NTIBIF

Choosing the right route

NTIBIF runs more than one route, and they are not interchangeable. Match what you need first:

• A Food-Agri or allied sector startup looking to be incubated: the NIFTEM Startup Incubation Programme, N-SIP.
• An individual or venture that mainly needs access to NIFTEM's facilities: the NINE Program, which offers facility access at concessional prices.
• An early-stage food or agri-business startup during an open challenge: a time-bound challenge such as the NIFTEM-K–Nestlé Startup Challenge.

How applications work

The standing programmes open calls for applications from time to time rather than running a permanently open form, so check whether a call is currently open before you apply. The Nestlé challenge is applied for online through NTIBIF's designated portal, with no application fee, and only during its stated application window.

What the Nestlé challenge looks for

• The right registration and stage. Early-stage startups registered under DPIIT as a private limited company, LLP or proprietorship, pre-revenue or early-revenue, and not more than five years old.
• A working MVP or prototype. The challenge is for innovators or teams who already have something to show.
• Technical depth in the team. At least two team members, with at least one who has technical expertise in the food or agri sectors.
• A food or agri-business focus. Startups operating outside the food and agri domains are excluded. International applicants need an Indian entity to partner with.

NTIBIF, the NIFTEM Technology Innovation and Business Incubation Foundation, is the incubation entity affiliated with NIFTEM, the National Institute of Food Technology Entrepreneurship and Management at Kundli. NIFTEM is an Institute of National Importance, and NTIBIF is backed by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries, Government of India. It works from the NIFTEM campus in the HSIIDC Industrial Estate at Kundli, in Sonipat district, Haryana.

NTIBIF supports startups in the food, agri and allied sectors. Rather than a single programme, it runs an incubation programme for Food-Agri ventures, a facility-access programme for individuals and ventures in food and allied sectors, and time-bound challenges run with industry partners. The focus throughout is on food processing and the commercialisation of Food-Agri and allied sector technologies.

How programmes work

The NIFTEM Startup Incubation Programme, N-SIP, is NTIBIF's incubation programme for the Food-Agri and allied sector. It is built to host and nurture startups and to help commercialise Food-Agri and allied sector technologies, and it runs in two phases. The NINE Program, the NIFTEM Innovation and Nurturing Enterprises Program, is a separate route: it gives individuals and ventures in food and allied sectors access to NIFTEM's facilities at concessional prices.

Alongside these standing programmes, NTIBIF runs dated challenges with partners. The most recent is the NIFTEM-K–Nestlé R&D Centre Startup Challenge 2026, a joint initiative with Nestlé R&D Centre India to identify and support early-stage startups building scalable, sustainable and market-ready solutions in food and agri-business.

Who can apply

The incubation and facility programmes are open to startups and ventures working in food and allied sectors. The Nestlé challenge sets out detailed eligibility: early-stage startups registered as private limited companies, LLPs or proprietorships under DPIIT; innovators or teams with an MVP or prototype; a team of at least two members, with at least one holding technical expertise in the food or agri sectors; and pre-revenue or early-revenue startups not more than five years old. It is open to Indian nationals and residents, while international applicants must partner with an Indian entity. Startups working outside the food and agri domains are excluded.

How to apply

For the Nestlé challenge, applications are made online through NTIBIF's designated portal, with no application fee, during the stated application window. For the standing programmes, NTIBIF opens calls for applications from time to time, and provides a contact route on its site for ventures that want to apply or learn more.

Who runs it

NTIBIF is the incubation foundation of NIFTEM Kundli, an Institute of National Importance, and is backed by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries, Government of India.