The road out of Reading gets quieter than you expect. On a Tuesday morning we drove past the last retail parks and into farmland until the satnav delivered us to an unmarked gate. Behind it: large white glasshouses, a small container, which later turned out to be an on-site laboratory, a small office, and a very cheerful Dr Andrew Daymond walking out to meet us.

We began with coffee and a video call. Hanne Volpin, co-founder of Celleste Bio and a fellow COCO-AI partner, joined on screen to work through what we had come for: exactly which cocoa material the project needs to start the cocoa plant cell cultures. For plant cell culture the answer is more specific than “a pod”. Developmental stage governs how readily tissue will establish as a culture, so a pod harvested too early or too late could impact the entire project.

Then we were scanned and cleared to enter the greenhouses. Biosecurity here runs in an unusual direction. Nothing on site threatens us; but we might threaten the plants if we would have been traveling in areas harbouring cocoa diseases in the recent past.

Inside, a fast green jungle of impressively looking cocoa plants awaits us. Cocoa arrives from every corner of the cocoa-growing world, selected for disease resistance, yield or bean quality, and each accession spends two years under visual inspection and molecular virus indexing before it can be released. The International Cocoa Quarantine Centre, Reading has done this since 1985, from a compartmentalised, environmentally controlled glasshouse of around 1,000 square metres. Its temperate siting is a design decision, not a convenience: no cocoa pest or disease in the surrounding fields can get in. Cleared material has gone out to more than thirty countries, usually as budwood for grafting.

Andrew walked us down rows of automatically irrigated pots, past plants that have been here for decades, and showed us how new ones are raised by budding onto seedling rootstock. He also offered the detail that stayed with us: cocoa leaves emerge thin, translucent and red, hanging limp, before hardening into the glossy green the trees are known for. With Hanne still on the call, we went plant by plant, working out which pods would reach the right stage and when.

Standing outside afterwards in an unreasonable British summer heat, the significance settled in. Most of the world’s cocoa comes from West Africa, from smallholders, on a crop vulnerable to diseases that can take out plantations at a stroke. Better varieties have to move between countries, and moving them carelessly exports the disease along with the solution. This quiet site is why that exchange can happen at all, and with expanded facilities it could support far more: genetic diversity, disease resistance, diagnostics for latent infection, climate resilience.

For COCO-AI, it connected cells in a bioreactor to a real tree in a real pot, with a name, an origin, a two-year wait behind it and a lot of knowledgeable attention from Dr Andrew Daymond.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — 29 June 2026

A €6.3M Horizon Europe project pairing artificial intelligence with plant cell culture to build a platform for producing high-value natural ingredients without farmland, starting with cocoa, one of the world’s most valuable and most vulnerable crops.

Cocoa’s crisis is a warning for Europe’s ingredient supply

AACHEN, Germany – Launching Horizon Europe Project COCO-AI

• Combines plant cell culture and AI to produce cocoa ingredients in bioreactors.
• Develops a platform that can be applied to many high-value plant ingredients beyond cocoa.
• Brings together nine international partners to advance resilient and sustainable ingredient production.

Many of the natural ingredients Europe relies on, from flavours to health compounds, come from plants grown in distant regions under increasing pressure. Climate change, fragile supply chains and the environmental cost of agriculture make this dependence increasingly risky.

Cocoa is a striking example: extreme weather, disease and falling yields have driven sharp price rises and growing concerns about long-term supply.

“Cocoa sits at the intersection of climate risk, geopolitical fragility, and surging global demand,” said Dr Dario Breitel, CTO of Kokomodo, one of two cocoa-focused plant cell culture companies in the consortium. “Our platform enables consistent, high-quality cocoa ingredients produced independently of tropical supply chains, helping manufacturers and policymakers strengthen food security and supply resilience as traditional production faces mounting pressure.”

There is a promising alternative. Instead of growing whole plants in fields, scientists can grow plant cells directly in bioreactors, large tanks similar to those used for brewing beer. This approach uses far less land and water and can be done anywhere.

Using AI to grow cocoa without the tree

Growing plant cells successfully requires balancing many variables, including nutrients, temperature, timing, light and the cells’ own biology. Together, these generate far more data than any researcher can analyse intuitively.

COCO-AI uses artificial intelligence as a research assistant, helping scientists identify patterns, understand how growing conditions affect cell performance and prioritise the most promising experiments. Rather than replacing researchers, the AI supports better decisions and helps accelerate the development of efficient production processes.

The platform will be demonstrated using cocoa while also being tested on eight additional high-value plant species, including grape, oat and medicinal plants.

