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Category: Alt Protein

  • ‘Capital Preservation’ Key for TiNDLE Foods After Sales Growth with 9x Retail Expansion

    tindle foods
    7 Mins Read

    Plant-based meat maker TiNDLE Foods is keeping tabs on tariffs and the UPF conversation as it builds on revenue growth with retail expansions and prioritises cash reserves.

    It’s never easy to be a business leader, and it feels particularly arduous right now, especially if you work in the food system.

    For plant-based meat companies, the macroeconomic challenges that come with global tariffs are only compounded by investors’ resistance to the category and consumer criticism over ultra-processing.

    “The main thing we’re advising founders is to stay focused on what they can control, which is to keep burn in check and extend runway,” one investor told Green Queen last week.

    It seems like Timo Recker, co-founder and CEO of plant-based food startup TiNDLE Foods, is listening. “Our current priority is on capital preservation and with that, having a clear focus on the growth of our current product portfolio,” he says.

    He’s responding to a question about the barista oat milk that TiNDLE Foods showcased last year, a product that is currently not on the top of the priority list.

    “Our long-term goal is still to accelerate the adoption of more sustainable, plant-based foods all over the world, so we remain focused on growing the business and bringing more customers to the category,” he says.

    Recker is speaking to Green Queen after TiNDLE Foods launched its vegan chicken in over 500 Kroger family stores in the US, marking a ninefold increase in its retail presence stateside over the last 12 months.

    “We were in about 150 grocery stores this time last year, mainly in the Midwest and the Northeast. Today, that coverage spans multiple regions,” he says. “Our footprint today stands at over 1,300 grocery stores, nationwide delivery offerings through e-commerce partners like Hungryroot and Vegan Essentials, and hundreds of foodservice outlets – and that number continues to steadily grow.”

    He adds: “Some of our newest retailers as part of the Kroger Family of Stores [are] located in areas like the Pacific Northwest and California, where we previously only had a foodservice presence.”

    TiNDLE Foods locks focus on core markets

    tindle stuffed chicken
    Courtesy: TiNDLE Foods

    According to Recker, retail is TiNDLE Foods’s most profitable channel, and it’s where the brand has witnessed a steady rise in sales. “We’re seeing great reception to our product range when it comes to flavour, particularly the Stuffed Chicken line,” he says, in reference to its newest product range, which was rolled out in the US last August.

    The entrée comes in parmigiana and tikka masala flavours, and contains over 10g of protein per serving. “It’s a unique offering when compared to some of the other plant-based items on the shelves, largely thanks to the convenience and ease of preparing the products. There’s room to expand the Stuffed Chicken line even further, with additional flavours and through brand partnership opportunities,” he says.

    That said, TiNDLE Foods’s roots lie in the foodservice channel, which offers higher margins than retail, allows it to better understand plant-based consumers, and informs what works or doesn’t work for culinary operations.

    “It’s also a strategic channel when it comes to raising both brand and category awareness – and we’re continuing to prioritise partnerships in foodservice, particularly with like-minded businesses who value quality and taste,” says Recker.

    The startup is not planning any expansions into new countries at this point. “Our focus remains on our priority markets of the US, Germany, and Switzerland – where we currently have the largest retail footprints,” he outlines.

    “These are some of the most substantial and mature markets for plant-based meat sales, where we feel there’s a strategic combination of market need and also potential for growth in our category.”

    Meat-eaters understand why they need to swap out animal protein

    tindle chicken
    Courtesy: TiNDLE Foods

    While Recker hasn’t disclosed the exact increase in revenue for TiNDLE Foods, he feels “confident about our growth in the last year”, especially with the development and reception it’s seen from its retail rollouts in the US.

    Still, the company is an outlier in the wider plant-based meat category, where annual volume sales dropped by 2.3% in 2024, against a 4% increase for conventional meat, according to NielsenIQ. “Retailers are responding to this trend by limiting their offerings of plant-based meats and focusing more on their core meat products,” the market research agency said.

    “Sales on paper for the category have declined year-on-year, but when you look at what’s going on in other areas of the food system, it’s becoming increasingly more important that we produce alternative sources of protein for our population that aren’t fully animal-based,” argues Recker.

    “We’re experiencing record-high prices on the costs of goods, thanks to inflation and other production concerns like the recent bird flu epidemic. It’s clear to us that we need to diversify our sources for healthy and sustainable foods that can keep feeding our growing planet.

    “When we talk to flexitarian and meat-buying consumers today (versus a few years ago), there’s even a better understanding of why they may swap out animal protein for plant-based alternatives every so often – mostly for health concerns. I believe there’s still a need for plant-based meat in our everyday lives and diets, even in the face of waning public excitement.”

    It’s true. While Americans still fail to make the connection between meat and climate change, 48% of them think plant-based foods are healthier than animal proteins, and another 45% want to eat less meat and dairy due to personal health worries.

    UPFs and tariffs front of mind

    timo recker
    Courtesy: TiNDLE Foods

    All that is despite the furore over ultra-processed foods (UPFs), amplified by the arrival of Robert F Kennedy Jr as health secretary. “In some ways, we are responding to consumer needs and listening to the conversation about UPFs,” says Recker.

    “Even before that became a hot topic, we wanted to improve the nutritional benefits of our products – to make them even better than animal meat and other plant-based products,” he adds.

    “We’re looking forward to the feedback and rollout of our Gourmet Chicken line, which features some improvements when it comes to nutrition and ingredient innovation.”

    On the geopolitical front, TiNDLE Foods is “monitoring the tariff changes” in the US, with investors advising companies to either shore up domestic operations or look outward.

