Funding and grants

About funding and grants

Funding provides opportunities for food and drink manufacturers to address current and future business challenges through the development of innovative solutions across the business, from process innovation through to product development.

The FDF has close ties with various funding bodies across the UK. These include UK Research & Innovation (UKRI), Innovate UK, the KTN, and the research councils (i.e., BBSRC and EPSRC) as well as regional bodies such as the Greater Lincolnshire LEP.

We also have established connections with researchers within academic institutions, the catapult network and businesses who are at the forefront of the latest innovations. The FDF can connect you with the right people to drive innovation through suggesting funding routes, connect you to potential project consortia collaboration and support with funding applications.

If you are interested in a free expert consultation into your business and where resource efficiencies could be made to increase the productivity of your business, check out the Food and Drink Innovation Gateway.

Spotlight

The Digital Imperative - Transforming the food and drink industry with data and AI

Date: 17/06/2026

This event brings together food and drink manufacturers to examine how data, AI, and digital technologies can support productivity, resilience, and progress toward Net Zero in an increasingly volatile operating environment. With the sector facing rising energy costs, labour challenges, and supply chain disruption, the focus is on practical, deployable solutions rather than theory.

 

Hosted by the University of Sheffield AMRC with EFFP and Zühlke, the conference will showcase how digital tools such as digital twinning, predictive analytics, and AI-driven automation are already being applied on the factory floor to reduce waste, manage costs, improve transparency, and move from reactive to proactive operations.

 

Sign up here.

Bespoke AI and Data Science Advice for SMEs

Funding and Grants grid

For members, the FDF tracks open and upcoming grant opportunities for food and drink manufacturing businesses throughout the UK. This grid includes more detail than available on the website, and can be downloaded for quick reference and internal discussion.

Download funding and grants grid

 

Funding and grant opportunities for food and drink manufacturing businesses throughout the UK

Find business support in Scotland & Wales

The findbusinesssupport.gov.scot website provides an overview of all public sector grants and funding available in Scotland. Businesses can filter the support by location, topic and sector.

The tradeandinvest.wales website links to various potential business funding sources as well as regional support throughout Wales.

Additional resources

UKRI Guidance for Applicants (A UK Research and Innovation guide to successfully applying for R&D funding.

Innovate UK: Helping Innovative Businesses Succeed (This document explains Innovate UK’s role in supporting businesses to innovate)

The Lambert Toolkit (A toolkit for universities and companies that wish to undertake collaborative research projects with each other.)

KTN Innovation Canvas (A tool designed by the Knowledge Transfer Network to help businesses address their innovation challenges.)