From one crop to a platform for European bio-manufacturing

Although cocoa is the demonstrator, the project’s ambition extends far beyond chocolate. COCO-AI aims to establish a platform that can help Europe produce a wide range of high-value natural ingredients more sustainably and with greater supply resilience.

The project will strengthen Europe’s bio-manufacturing capabilities by reducing dependence on vulnerable global supply chains, lowering barriers for companies entering plant cell culture, and developing technologies that are openly shared with the wider research and industrial community. By producing natural compounds with significantly less land and water than conventional agriculture, it also supports Europe’s broader bioeconomy and sustainability ambitions.

“By bringing together partners from multiple regions with complementary expertise, COCO-AI is designed to have global impact well beyond cocoa alone,” said Dr Stefan Rasche, co-leading the project at Fraunhofer IME.

About the project

The project grew out of the Plant Cell Institute, a global community founded to connect researchers and industry working to advance plant cell culture. It was within this community that the future COCO-AI partners first met, identified shared challenges, and laid the foundations for a collaborative project long before COCO-AI officially began.

Building on this foundation, the consortium is coordinated by Fraunhofer IME (Germany), which brings together nine partners across Europe, Israel, Canada and the Republic of Korea to deliver the project. Together, they combine expertise in plant biology, artificial intelligence, industrial scale-up, food science, sustainability, regulation, consumer research and commercialisation, creating an integrated innovation pipeline from cell discovery to market-ready products.

“Beyond cocoa, our ambition is to support the growth of the plant cell culture industry as a whole,” said Dr Philippe Jutras, founder of the Plant Cell Institute, the project’s dissemination partner.

COCO-AI is a research and innovation project funded by the European Union under the Horizon Europe programme (Grant Agreement No. 101290497). The Website is maintained and operated on behalf of the COCO-AI consortium by Aberland World Service Ltd (“Aberland”). Content published on the Website is provided by or on behalf of the COCO-AI consortium.

By accessing or using the Website, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree with them, please do not use the Website.

1. Purpose of the Website

The Website provides information about COCO-AI, including its objectives, research activities, consortium, progress, results, publications, events and other project-related activities and outputs.

The Website also provides a means to contact the project and express interest in its activities.

The Website and its content are provided for general informational purposes. They do not constitute scientific, technical, regulatory, legal, investment, commercial or other professional advice.

2. Research in Progress

COCO-AI is an ongoing research and innovation project running from 2026 to 2030. Information published on the Website may therefore describe research in progress, project objectives, targets, expected results or activities that have not yet been completed.

Such information should not be interpreted as a guarantee that a particular scientific, technical, commercial or other outcome will be achieved.

The consortium seeks to ensure that information published on the Website is accurate and up to date. However, research findings, project plans and other information may evolve as the project progresses. Content may therefore be corrected, updated, expanded or withdrawn where appropriate.

3. Intellectual Property

Unless otherwise indicated, content published on the Website, including text, graphics, photographs, illustrations, videos, website materials and the COCO-AI visual identity, is owned by or used with permission on behalf of the COCO-AI consortium and is protected by applicable intellectual property laws.

Partner names, logos and trademarks remain the property of their respective organisations. Their appearance on the Website does not grant any right to use them without the permission of the relevant owner.

You may access and use Website content for personal, informational and other lawful non-commercial purposes. You may not reproduce, modify, distribute or commercially exploit protected Website content without the permission of the relevant rights holder, except where permitted by law or where the content has expressly been made available under a separate licence.

4. Open Project Outputs

Certain outputs of COCO-AI may be made publicly available for reuse, including software, datasets, publications, methods, protocols or other research outputs.

Where an output is released under an open-source, Creative Commons, open-data or other specific licence, the terms of that licence apply to the relevant output and take precedence over these Terms in relation to its use.

Users are responsible for reviewing and complying with the licence, attribution requirements and any other conditions accompanying individual project outputs.

The availability of material through the Website should not, by itself, be interpreted as granting an open licence. Where applicable, licensing information will be provided with the relevant output.

5. Acceptable Use

You may use the Website only for lawful purposes.

You must not knowingly:

• interfere with the operation, security or availability of the Website;
• attempt to gain unauthorised access to the Website or its underlying systems;
• introduce malicious software or other harmful material;
• use automated methods to access or extract Website content in a manner that places an unreasonable burden on the Website or infringes applicable rights; or
• use Website content in a manner that infringes intellectual property rights or other applicable laws.

6. Contact and Get Involved Forms

The Website may allow you to submit enquiries or expressions of interest through contact forms.