    “We’ve always been a flexible company and because we’ve operated in several regions and continents since the very beginning, we’ve had to deal with challenges and uncertainties when it comes to the global supply chain,” says Recker.

    “Our aim is always to bring the best quality and value to our customers, so we plan to keep our pricing for our partners and consumers stable at this time,” he confirms.

    TiNDLE Foods bets on premium vegan chicken

    tindle plant based chicken
    Courtesy: TiNDLE Foods

    For TiNDLE Foods, fundraising isn’t a top priority in 2025. “But we are seeing consolidation efforts and mergers take place in our category that not only help build a stronger business and structure for sustained success, but also make sure we’re not losing sight of our mission,” Recker acknowledges.

    What the company – which has raised over $130M from investors (following a $100M Series A round in 2022) – is focusing on is its R&D capabilities for new product development and rollouts.

    The aforementioned Gourmet Chicken line – featuring premium chicken steaks and bratwursts – comes to mind, having recently been introduced in German supermarkets. The range is built on TiNDLE Foods’s TrueCut tech platform, which delivers a juicy texture with “added improvements in selecting natural, clean ingredients”.

    “We remain committed to using high-quality, non-GMO soy as the primary protein source, but we’ve also made the addition of chlorella algae as a main ingredient,” says Recker. This allows the company to add key nutrients like increased vitamin B12, iron and zinc.

    He adds: “Our aim is to bring the Gourmet products to more and more partners globally, particularly in the US, as we feel it brings a next-level experience when it comes to plant-based protein.”

    Americans in 2025 want more protein, cleaner labels, better-tasting products, and superior nutrition – amid a resurgence of animal proteins, can TiNDLE Foods meet the moment?

    The post ‘Capital Preservation’ Key for TiNDLE Foods After Sales Growth with 9x Retail Expansion appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • What Food Tech Investors Are Telling Startups in the Midst of Trump’s Tariff War

    tariffs food industry
    6 Mins Read

    With all the uncertainties around global tariffs, most industries are in a precarious position, including food tech. Here’s what sector VCs are advising startup founders about the global trade war.

    It’s only mid-April, but ‘tariff’ could already be the word of the year come the end of 2025.

    What began as a campaign promise has quickly turned into global turmoil, as US President Donald Trump levies taxes on most foreign goods, threatening widespread price hikes for consumers and possibly fatal disruptions for many businesses.

    The food tech sector faces threats from several areas. Tariffs on everything from raw materials and produce to equipment are likely to result in greater costs for businesses, which would likely pass that on to the consumer.

    When Trump had announced his initial tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, analysis from lawmakers suggested that these would set American families back up to an extra $2,000 per year due to high food costs.

    But this was before the trade war went global – and it’s a situation that is changing by the day. At the start of this week, these taxes ranged from 10% all the way to 50%. Now, however, the president has made a U-turn, pausing all retaliatory tariffs for 90 days and charging a flat 10% rate – all, that is, except China.

    The unprecedented tariff war has quickly and alarmingly escalated this week, with each country upping their tariffs in retaliation. As things stand, goods imported from China will be charged a 125% tax in the US, while China’s rate for American imports stands at 84%.

    Nothing is certain, and the market volatility is bad news for the food tech sector. Venture capitalists have been cooling on food tech investments over the last few years, and there are fears that the tariffs would drive them further away.

    VCs have highlighted how the trade war between the US and these countries is likely to lower valuations, decrease exits, and give investors pause in terms of deployment – and this would cause a ripple effect on the food tech ecosystem, too.

    So what’s the best course to chart for startup founders in the food tech ecosystem?

    To move or not to move

    fsanz cultured quail
    Courtesy: Vow

    “Luckily, we only have two companies that will most likely tap into the US market,” Matteo Leonardi, investment manager at Italian VC firm Grey Silo Ventures, tells Green Queen. “My advice to them is: as we are dealing with an industry that is already fighting to survive on the slightest of margins – and at industrial scale, let alone at pilot scale – US tariffs could result in a complete erosion of those already-thin margins.”

    This gloomy outlook is shared by many investors. “The sector downturn is likely to last until at least 2026, and the sector will be hurt by volatile capital markets, the likely economic downturn caused by tariffs and a trade war, farm incomes at their lowest level in at least a decade, and the spread of zoological diseases,” writes Adam Bergman, managing director of EcoTech Capital.

    He predicts that the polycrisis will have a profound, lasting impact on the industry. “I expect that over 70% of agtech and food tech companies will either go bankrupt, cease operations, or be liquidated in a fire sale. It is likely that a similar percentage of the capital invested in these companies will never be recouped.”

    This is why Leonardi suggests looking outwards: “It would be best to stay cautious and, if the techno-economic analysis does not allow [you] to bear the extra burden, redirect go-to-market as well as regulation-facing activities to other markets, at least until the situation takes a clearer outlook.”

    Heather Courtney, general partner at Alwyn Capital, concurs. “Don’t overlook exchange rates: they can work for you or against you,” she says. In some cases, producing in a country with a weaker currency and selling into the US can help offset tariffs and preserve margins, so it’s worth factoring currency dynamics into your early strategy. Her firm has invested in the likes of New School Foods, BlueNalu, and Upside Foods.

    “Across the food tech sector, startups need to map what their potential exposure is, and how to adapt for minimum economic impact and maximum potential for the long run,” adds Nadav Berger, founding general partner at Peakbridge, an investor in Standing Ovation, Imagindairy, and Vow. “That might mean moving away from the US as a target market – or instead speeding up the establishment of US operations.”

