Deadline: June 20, 2026
Applications are open for the UN FAO Global AgriInno Challenge (GAC) 2026. The challenge is an international call for startups, agripreneurs, researchers, and innovation teams developing solutions for more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient agrifood systems.
Co-organized by the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Zhejiang University, and Pinduoduo, GAC has established itself as one of the leading global platforms for youth-led agrifood innovation, fostering connections among emerging innovators, international experts, investors, policymakers, and technical partners.
The 2026 edition focuses on Small Island Developing States (SIDS) – regions particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change, food insecurity, geographic isolation, and limited innovation ecosystems, yet often overlooked in global investment and technology landscapes.
Challenge Themes
GAC 2026 challenges innovators to develop or scale digital solutions for resilient blue and green agrifood systems that are grounded in the realities of island life, responsive to climate pressures, and capable of transforming outcomes at the community level.
All solutions must address at least one of four pillars critical to SIDS resilience:
- Better Production: Addressing limited arable land, fragmented supply chains, high food-import dependency, and climate pressures on agriculture and fisheries.
- Better Nutrition: Tackling the double burden of malnutrition – rising obesity and diet-related NCDs – alongside limited access to affordable, healthy diets.
- Better Enviroment: Protecting vulnerable SIDS ecosystems – forests, coral reefs, and coastal systems – from climate change, biodiversity loss, and degradation.
- Better Life: Overcoming geographic isolation, limited economic opportunity, and high youth unemployment to foster inclusive rural development.
Benefits
- Full Travel Packages
- Round Trip flights
- Accommodation & meals
- Local Transportation
- Visa application fees
- Expert Coaching
- 2-Day workshops
- UN & academic mentorship
- Investor matchmaking
- Long-term Visibility
- FAO official channels
- Alumni network access
- Forum showcasing
- Caribbean & Pacific events
Top 3 Winners Receive:
- Seed funding
- FAO Science & Innovation Forum exhibition slot
- Digital agriculture Innovation Bootcamp in China
Eligibility
Applications are open to agripreneurs and innovation teams worldwide. To be eligible, applicants must:
- Be registered as a company or legal entity.
- Have less than $1,000,000 in annual turnover.
- Have less than 5 years of operations.
- Have a technology-based solution or business model at Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 7-9, with evidence of post-MVP stage.
- Have at least one team leader below 35 years of age.
- Selected teams must commit to continuous engagement throughout the entire duration of the programme, including the Innovation for Good workshops, Global Final Pitch event in Hangzhou (August 2026), and potential showcase at the FAO Science and Innovation Forum in Rome (October 2026)
- Teams with female agripreneurs are strongly encouraged to apply.
- Have a solution that directly addresses agrifood challenges in SIDS, or that has already been piloted or deployed in a SIDS context.
- Teams based outside SIDS are fully eligible. However, teams originating from or led by individuals from a SIDS will be given preference in the evaluation process.
- Each applicant can submit only one application, and we will only consider the final submission as team’s application
Application
For more information, visit UN FAO Global AgriInno Challenge.
