Reimagining Pet Nutrition: Sustainable & Engineered Fat Solutions

The Challenge

Mars, a global leader in pet care products and services, and EIT Food, a world’s largest food innovation community, are calling on startups and other innovators developing low-carbon, fat solutions to transform pet food production. From fermentation and plant-based oils to novel and engineered lipids, we’re looking for innovations that once scaled are comparable to the performance and cost of animal fats.

This partnership opportunity will connect cutting edge technologies to a leading provider of high quality, science-backed nutrition , with potential to scale innovations rapidly. The top 10 solutions will be invited to a virtual demo day. Mars Petcare will award one finalist €20,000 and discuss with selected finalists the development of a joint proof of concept following the Demo Day.

Who We’re Looking For

We’re looking for bold innovators ready to test, validate, and scale their solutions in a real operational environment.

This call is open to:

•               Startups

•               Subject matter experts

•               Research institutes & universities (with partnership capacity)

•               Scale-ups and corporates

What matters most is not size, it’s partnership readiness.

The Sweet Spot

We’re particularly interested in solutions that are:

•               Ready for a proof of concept 

•               At pilot stage or already generating first sales

•               Technically validated and ready for real-world testing

•               Designed with scalability in mind

The ideal stage? Advanced enough to test quickly — flexible enough to adapt.

If your solution has already moved beyond pure lab validation and is ready to prove its value in practice, you’re exactly who we want to hear from.

Built to Scale

We’re not just testing ideas, we’re looking for solutions with long-term impact and strong scaling potential.

You should be ready to:

•               Collaborate closely

•               Refine your solution to meet real use-case needs

•               Execute efficiently with a committed team

The solutions can come from any type of entity, including startups, research teams from universities or research institutions, as well as established organisations and companies.

The deadline for applications is the 31st of March 2026 at 23:59 CEST.

What’s in it for the applicants?

1. Get invited to the virtual demo day and connect directly with key decision makers at Mars Petcare.
2. The most promising solution will be awarded a prize of €20,000 to do a joint paid proof of concept following the demo day
3. Receive feedback, advice and input on your product, service or technology from Mars Petcare experts
4. Receive insights and information about the growing pet care category

How to apply

Submit your profile before the 31st of March 2026 at 23:59 CEST. Click here to start working on your profile and share your vision for a pilot project with Mars Petcare. The answers will be screened first by EIT Food, and the most promising applicants will be shared with Mars Petcare, thus the more specific your explanations, the more likely they will want to engage with you

Should you have any questions, please reach out to Christoph Mandl at christoph.mandl@eitfood.eu 

About EIT Food

EIT Food connects stakeholders to drive innovation, adoption of new technologies and scaling of impactful solutions, including with world industry leaders such as Mars Petcare, a strategic partner of EIT Food.

About Mars, Incorporated

Mars, Incorporated is driven by the belief that the world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today. As a $65bn+ family-owned business, our diverse and expanding portfolio of leading pet care products and veterinary services support pets all around the world and our quality snacking and food products delight millions of people every day. We produce some of the world’s best-loved brands including ROYAL CANIN®, PEDIGREE®, WHISKAS®, CESAR®,M&M’S®, SNICKERS®, Pringles®, Cheez-It®, and BEN’S ORIGINAL™. Our international networks of pet hospitals, including BANFIELD™, BLUEPEARL™, VCA™ and ANICURA™ span preventive, general, specialty, and emergency veterinary care, and our global veterinary diagnostics business ANTECH® offers breakthrough capabilities in pet diagnostics. The Mars Five Principles— Quality, Responsibility, Mutuality, Efficiency and Freedom — inspire our more than 170,000Associates to act every day to help create a better world for people, pets and the planet.