About the Youth Food Lab

The Youth Food Lab is the latest addition to the WFF Innovation Lab and has been created in partnership with Wageningen University & Research (WUR) and International Association of Students in Agriculture and Related Sciences (IAAS). The Youth Food Lab provides a platform for teams of young innovators, researchers, and entrepreneurs to transfer their idea-stage solutions into a real business model.

Through capacity development, the YFL supports young innovators to bring their proposals to reality, helping them access the right tools and networks to move from idea to impact and scale the solutions they are developing.

Objectives and goals

The Youth Food Lab identifies, supports and scales high-potential solutions to transform agrifood systems worldwide. The mission of this project is to elevate young innovators from all backgrounds and countries of the world, to nurture their innovative, high-potential ideas to transform agrifood systems into sustainable business models.

Through capacity development, hands-on support, mentorship, networking and matchmaking with investors, the YFL will select and support disruptive innovations so they may reach their full potential and drive the change we need to achieve a better food future.

Three reasons to join the Youth Food Lab

• Capacity Development: Participants will receive training to better understand the agrifood systems value chain and to support the ideation, development and scaling of solutions and projects. In addition, participants will receive pitch and presentation training to present their project during the World Food Forum flagship event, gaining visibility and reaching a large global audience.
• Mentorship: Participants will receive mentorship and hands-on support from experts in the field to turn their ideas into sustainable business models.
• Networking: Participants of all Incubator phases will be able to join the WFF Innovation Network, a community of practice among participants, mentors, partners, funders and other global leaders and organizations. The network will provide long-term support, training, connections, learning experiences, intergenerational mentoring, exchange and opportunities.

Meet the 2023-24 Youth Food Lab Cohort

Meet the 2023 Youth Food Lab Mentors

Meet the 2023 Youth Food Lab Facilitators