    Flexibility, foresight, and focus

    upside foods
    Courtesy: Upside Foods

    Steve Simitzis, a partner at Solvable Syndicate, has one key piece of advice: Stay focused on what you can control. This includes keeping cash burn in check and extending the runway.

    This was echoed by Seth Bannon, founding partner of Fifty Years. In an email sent to his firm’s portfolio companies – which include Upside Foods, Meati, Alpine Bio, and Rebellyous Foods – he outlines managing runway as one of his three major recommendations.

    “If possible, get to 18-24 months of cash on hand to weather potential market downturns,” he wrote, adding that founders should consider temporary hiring freezes and cut non-essential spending. “Accelerate your path to profitability to reduce dependency on external capital,” he added.

    Speaking of which, Bannon noted that if the founders are fundraising, they should close the round as soon as possible. “Expect valuations to decline; prepare to accept additional capital under potentially less favourable terms,” he cautioned. “If you’ve had the ability to raise more capital (e.g. maybe your last round was oversubscribed), opt to take more cash.”

    Courtney, meanwhile, encourages a “mindset of flexibility and foresight” for early-stage founders, especially those pre-revenue or just entering the market.

    “You might not be dealing with tariffs directly today, but the choices you make now (about ingredients, co-manufacturers, or go-to-market regions) can either limit or unlock your ability to adapt later. Build with optionality in mind, and wherever possible, ensure that your margins can flex to absorb future shocks,” she says. “And finally, just survive.”

    A sense of déjà vu

    raging pig bratwurst
    Courtesy: The Raging Pig Company

    For some investors, this isn’t unlike previous market disruptions. “Similar to 2008/09, customers may proactively reduce their planned spend on your product or service. Model increases in time to close, decreases in contract value, increases in net payment times,” Bannon says in his email to founders.

    “Founders are already scrambling to close rounds and shore up supply chains. What I’ll say about that is yes, move swiftly, but don’t panic. That’s how bad deals get done,” Simitzis tells Green Queen. Some of the companies under his firm Solvable Syndicate’s portfolio include Omni and The Raging Pig Company.

    “As for uncertainty, haven’t we been here before?” he ponders. “So far in the 2020s, we’ve had Covid-19, [the] Silicon Valley Bank failure, the war on Ukraine, runaway inflation, and now tariffs.”

    His advice? “Find yourself an ‘Only the Paranoid Survive’ embroidered pillow on Etsy and live by it.”

    Peakbridge’s Berger, meanwhile, offers some words of encouragement. “What we’re seeing now isn’t just uncertainty, it’s volatility; and though this is indeed a profound global shock, surviving and thriving in that state is the DNA of a successful startup.”

    He adds: “In any case, the global food supply chain – already deeply flawed and under pressure – is taking another hit, which is also a significant opportunity for smart companies and technologies looking to remake the future food system.”

    The post What Food Tech Investors Are Telling Startups in the Midst of Trump’s Tariff War appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Explainer: What is the Non-UPF Verified Label, and What Do Brands Need to Know?

    non upf
    7 Mins Read

    The Non-GMO Project recently launched a new on-pack certification to help consumers identify ultra-processed foods – here’s what you need to know, and what it means for plant-based meat.

    With ultra-processed foods (UPFs) front of mind for consumers in 2025, one of the US’s most well-known food verification bodies recently rolled out a new label to promote transparency around these products.

    The Non-GMO Project, the organisation behind the Non-GMO label, has introduced a Non-UPF Verified label to “address the pervasive dominance of ultra-processed food”. The badge was launched under the Food Integrity Collective, a group that convenes stakeholders from the natural products sector to “create systemic change in our food system”.

    “We’re really focused on the power of informed choice to create a food system with more integrity,” Megan Westgate, founder and CEO of the Non-GMO Project, told Green Queen in January.

    “And right now, UPF is not sufficiently defined and is generally harder than it should be to identify, so that’s the gap we’re aiming to fill with this new standard and programme.”

    What is the Non-UPF Verified Label?

    non upf label
    Courtesy: Food Integrity Collective/Non-GMO Project

    A survey conducted by the Non-GMO Project last year found that 85% of Americans wanted to avoid UPFs, but felt overwhelmed or unsupported in their desire to do so.

    The Non-UPF standard aims to “provide a clear and enforceable framework for identifying foods that avoid excessive industrial processing and certain manufactured additives”, the organisation said in a webinar last week. It would prohibit ingredients “under investigation for metabolic dysfunction, gut microbiome disruption, and other health concerns”.

    The group explained that the label is designed to set measurable criteria for defining non-UPFs, based on processing methods, “ingredient integrity”, and formulation thresholds. It also aims to offer manufacturers, retailers and consumers a “practical, science-based tool” to navigate today’s complex food landscape, and support innovative producers that prioritise whole, minimally processed ingredients that are feasible for real-world application.

    There is currently a waitlist for companies looking to use the Non-UPF Verified label on their product packaging, with its creators currently working on establishing a clear framework of standards manufacturers would need to meet to qualify for the label.

    The organisation is conducting a pilot this spring and summer with a select group of brands, working on an initial draft of the label to be used with four technical administrators through the trial. “They’ll be working with up to 20 different brands and a variety of products in those brands’ portfolios to pressure-test the standard and give us input,” Westgate said, adding that her team will engage with the public for input over this period too (though a formal consultation won’t be held until later).

    How was the Non-UPF label developed?

    ultra processed food lawsuit
    Courtesy: Gene J Puskar/AP

    The Non-GMO Project outlined four key considerations that inform its Non-UPF verification standard. The first concerns hyperpalatability. “UPFs are often engineered to override natural satiety signals, leading to overconsumption and increased risk of obesity and metabolic disorders,” it said in the webinar.

