EQUI-NOM LTD

Their core work

EQUI-NOM LTD is the EU legal entity of Equinom, an Israeli agri-tech SME that has built a proprietary computational breeding platform to engineer crops with precisely controlled nutritional profiles — most notably high-protein seeds such as sesame, soy, and pea. Rather than relying on conventional trial-and-error plant breeding, they use data science and predictive modeling to select and develop varieties that meet industrial food ingredient specifications, dramatically compressing development timelines. In H2020, they first validated this platform through the SME Instrument before contributing their breeding capabilities as a specialist partner in the large-scale SMART PROTEIN project, which targets the development of viable alternative protein sources for European food systems. Their commercial value lies at the intersection of agricultural genetics and food ingredient supply: producing raw crop material with guaranteed performance for plant-based product manufacturers.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

With only two projects covering a single year of project starts (2019-2020), the evolution is narrow but meaningful. Their first EU engagement (ECBS, 2019) was entirely inward-looking: an SME Instrument feasibility project focused on validating and commercializing their own computational breeding platform, with no reported application-domain keywords. By 2020 they shifted outward, embedding their technology inside a 33-partner, multi-year Innovation Action (SMART PROTEIN) that applies breeding capabilities to the alternative protein supply chain — moving from platform validation to demonstrated real-world impact in the food system. The trajectory points clearly toward becoming a recognized ingredient-side player in the protein transition, not just a technology vendor.

EQUI-NOM is transitioning from proprietary-technology validation toward becoming an embedded specialist in European alternative protein consortia, positioning their breeding platform as infrastructure for the food system's protein shift.

How they like to work

EQUI-NOM has operated in two distinct modes across just two projects: independent coordinator (ECBS, where they led their own SME Instrument project) and embedded specialist (SMART PROTEIN, where they joined a large 33-partner consortium as a targeted contributor). Their disproportionately large partner network — 33 partners and 13 countries from 2 projects — is almost entirely a product of joining the SMART PROTEIN mega-consortium rather than building their own network over time. This tells you they are comfortable joining established collaborative structures and contributing a well-defined technical capability, rather than orchestrating large projects themselves.

Their collaboration network spans 33 unique partners across 13 countries, a figure that reflects their participation in the broad pan-European SMART PROTEIN consortium rather than years of independent network-building. There is no evidence of repeated partner relationships given their two-project history.

What sets them apart

EQUI-NOM occupies a rare niche as an Israeli technology SME — one of very few non-EU partners — bringing a proprietary, data-driven breeding platform into European food and agriculture research consortia. Unlike academic plant science groups, they are IP owners with a commercial product pipeline, which means collaboration with them potentially unlocks access to improved crop varieties rather than just research outputs. For consortium builders targeting the protein transition, they offer something specific: the ability to engineer the crop raw material itself, not just process or formulate what already exists.

Highlights from their portfolio

• SMART PROTEIN
  Their largest project by funding (EUR 143,325) and scope — a 2020-2024 Innovation Action that directly aligns computational breeding with the EU's protein diversification agenda, embedding EQUI-NOM in a 33-partner European network.
• ECBS
  The only project where they led as coordinator, using the SME Instrument to validate their proprietary computational breeding platform — the foundation technology behind all their subsequent EU engagement.