Jampa's
Incorporated in October 2021, Jampa’s (now known as Cock n Bull) is a pioneering plant-based food company driven by the ethos of ‘alchemy not chemistry’. Jampa’s have a deep commitment to both innovation and sustainability and they are dedicated to creating 100% plant-based products that are uncompromising in both quality and flavour.
The team at Jampa’s have been working with us for the past 4 years, embodying the essence of a ‘staircase’ journey with the Food Innovation Centre (FIC), consistenly evolving and pushing the boundaries of plant-based excellence.
Working with the University of Nottingham was an absolute game-changer for our grant application process. We've worked with the FIC for a couple of years, and when the IUK call came out and we needed a UK partner, they were the obvious choice. The entire UoN team provided unwavering support every step of the way from aligning our vision with the grant criteria to bringing together various departments whose expertise would help us achieve project objectives and create a strong proposal. They helped us clarify our proposal in an impactful way, and their guidance on data, formatting, IP, and deadlines ensured our application was polished and professional. What stood out most was their genuine investment in our success—they truly became partners in our journey.
Project brief
The response
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A comprehensive research review was undertaken and disseminated to Jampa’s to bolster the company’s understanding of their specific food system and the key ingredients that may provide effective functionality in textural optimisation.
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Jampa’s were introduced to direct contacts at key ingredient suppliers working within the plant-based space, providing invaluable guidance as to compatible ingredient selection, availability, and process integration.
- A development day was held in the Food Processing Facility at the University of Nottingham, trialling the impact of specific key ingredients and processing modifications on the Jampa’s product. Following which, product texture optimisation was achieved via a set of further development trials and joint tastings.
- The Food Innovation Team continue to support Jampa’s as they advance towards product excellence across their portfolio.
Benefit to the business
Following a synergistic transfer of knowledge from the Jampa’s production process to the scientific understandings offered by the Food Innovation Centre and invaluable input from specialised ingredient manufacturers, this project has supported Jampa’s on their journey to delivering product excellence within the plant-based product category.
In addition to aiding the textural optimisation of the Jampa’s product, simultaneous process modifications helped to simplify the ultimate manufacturing process and aid production efficiency.
Finally, the project has rapidly expanded the companies knowledge of the fundamental interactions occurring within their food product systems and the associated impact of incorporating key ingredient types and processing methods on them. Ultimately, allowing the company to utilise ingredients and process methodology as tools to enhance their product excellence.
It has been a pleasure to work with Annie Blissett, Richard Worrall and the Food Innovation Team at the University of Nottingham. Thank you for your brilliant work, we definitely got a result and we look forward to continuing to work together to help drive Jampa’s R&D process, developing plant-based product excellence.
Innovate UK grant
After working with the FIC on texture optimisation of their beef analogue in 2022-23, Jampa’s then went on to support one of our student groups with their NPD modules. Further work with Jampa’s was later carried out with the support of Regional Innovation Funding to enhance the glazing for their plant-based pastries.
Jampa’s then sought to apply for a bilateral Innovate UK grant in collaboration with Protein Industries Canada. Our technologists, Kavya and Alice, worked with the team at Jampa’s, alongside colleagues from Research & Innovation and IP commercialisation for several months, to develop a successful application. In 2024, the bid was successful, and the University of Nottingham secured £300,000 in funding from Innovate UK to support Jampa’s’ product objectives across three separate departments.
The Innovate UK project will focus on reformulating Jampa’s’ current plant-based beef analogue by incorporating local and valorised crops that have strong potential in both the UK and Canadian markets. The FIC is leading the product design and development for this initiative.
The project focuses on enhancing nutritional value, by placing a strong emphasis on delivering nutritious plant-based products with high nutrient bioavailability and digestibility. This will be achieved at the University’s Nutritional Composition and Digestibility lab, where the team will employ advanced in vitro gastrointestinal digestion techniques, combined with cutting-edge mass spectrometry, to evaluate protein and amino acid digestibility.
The products will then be subjected to rigorous taste tests with consumers to ensure they are optimised to the highest standards by experts at the Sensory Science Centre. The team will collaborate closely with the innovative packaging designers at Jampa’s to create a seamless connection with its consumers, ensuring the product’s qualities are communicated clearly and effectively.