NovFeed, A Tanzanian Biotech Company, Wins Inaugural Milken Motsepe Prize For AgriTech

NovFeed, a Tanzania-based biotech company, has won the $1 million grand prize in the inaugural Milken-Motsepe Prize in AgriTech Awards.

The company received the $1 million grand prize for its proprietary technology that converts organic waste into nutritious, sustainable and traceable plant-based protein ingredients and concentrated natural biofertilisers for the food system.

The Milken-Motsepe Prize in AgriTech is the first in a series of multi-year, multi-million dollar innovation competitions and programmes to promote technological advancement towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The awards were presented at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Los Angeles, California.

View the Milken-Motsepe Prize in AgriTech award announcement and reception below:

“Varied solutions were considered during the competition, and this contributes to current and future efforts to understand and resolve challenges facing agriculture,” said Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe, co-founder and CEO of the Motsepe Foundation.

“Making progress towards the SDGs is crucial. We are truly impressed by the participants ideas and thank each of them for their dedication to finding viable and scalable solutions.”

Following the launch of the competition in April 2021, more than 3,300 people from 105 countries on six continents entered the Milken-Motsepe Prize in AgriTech.

An independent panel of experts selected 25 finalist teams to receive $10,000 to develop and test their innovations to improve economic benefits for small and medium-sized farms in Africa. Each of the teams participated in a rigorous, independent judging process that assessed the potential of their innovations to increase agricultural productivity and/or reduce post-harvest losses.

The teams also received a number of special benefits, including participation in a tuition-free, experiential learning programme offered by Global Innovation Catalyst in partnership with Stanford Online, where they were mentored by industry experts, received pitch coaching and feedback sessions.

The $300,000 second place prize went to Ugandan company Karpolax for its nanotechnology solution that keeps fruits and vegetables fresher longer without losing their nutritional value. The third place prize of $150,000 went to IRRI-AfricaRice for its biotechnological innovation that helps rice farmers protect their crops from flooding, one of the most damaging effects of climate change.

Bonus prizes of $100,000 each were also awarded. Kuronga from South Africa received the bonus prize for the most creative use of Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies for its machine learning and machine vision mobile app that uses AI to connect farmers with buyers and makes it easier to check the quality of crops. COOL LION Industries (farming, fishing, etc.) powered by renewable energy won the People’s Choice bonus award for what the public thought was the most transformative idea.

“The winners exemplify the fact that bold, scalable, transformative ideas can come from anywhere,” said Dr Emily Musil Church, Senior Director at the Milken Institute Centre for Strategic Philanthropy.

“Bringing talent to the fore and supporting entrepreneurs is an intentional goal of the competition. It doesn’t end there. The expanded network of investors and stakeholders built into the programme offers the winning teams continued opportunities to innovate and thrive.”

The Milken-Motsepe Innovation Prize Programme has continued to grow and has launched a second competition, the Milken-Motsepe Prize in Green Energy, in November 2022. The Prize in Green Energy is a $2 million innovation competition that rewards entrepreneurs and innovators who are expanding access to reliable, affordable and sustainable electricity in Africa.