completed, funds will be transferred at 80% fEC from BBSRC to Quadram Institute Bioscience then to the awardee.