FAST-IP — Food and Agriculture Sustainable Technology Innovation Programme

FAST-IP/27 Cohort

Funds agrifood professionals developing market-ready sustainable agriculture and food technology solutions.

FAST-IP (Food and Agriculture Sustainable Technology Innovation Programme) is a specialist agrifood innovation programme delivered by NovaUCD and the UCD School of Biosystems and Food Engineering in partnership with Teagasc, Ireland's Agriculture and Food Development Authority. The programme is co-funded by the Government of Ireland and the European Union through the ERDF Southern, Eastern & Midland Regional Programme 2021–2027 under the Innovators' Initiative. It aims to enable innovation-curious professionals to develop market-ready agrifood business solutions through immersive, needs-led learning.

The 2026/27 FAST-IP cohort commences in September 2026, and applications are currently open via frsrecruitment.com. Each accepted participant receives a tax-free personal scholarship of €38,000 plus programme fees of €9,000 covered, making the total financial package worth €47,000 per participant. The programme is structured as a 12-month, in-person Graduate Diploma. It is open to mid-career professionals with three to five years of relevant experience in agriculture, food, IT, sustainability, finance, engineering, or science, who must demonstrate entrepreneurial drive and a desire to start their own agrifood business. Participants gain access to co-working space at the AgTechUCD Innovation Centre, dedicated mentors and coaches, and Teagasc's Signpost Farm Network and research infrastructure.

The FAST-IP selection timeline runs from February through May, with information webinars, selection days, and offers made before the August formal UCD admission process. Graduates from prior cohorts have achieved enterprise-level outcomes: in May 2026, two FAST-IP sustainable agriculture projects — BiCO and Mehal — were awarded a combined €1.2 million in Enterprise Ireland Commercialisation Funding, illustrating the pathway from programme completion to commercial scale-up.