    The second factor revolves around food structure and imbalance, since UPFs are often developed in a way that disconnects texture, flavour and nutrient delivery from whole-food formats, resulting in significantly different compositions.

    “Some of that comes into the way that flavourings are used, which also relates to hyperpalatability,” Westgate explained. “The food matrices are eroded, and the body is confused.”

    Excessive processing is another consideration, with the organisation suggesting that heavy industrial processing alters food structure, reducing the bioavailability of nutrients. “A lot of the times, if we’re just looking at nutrient levels – like a Nutrition Facts panel – that doesn’t really tell us [if this is] actually something that the body can recognise as food?” Westgate described.

    Finally, the Non-UPF Verified label was also designed with the use of isolated ingredients in mind. Additives, emulsifiers, and “ultra-refined ingredients” can modify texture, extend shelf life, and intensify flavour, but they’re “often disconnected from the structure and function of whole foods”.

    What are the proposed guidelines?

    upf free
    Courtesy: Food Integrity Collective/Non-GMO Project

    So how does it plan to implement the certification? “We will have a list of prohibited ingredients. We’re looking to align with things that are banned in the EU… [and] California in recent legislation,” said Westgate.

    The Non-GMO Project is similarly monitoring the lists maintained by Whole Foods Market and PCC Community Markets, detailing ingredients they don’t allow to be included in products sold in their stores. “This feels very similar to where we were at in the early days of Non-GMO,” she said. “It really wakes people up when they find out that there are things in our food that are illegal in other countries.”

    It has also homed in on the concept of nutrient thresholds for formulations, citing studies that link hyperpalatability to foods with combinations of sugar, oil and salt that don’t occur in nature. “There’s pretty robust research suggesting specific thresholds for the amount of those macros in combination with each other. And so the current draft of the standard proposes taking that lens,” noted Westgate.

    The organisation has proposed a classification system for processing to identify how much each method – whether it’s mechanical, chemical, biological, or thermal – breaks down the food matrix, and what its effects are.

    Through the pilot, it’s looking to get insight directly from brands about the types of equipment and processes they’re using to classify what’s permissible, what can be used conditionally, and what would classify as minimally or moderately processed.

    Speaking of which, it outlined a framework for “conditional ingredients”. “We are contemplating an allowance for up to 5% of the finished dry weight of the product [that] could be constituted by what we’re calling micro-ingredients,” said Westgate, referring to ultra-processed ingredients that individually make up just 0.5% of a food item, and are not on the prohibited list.

    What does this all mean for plant-based meat?

    non upf foods
    Graphic by Green Queen Media & Robbie Lockie.

    UPFs have come under heavy scrutiny from US health secretary Robert F Kennedy JR, who has previously vowed to remove them from school lunches. Plant-based meat has been caught in the crossfire, subjected to criticism amid misguided connections of processing with nutrition.

    This is because these products fall under the bottom category of the Nova classification, which groups food by how much they’ve been processed. UPFs comprise industrial formulations and techniques like extrusion or pre-frying, and cosmetic additives and substances deemed to be of little culinary use.

    Despite most meat alternatives being better for human health than the products they intend to replace, they’ve been bundled together with products like Coca-Cola, Oreos, Corn Flakes, and Lay’s. A host of health experts have therefore advocated for nuance when linking UPFs with nutrition, arguing that one has nothing to do with the other.

    When speaking to Green Queen earlier this year, Westgate agreed that “most of the pushback about the correlation between UPFs and nutrition/metabolic health is related to how broad Nova category four is, which is part of what we’re seeking to address”.

    heura cold cuts
    Courtesy: Heura

    So what does the Non-UPF Verified label mean for meat alternatives? It’s a question that came up during the webinar too, pointing out how some additives actually help provide better nutrition than animal products.

    Westgate acknowledged that the plant-based category is certainly attracting “a lot of interest” in this regard, adding that it’s aiming to get representation from all major retail categories in its pilot, which has seen interest from over 170 brands, including those that use vital wheat gluten.

    This includes plant-based alternatives, which would help it learn about “the ways that these products can be created that are not ultra-processed”. “Right now on the market, we have a range of plant-based alternatives – like some of every category, there are definitely things that are ultra-processed and there are examples of things that are not,” explained Westgate

    “For the pilot, we’re really looking at things at brands and product lines where some intent has been there to formulate to avoid ultra processing, even in advance of it being fully defined, so that we can learn from brands. What were you considering? What tradeoffs did you have to make? How did you draw the line?”

    How will plant-based meat fare under the Non-UPF Verified standard? It’s a question that remains top of the list for the organisation.

    The post Explainer: What is the Non-UPF Verified Label, and What Do Brands Need to Know? appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • 5 Minutes with A Future Food VC: Kost Capital’s Bodil Sidén

    bodil siden
    3 Mins Read

    In our interview series, we quiz future food investors about the solutions that excite them the most, their favourite climate-forward restaurant, and what they look for in successful founders.

    Bodil Sidén is a General Partner at Kost Capital.

    What future food technologies most excite you?

    Using machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) to improve scalability and predictability.

    Many novel technologies in food are still too expensive to reach healthy unit economics and scalable business mode. This will be changed with AI and the difference now compared to the first waves of food tech is that food tech companies can be AI-first companies. 

    What are three future food verticals you are actively looking at for 2025?

    1. Functional ingredients that can improve our favourite food.
    2. Digital infrastructure and AI that can take steps towards ‘food as software’.
    3. Food safety and traceability in a world with challenged supply chains.