Submitting a form does not create a contractual, partnership, consortium, advisory or other professional relationship with COCO-AI, Aberland, Fraunhofer IME or any consortium partner, nor does it guarantee a response or opportunity to collaborate with the project.

Personal information submitted through these forms is handled in accordance with the Website’s Privacy Policy.

7. External Links

The Website may contain links to websites, publications, repositories, social media platforms and other resources operated by third parties, including COCO-AI consortium partners.

These links are provided for information and convenience. Unless expressly stated otherwise, the COCO-AI consortium does not control third-party websites and is not responsible for their availability, content, security, privacy practices or terms of use.

A link from the Website does not necessarily constitute endorsement of the third party or all information, products or services available through that website.

Users should review the applicable terms and privacy policies when visiting external websites.

8. Availability and Liability

The consortium and Aberland seek to maintain the Website and provide reliable information but do not guarantee that the Website will always be available, uninterrupted, error-free or free from harmful components.

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, the COCO-AI consortium, its partners and Aberland shall not be liable for losses or damages arising from reliance on information published on the Website, use or inability to use the Website, or use of third-party websites accessed through it.

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability where such exclusion or limitation would be prohibited by applicable law.

9. Privacy and Cookies

Personal data collected through the Website is processed in accordance with the COCO-AI Privacy Policy.

Information about cookies, analytics technologies and similar technologies used on the Website, including Vercel Analytics where applicable, is provided in the Cookie Policy.

10. Changes to the Website and These Terms

The Website and its content may be updated as COCO-AI progresses.

These Terms may also be revised where necessary to reflect changes to the Website, project activities, applicable law or other relevant circumstances.

The date of the latest revision will be indicated at the top of this page. Continued use of the Website following an update constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

11. Governing Law and Jurisdiction

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Belgium.

Any dispute arising in connection with these Terms or use of the Website shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the competent courts of Brussels, Belgium, subject to any mandatory provisions of applicable law.

12. Contact

For general enquiries about COCO-AI:

COCO-AI@aberlandworld.com

The Website is maintained and operated on behalf of the consortium by:

Aberland World Service Ltd
Oxford, United Kingdom

For legal matters concerning the COCO-AI project, please contact the project coordinator:

Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology IME
Aachen, Germany

COCO-AI is a research and innovation project funded by the European Union under the Horizon Europe programme (Grant Agreement No. 101290497).

The Website is maintained and operated on behalf of the COCO-AI consortium by Aberland World Service Ltd (“Aberland”). For personal information collected through the Website, Aberland World Service Ltd acts as the data controller.

We process personal information in accordance with applicable data protection law, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation (“UK GDPR”), the Data Protection Act 2018 and, where applicable, the EU General Data Protection Regulation (“EU GDPR”).

1. Information we collect

We collect personal information when you choose to provide it to us or when limited technical information is generated through your use of the Website.

Information you provide

When you contact COCO-AI or submit a Get Involved form, we may collect:

• your first and last name;
• email address;
• organisation;
• job title; and
• any information you choose to include in your message.

Please do not include sensitive personal information in free-text fields unless it is necessary for your enquiry.

If a newsletter is introduced, we may also collect your name, email address and communication preferences when you choose to subscribe.

Website and analytics information

We use Vercel to deploy and operate the Website and use Vercel Analytics to understand how the Website is used.

Depending on the services and technical configuration in use, Vercel may process technical and usage information associated with visits to the Website. This may include information relating to requests, devices, browsers and interactions with the Website.

We use this information to operate, secure and improve the Website and to understand its overall use.

Further information about cookies and similar technologies is provided in our Cookie Policy.

2. How and why we use your information

We only use personal information where we have a lawful basis to do so.

Our legitimate interests include communicating with people and organisations interested in COCO-AI, managing project-related enquiries, operating the Website effectively and understanding how it is used.

Where we rely on legitimate interests, we consider those interests against your rights and reasonable expectations.

Where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw that consent at any time.

3. Contact and Get Involved enquiries

Information submitted through the Website is received and managed by Aberland.

Form submissions may be stored on systems operated by Aberland or by service providers acting on our behalf, such as form-management or customer-relationship-management platforms. These may include services such as Typeform or HubSpot where they are used for the relevant form or workflow.

Information may also be processed through Google Workspace, which hosts the COCO-AI project email account used by Aberland.

Where your enquiry relates to the work or expertise of another COCO-AI consortium partner, we may share relevant information with that partner where reasonably necessary to respond to your enquiry or facilitate the requested interaction.

