Feike Sijbesma Sustainable Innovation Award

From 2023 onwards, the Feike Sijbesma Sustainable Innovation Award has become a part of the F&A Next Heroes programme. To apply to the Feike Sijbesma Sustainable Innovation Award, please apply for F&A Next Heroes. If you are selected as one of the 10 ‘Next Heroes in Food & Agtech 2025’, you automatically enter the competition for the Feike Sijbesma Sustainable Innovation Award 2025. In 2025, for the first time, not one but two Next Heroes stand a chance to win the award and €12,500. The jury chooses one winner in the Pre-Seed/Seed stage category and one winner in the Series A/B stage category.

Go to F&A Next Heroes

About F&A Next Heroes

F&A Next is all about innovation and connecting game changing Food & Agri tech startups and scale-ups to dedicated investors and innovative corporates. Aside from the many network opportunities that are offered throughout the event, F&A Next offers the 10 most promising agrifoodtech startups a special opportunity to take the stage at the event and present themselves to the entire audience as ‘Next Heroes in Food & Agtech’. A great opportunity since our audience consist of an international and influential group of key stakeholders in the industry, including many investors, corporates and media. 

At the tenth edition of F&A Next, Agrobiomics and Vivici were announced as the winners of the Feike Sijbesma Sustainable Innovation Award 2025. Agrobiomics harnesses the power of nature to make agriculture more resilient to climate change. Vivici develops sustainable dairy proteins through precision fermentation without animal sources. The winners both received a prize of €12,500.

During the 9th F&A Next summit, Jord BioScience was crowned winner of the Feike Sijbesma Sustainable Innovation Award 2024, which includes a €25,000 grant prize. This prestigious award recognizes Jord BioScience’s innovative microbial technologies enhancing crop productivity. According to the jury, the startup company stood out for its potential significant impact in the agri-food system and the benefits for its customers.

Orbisk’s automatic food waste monitor has won the Feike Sijbesma Sustainable Innovation Award 2023. The award-winning business developed technology that monitors the waste in professional kitchens. An AI camera identifies the weight and type of food that is discarded.

The Slovakian startup ekolive was announced as the winner in the first edition of the Feike Sijbesma Sustainable Innovation Award 2022 and was awarded with € 25,000. They convinced the jury with their interdisciplinary biotechnological approach to clean contaminated and regenerate depleted soil, and use the byproduct of this process as an organic biostimulant in agriculture. This opens up new sources of raw materials for industrial minerals and returns used raw materials to the value cycle, while also increasing production and nutritional value in agriculture with the byproduct.

The Feike Sijbesma Sustainable Innovation Award recognizes innovative initiatives, younger than 7 years, which focus on addressing global food system challenges related to the environment with the potential to deliver transformation at scale for as many people as possible. The Award is made possible by the DSM-Firmenich Progress Foundation and was a gift to Feike Sijbesma when he resigned as CEO of DSM.

Teams of entrepreneurs and innovators, of spin offs, start-ups, or internal startups of established companies, however less than 7 years, in the field of sustainable climate related food systems can apply. Also spin offs or individuals that are not from- or not connected to WUR are eligible to participate in the Award. The recipients can be in the Netherlands, Europe or globally.

Feike Sijbesma was CEO of Royal DSM for nearly 13 years and transformed Royal DSM from a bulk-chemical company into a global leading Life Sciences & Materials Sciences company, focusing on nutrition (food), health and sustainable living (a.o. green energy). At DSM sustainability and innovation is not only a key responsibility but also a core value and a main business driver. DSM became a clear purpose driven company, being financially successful and doing well (450% Total Shareholder Return) by addressing the UN SDG’s and doing good for the world. Feike is a strong advocate for inclusion and diversity as well.

Since early 2020, Feike Sijbesma transitioned to the role of Honorary Chairman of Royal DSM of which he has been CEO between 2007 and 2020. Feike sits on a variety of Boards, as Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Royal Philips, as non-executive board member of Unilever and as member of the Supervisory Board of the Dutch Central Bank. Feike is co-chair, together with Ban Ki-Moon, of the Global Center on Adaptation. He is Climate Leader of the World Bank, focusing on carbon pricing (CPLC). He is member of the Board of Trustees of the World Economic Forum and is heading the CEO Climate Leaders group. He is also member of the Advisory Board of the IMF and Co-chair of the UN Scaling Up Nutrition initiative.

Mr. Sijbesma is a recipient of the Humanitarian of the Year Award & Leaders of Change Award presented by the United Nations; received an honorary doctorate from Maastricht as well as Groningen University, Netherlands; he was listed by Fortune on the World's 50 Greatest Leaders, by Harvard Business Review as one of world’s 100 most successful CEO’s. He also received the Courage to Lead Award from the World Resources Institute. He is married and has 2 boys.