    What do you consider the food tech sector’s greatest achievement in the past five years?

    Initiating a market. Everything will happen in the coming five to 10 years, because it’s important and it’s urgent. And it would have been a lot harder without the first waves of food tech’s incredible effort to develop and apply the technology that sets the foundation of how we will develop the future of food. 

    If you could wave a magic wand, how would you fix plant-based meat?

    Better, clean, nutritious inputs that can improve texture and flavour.

    What’s the top trait you look for in a founder?

    Impatience.

    The One That Got Away: What is the deal you wish you had gotten into, but didn’t?

    I think Planted is doing a super cool job with taste, texture and mouthfeel, and have come far in terms of scalability.

    What do you consider your most successful future food investment so far?

    It’s like naming your favourite child… but I am really bullish about our bean-free coffee company Rest, led by the amazing David Cerami.

    What has been your most disappointing investment so far?

    We launched in 2024 – so far, all our investments have been performing really well. So it’s probably ahead of us – and that’s okay – because it’s a natural part of early-stage VC. The most important thing is to learn from your mistakes and try to not repeat them.

    What do people misunderstand/get wrong most about VC?

    This is a tough one… I believe there’s something about risk-taking in VC that might be misunderstood sometimes. We’re obviously in the business of taking risks – but it needs to be in causation of the potential upside, and I rarely like to take both product and market risk.

    And as a founder, it’s important to present not only your step towards the next round, but the long-term play with your business and how you plan to navigate through each step.

    What is the most ‘future food’ thing you have eaten this month?

    I had several feijoa fruits in New Zealand, an incredible fruit and a strong reminder that the future of food is within what’s already out there. There is an incredible amount of regional food that’s unutilised and better suited for the future instead of global, over-standardised and processed food.

    Where is your favourite climate-forward restaurant/dish/place to eat anywhere in the world?

    I’m very excited about Eric-Alan Rapp and Anne-Marie Søbye Rapp’s Sloppy Jo’s wrap – delicious grab-and-go food that’s good for you and the planet. I also love everything that the Farmacy team is doing.

    What’s your ‘why’? What motivates you to do what you do?

    I’m very passionate about equality and equal opportunities. At Kost, we’re committed to bringing better food for more people, and I’m all for finding better, affordable food for more.

    Food is the key that can unlock so many areas – feeding more with less, reducing obesity, improving health and planetary boundaries, providing work opportunities at scale, and, of course, bringing people together.

    The post 5 Minutes with A Future Food VC: Kost Capital’s Bodil Sidén appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • BioCraft Pet Nutrition Strikes Deal to Produce ‘Mouse Mousse’ with 99% Cultivated Meat

    lab grown cat food
    5 Mins Read

    Alternative protein startup BioCraft Pet Nutrition is working with Prefera Petfood to manufacture a cat food product with 99% cultivated mouse meat.

    Shortly after registering its cultivated mouse meat with Austrian regulators – paving the way for market entry in the EU – BioCraft Pet Nutrition has signed a co-manufacturing deal to scale up production of its ingredient.

    The US startup – which has a lab in Vienna – has linked up with Prefera Petfood, a specialist in premium wet pet food production founded by industry veterans last year, which sells primarily in Europe.

    Through the partnership, the two companies will produce a nutritionally complete mousse for cats, made almost entirely of cultivated mouse cells. “The inclusion level of BioCraft’s cell-cultured mouse is 99%. The remaining 1% are plant-based fibres,” Shannon Falconer, co-founder and CEO of BioCraft, told Green Queen.

    Now that it is cleared to sell cultivated meat to pet food makers in the EU, the firm is stepping up its production capacity. “We anticipate being able to offer meaningful volumes of our ingredient to pet food manufacturers in Europe in late 2025,” she said.

    How BioCraft achieves a high inclusion rate for cultivated meat

    cultivated mouse meat
    Courtesy: BioCraft Pet Nutrition

    BioCraft’s cultivated mouse meat slurry is derived from stable, non-GMO cell lines. It is designed to be used as a one-to-one replacement in wet or dry pet food at similar inclusion levels to conventional slurry.

    While it’s still a nascent market, it’s common for cultivated meat ingredients to be mixed with a larger proportion of other ingredients – usually plant-based – when they’re sold, since the costs and scale of production are currently prohibitive.

    For BioCraft to sell a product with nearly 100% cultivated meat, then, is a “game-changer”, Falconer said. “Most cellular agriculture initiatives struggle to reach high inclusion levels of their ingredient in a final product; however, low inclusion levels don’t accomplish the objective of reducing our reliance on intensive animal agriculture,” she argued.

    So how does it manage to do this, while keeping costs manageable? “We have formulated a proprietary, nutrient-rich media made with AAFCO-approved, food-grade ingredients. In this way, the components of the growth media are not only good for our cells – they are also a source of nutrition for cats and dogs,” she explained.

    “Rather than harvesting only the biomass — which is what ‘conventional’ cultivated meat producers focus on — BioCraft harvests all components from the bioreactor,” she added. This includes the nutrients that initially went in to support the growth of the cells, and the nutrients and flavour molecules that growing animal cells produce and secrete into the surrounding liquid environment.

    “When capturing the biomass alone, these extracellular nutrients and flavour compounds are lost,” said Falconer. Her company’s process allows it to achieve a more nutritious and flavourful ingredient, and offer an affordable price point to pet food manufacturers, even at an almost 100% inclusion rate.