We will not sell personal information collected through the Website.

4. Newsletter and project communications

COCO-AI may offer the option to subscribe to project news and updates.

If you choose to subscribe, we will use the contact details you provide to send those communications. Newsletter subscriptions will be voluntary and based on your consent.

You will be able to withdraw your consent and unsubscribe from these communications at any time using the unsubscribe mechanism provided or by contacting us.

We will update this Privacy Policy as necessary when newsletter functionality is introduced, including information about any service provider used to manage subscriptions or distribute communications.

5. Who we share information with

We may share personal information where necessary with:

• COCO-AI consortium partners, where relevant to an enquiry or project activity;
• service providers acting on our behalf, including providers of website infrastructure, analytics, email, form-management, data-storage and customer-relationship-management services;
• professional advisers where reasonably necessary; and
• public authorities, regulators or other parties where disclosure is required by law.

Service providers processing personal information on our behalf are expected to process it only for the relevant purpose and subject to appropriate data-protection arrangements.

The COCO-AI consortium includes organisations in several countries. Personal information will only be shared with consortium partners where there is an appropriate reason to do so.

6. International transfers

Some of the organisations and service providers involved in operating the Website or responding to project enquiries are located outside the United Kingdom or European Economic Area.

COCO-AI also includes consortium partners in countries outside the UK and EEA. Where appropriate, an enquiry may therefore need to be shared with a relevant consortium partner in another country.

Where personal information is transferred internationally, we take steps to ensure that the transfer complies with applicable data protection law. Depending on the destination and circumstances, these safeguards may include an applicable adequacy decision, the European Commission’s Standard Contractual Clauses, the UK International Data Transfer Addendum or other legally recognised transfer mechanisms.

Vercel’s current data-processing terms, for example, provide for international processing and incorporate mechanisms for transfers of personal data protected by EU and UK data-protection law.

7. How long we keep your information

Personal information submitted through general contact and Get Involved forms will normally be retained for up to 12 months after the enquiry has been resolved, unless there is a legitimate reason or legal requirement to retain it for longer.

Information that becomes part of an ongoing project relationship, collaboration or contractual matter may be retained for longer where necessary for that purpose and in accordance with applicable retention requirements.

Newsletter information, if this service is introduced, will normally be retained until you unsubscribe or withdraw your consent, subject to any limited retention necessary to record and respect that request.

Technical and analytics information is retained according to the applicable service configuration and retention periods.

8. Your data protection rights

Depending on where you are located and the circumstances of the processing, you may have rights under the UK GDPR, EU GDPR or other applicable data protection laws.

These may include the right to:

• access personal information we hold about you;
• correct inaccurate or incomplete information;
• request deletion of your personal information;
• restrict how your information is processed;
• object to certain processing, including processing based on legitimate interests;
• receive or transfer certain information in a portable format where the right to data portability applies; and
• withdraw consent at any time where processing is based on your consent.

These rights are subject to the conditions and exceptions provided by applicable law.

To exercise your rights, contact:

COCO-AI@aberlandworld.com

We may need to verify your identity before acting on a request.

You also have the right to raise a concern with the relevant data protection supervisory authority. As Aberland World Service Ltd is established in the United Kingdom, you may contact the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). Individuals in the EEA may also have the right to contact the data protection authority in their country of residence, work or where an alleged infringement occurred.

9. Security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against accidental or unlawful loss, misuse, alteration, unauthorised access or disclosure.

However, no website, electronic transmission or information-storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

10. External websites

The Website may contain links to websites and services operated by third parties, including consortium partners, research repositories, social media platforms and other external resources.

This Privacy Policy applies only to personal information processed by Aberland through the COCO-AI Website. External websites and services have their own privacy practices, and we encourage you to review their privacy notices when leaving the Website.

11. Cookies and similar technologies

The Website may use cookies or similar technologies where necessary for its operation, analytics or other functionality.

Information about the technologies currently used, their purposes and any choices available to you is provided in our Cookie Policy.

Where applicable law requires consent before a particular cookie or similar technology is used, we will seek that consent before activating it.

12. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy as the Website and COCO-AI project develop, including when new website functionality or communication services are introduced.

Any revised version will be published on this page and the Last updated date will be changed accordingly.

Where a change materially affects how we process personal information, we will take additional steps to provide notice where required by law.

13. Contact us

For questions about this Privacy Policy, our use of your personal information, or to exercise your data protection rights, contact:

COCO-AI@aberlandworld.com

Data controller:

Aberland World Service Ltd
Oxford, United Kingdom