    Typically, animal-derived growth media – the mix of proteins, sugar and nutrients that feed animal cells in a bioreactor – cost hundreds of dollars per litre. Last year, BioCraft announced that its product now had a sale price of $2-2.50 per lb, thanks to a plant-based medium formulated to provide a nutritious boost to the end product.

    Cultivated pet food in the ascendance

    lab grown meat pet food
    Courtesy: BioCraft Pet Nutrition

    BioCraft did not disclose details about the length of the partnership with Prefera Petfood, the production volumes, or the deal’s financials.

    The cultivated mouse meat is a hypoallergenic source of protein with functional benefits for pet health. Third-party profiling of over 100 nutrients has shown that BioCraft’s ingredient has comparable levels of taurine, lysine, methionine and tryptophan to that of chicken slurry, and a superior omega-6 to omega-3 ratio.

    The cell cultivation process is planet-friendly too, while the product is free from bacterial pathogens, viruses, mycotoxins, moulds, and yeasts, as well as biogenic amines and heavy metals.

    Importantly, cats seem to like it, with early palatability tests exhibiting “exceptional acceptance rates”. In fact, taste tests have demonstrated a strong preference for BioCraft’s cultivated mouse over conventional meat among felines.

    “Cats are notoriously selective eaters, so we’re thrilled with the enthusiastic reception,” said Nicola Magalini, general manager of Prefera Petfood. “It’s clear that our feline friends can’t tell the difference – except perhaps that they prefer it.”

    She called the collaboration a milestone in “functional, sustainable and ancestrally appropriate pet nutrition”. “As a company committed to the highest standards of safety and quality, using only real, identifiable ingredients without artificial additives or preservatives, our partnership with BioCraft helps us innovate in ways that benefit both pets and the environment,” she said.

    It is the latest development in what’s shaping up to be a big year for alternative pet food. BioCraft, which has raised $6.7M in funding to date, is already in talks with leading manufacturer Partner in Pet Food. Meanwhile, London-based startup Meatly partnered with vegan pet food maker The Pack to launch its cultivated chicken in dog treats at Pets At Home, after becoming the first company to be approved to sell cultivated meat for pet food last year.

    Czech startup Bene Meat Technologies – the first to register cultivated pet food as an EU feed material back in 2023 (it did so under the fermentation category) – is awaiting approval from the US Food and Drug Administration too. Speaking of which, Cult Food Science has conducted feeding trials in the US in pursuit of regulatory approval for its Noochies! brand. And Friends & Family Pet Food Co has inked two deals to launch stateside and in Singapore.

    The post BioCraft Pet Nutrition Strikes Deal to Produce ‘Mouse Mousse’ with 99% Cultivated Meat appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Future Food Quick Bites: Ottolenghi’s Beans, Disneyland & Beyond Meat Doc

    bold bean co black chickpeas
    5 Mins Read

    Our weekly column rounds up the latest sustainable food innovation news. This week, Future Food Quick Bites covers Bold Bean Co’s Ottolenghi collaboration, Beyond Meat’s new documentary, and Miyoko Schinner’s upcoming vegan cookbook.

    New products and launches

    British cult-favourite bean brand Bold Bean Co has teamed up with internationally renowned Israeli-British chef Yotam Ottolenghi to launch a new Queen Black Chickpea SKU. It can be found on both their websites, as well as Waitrose for £4 per 700g jar.

    UK frozen foods retailer Iceland has expanded its collaborative lineup with TGI Fridays to include a melt-in-the-middle vegan burger and a returning sesame-glazed chicken strips SKU.

    British fermented food brand The Cultured Collective is bringing its sauerkraut and kimchi to 183 Sainsbury’s stores starting today. The fennel, apple and dill sauerkraut retails for £4.50 per 235g jar, while the original kimchi is priced at £4.75 per 250g jar.

    Hollywood Bowl Group, which operates the Hollywood Bowl and Putt & Play mini-golf centres in the UK, has introduced the Beyond Burger at all its 75 locations in the country. It will cost £6.79 and comes with fries (which are not vegan) or tortillas.

    Speaking of which, Beyond Meat has announced a new YouTube documentary, Planting Change, to set the record straight against the meat lobby’s attacks on meat alternatives as ultra-processed foods.

    pulmuone
    Courtesy: Pulmuone

    Plant-based giant Pulmuone has rolled out limited-edition packaging for some of its ranges for Earth Month, which will be used across its Pulmuone, Nasoya, and Wildwood brands.

    Meanwhile, Disneyland restaurant Bengal Barbecue has added Impossible Lettuce Wraps to its menu, pairing the pioneer’s plant-based meat with shiitake mushrooms, green onions, and water chestnuts. The dish is priced at $12.49.

    prime roots
    Courtesy: Prime Roots

    Mycelium-based whole-cut meat maker Prime Roots has expanded to Canada and will introduce its deli range – which includes ham, turkey, pepperoni, salami and bacon – at the Restaurants Canada Show in Toronto (April 9-11) and the Canadian Food Health Association fair in Vancouver (April 24-27).

    US startup Oddball has debuted its vegan Jell-O alternative in mango, grape, double berry and pink grapefruit flavours. The jiggly fruit snacks are available on its website for $26.99 per six-pack, and will roll at Sprouts Farmers Market this month.

    tempeh uk
    Courtesy: Better Nature Tempeh

    Back in Europe, British tempeh brand Better Nature has rolled out its Organic Tempeh and Smoky Tempeh into 200 more Rewe Mitte stores in Germany, taking its footprint to 350 in the local region and over 1,300 across the country.

    French plant-based meat leader La Vie has unveiled a new line of American sandwiches using its pork alternatives. Available at supermarkets nationwide for €3.49, the BBQ Lover (with bacon) and Ranch Lover (with ham) variants come encased in Viennois baguettes.

    la vie sandwich
    Courtesy: La Vie

    Speaking of French retailers, Carrefour has partnered with Brazilian vegan food maker Vida Veg to add three vegan cheeses – mozzarella and two cream cheese flavours – to its own-label offerings in the increasingly health-conscious Latin American country.

    Dairy-free cheese queen Miyoko Schinner has announced September 16 as the release date for her upcoming cookbook, The Vegan Creamery. It’s available for pre-order now ($26.99).

    the vegan creamery by miyoko schinner
    Courtesy: Ten Speed Press

    Animal welfare non-profit Connect For Animals has launched a new mobile app to help advocates take action, discover local and virtual events, and meet other like-minded people.

    Company and finance updates

    Cultivated meat made it to national television in the US, with CBS News interviewing Mission Barns founder and CEO Eitan Fischer and product development director Daniel Ryan about the firm’s cultivated pork fat, which was approved for sale by the FDA last month.

    mission barns
    Courtesy: Mission Barns/CBS

    Canada’s n!Biomachines, a subsidiary of cell cultivation tech specialist The Cultivated B, has partnered with automation giant Siemens to showcase the Auxo V bioreactor at the 2025 Hannover Messe trade fair (March 31 to April 25), which aims to scale up alternative protein production more efficiently.

    Across the Atlantic, British cultivated Wagyu beef maker Ivy Farm Technologies has appointed Gail Francis as its VP of commercial. She was previously the business growth director at Naylor Nutrition.

    ivy farm lab grown meat
    Courtesy: Ivy Farm Technologies

    Also in the UK, vegan restaurant chain Herbivorous is shuttering all three of its sites in Manchester, Sheffield and York due to “increasing costs”

    Two vegan startups have won grants under EIT Food’s Fast Track to Market Initiative, with Germany’s BettaF!sh earning €248,000 to launch salmon and tuna salad cans and a seaweed extract, and Austria’s Hooked Foods receiving €221,000 to introduce a Super Protein ingredient with 30-35g of protein per 100g.

    Policy and research developments

    A new study by CashNetUSA highlights how vegan food prices differ at Walmart stores across the US, with Arkansas being the cheapest (3.8% below the national average) and Hawaii the most expensive (34% above the mean).

    Researchers at Australia’s Food and Beverage Accelerator (FaBA) have created a toolkit to help food manufacturers improve the texture of products. They worked with meat alternative startup v2food to help it assess its work on enhancing its burger’s texture.

    Ahmed Khan, a bioscience enterprise MPhil from Cambridge University, became the “first person to speak about cellular agriculture and cultivated meat” during a debate at the Cambridge Union.

    Also speaking truth to power was Bernat Anaños, co-founder and comms chief of Spanish plant-based meat leader Heura Foods, who addressed the Congreso de los Diputados (the lower house of Spain’s legislative branch) about the need for a food systems transformation led by plants.

    Finally, Toronto-based vegan salmon maker New School Foods has been named one of Canadian Business‘s Innovation Awards winners for 2025.

    Check out last week’s Future Food Quick Bites.

    The post Future Food Quick Bites: Ottolenghi’s Beans, Disneyland & Beyond Meat Doc appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • How This Animal-Free ‘Designer’ Fat Maker Is Reshaping Future Food Economics

    nourish ingredients tastilux
    6 Mins Read

    Australian firm Nourish Ingredients has completed an industrial-scale production of its animal-free, meat-like fat while keeping costs low – here’s how it’s doing it.

    Six months after forming a partnership with Chinese fermentation specialist Cabio Biotech, Nourish Ingredients has achieved a production milestone for its precision-fermented fat ingredient.

    The Canberra-based startup has completed the first industrial-scale manufacturing cycle of its meaty ‘designer’ fat, Taxtilux, enough to meet 170,000 tonnes of end-product demand.

    This represents a 1,700% increase in Nourish Ingredients’s capacity, and the firm claims it is the first alt-fat company to reach commercial-scale validation while maintaining low costs.

    Precision fermentation combines traditional fermentation with the latest biotech advances to efficiently produce a compound of interest – in this case, an animal-free fat designed to improve the taste, aroma and cooking experience of meat analogues.

    “We’re able to produce our final product from start to finish by tapping into Cabio’s existing fermentation capacity,” Nourish Ingredients CEO James Petrie tells Green Queen.

    “Cabio already produces a fat for infant formula using the same microorganism behind Tastilux, a fungal strain naturally found in soil. By leveraging their infrastructure, our intellectual property and tech, we’re able to accelerate our path to commercial scale. It’s a true win-win.”

    Just 1% of Tastilux can transform meat alternatives

    nourish ingredients china
    Courtesy: Nourish Ingredients

    Cabio has been supplying functional ingredients for over two decades and owns one of the world’s largest factories for long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids. The partnership, announced last November, will leverage the Chinese firm’s facilities and expertise to efficiently produce Tastliux with minimal waste.

    “Our manufacturing approach leverages fermentation technology, which allows us to produce these specialised fat molecules efficiently and consistently,” says Petrie. “We’ve achieved our current scale through strategic partnerships that combine our intellectual property with established production capacity.”

    A key factor behind its scale-up and cost efficiency is the low inclusion rate of its fat. “Our research has consistently shown that our products can significantly increase animal-like authenticity in flavour, mouthfeel, and aroma with an inclusion rate as low as 1%,” reveals Petrie.

    “This means we don’t need massive production volumes to significantly impact the finished product, which considerably reduces the scaling challenges typical in our industry. Our process is designed specifically for efficiency and minimal capital expenditure while maximising output quality, allowing us to reach commercial scale much faster than alternative approaches,” he adds.

    “We’ve found global manufacturers are surprised when they discover they are achieving such an authentic meaty perception with just a 1% inclusion level. This efficiency means food manufacturers can dramatically improve their products while keeping their costs manageable, which has been a crucial factor in our strong market interest.”

    Tastilux ‘hits the sweet spot’ on pricing

    animal free fat
    Courtesy: Nourish Ingredients

    Tastilux relies on naturally occurring lipids scaled through precision fermentation to provide the distinct flavour and cooking properties of meat fats when used in plant-based chicken, beef, pork and other alternatives.

    While commodity plant fats like coconut or palm oil are cheaper in absolute terms, Petrie argues they “lack the taste and functionality” Nourish Ingredients’s fats provide, and their link to deforestation can make them a climate nightmare.

    “They are often also mixed with complex and expensive flavour solutions, which can contain up to 30 ingredients, including synthetic chemicals and lack an authentic animalic taste,” he adds.

    Meanwhile, cultivated fats derived from cell lines – soon to be commercialised by the likes of Mission Barns and Mosa Meat, among others – are “significantly more expensive and less customisable”.

    “Our approach hits the sweet spot – we produce the same molecules found in animals but through precision fermentation, allowing us to optimise the flavour and cost. The key economic advantage is our low inclusion rate – at just 1%, food manufacturers can dramatically improve their products while keeping their overall costs manageable,” says Petrie.

    “Our precision fermentation process creates a cost structure that’s competitive when you consider the impact-to-inclusion ratio,” he adds. “This low-volume, high-impact approach means we can achieve commercial viability much sooner than alternatives that require higher inclusion rates.”

    Nourish Ingredients eyes global markets

    nourish ingredients
    Courtesy: Nourish Ingredients

    According to Petrie, interest in Tastilux has been “exceptional”, with the company’s research showing that incorporating Tastilux in plant protein increases people’s purchase intent and preference. This should come as no surprise – fat is the main driver of flavour and texture, two of the biggest consumer pain points for meat alternatives.

    “We’re working with several global food companies who are excited about how our product unlocks flavours previously unavailable to them,” he says.

    This first batch of Tastilux is being shipped across three continents, in line with Nourish Ingredients’s “multi-region strategy” for regulatory approvals. It has identified the US and Singapore as its initial focus, with an eye on Australia, the UK, and the EU too.

    “Our strategy prioritises markets where there’s strong demand for our products and relatively clear regulatory pathways to commercialisation,” explains Petrie.

    Singapore is an important market for the firm, “given its leadership in alternative protein innovation and strong government support for food technology”. The company is in the middle of regulatory assessments in the city-state there, a process that takes 12-18 months.

    “Our go-to-market strategy focuses on partnering with established food manufacturers who can leverage our ingredients effectively,” Petrie says. “We’re taking a collaborative approach, working directly with potential customers to fine-tune flavour profiles that resonate with local preferences.”

    Food tech ‘funding winter’ has shifted investor priorities

    tastilux
    Courtesy: Nourish Ingredients

    Nourish Ingredients has raised A$40M ($24M) to date, allowing it to develop the tech platform and reach the pre-commercial stage.

    “Now we’re operating in what I’ve previously called a ‘food tech funding winter’, where investors have shifted focus from potential to tangible paths to revenue and offtake deals, which means our focus has been on commercial agreements,” notes Petrie.

    “What differentiates us in this challenging investment landscape is our capital-efficient approach. Our low-inclusion-rate products significantly reduce the scale-up capital required compared to other precision fermentation companies,” he adds.

    “Any future capital will be targeted at sales and commercial adoption with major food companies, many we’re already engaged with.”

    The company is also working on Creamilux, a similar alternative for non-dairy applications. It has teamed up with New Zealand dairy giant Fonterra to create both dairy and plant-based products with the ingredient.

    This comes during a time when the alternative fat sector is booming. Like Nourish, California’s Yali Bio, New York’s C16 Biosciences and Sweden’s Melt&Marble use precision fermentation to produce fats and lipids, while Hoxton Farms, Steakholder Foods and Genuine Taste employ cell cultivation. Bill Gates-backed Savor, meanwhile, is fermenting carbon to produce animal-free butter.

    The post How This Animal-Free ‘Designer’ Fat Maker Is Reshaping Future Food Economics appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Expo West 2025 Tried & Tasted: Our Favourite Future Food Eats

    11 Mins Read

    From animal-free egg salad to a milk alternative made from corn, here are the future food products that stood out most to our expert reviewer at Expo West 2025.

    It’s that time of year again: when Anaheim, California is packed with out-of-towners, and they’re not all headed to Disneyland. Move over, Mickey Mouse – because it’s March, and the most sought-after attraction in town is New Hope’s Natural Products Expo West.

    Expo West is the largest tradeshow for natural, organic, and healthy products in North America, aka the “Superbowl of CPG”, and it seems to be regaining the popularity it had prior to Covid-19.

    With a revamped schedule – organisers dropped Saturday in favour of Tuesday through Friday only, with all halls open Wednesday to Friday, new buyers’ hours, and a community breakfast – this year’s show brought together over 64,000 attendees and more than 3,000 exhibitors.

    While I walked the halls lined with rows upon rows of vendor booths, what struck me the most was how underrepresented the alternative protein sector seemed to be. There were noticeably fewer alternative meat brands. Apart from Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat, stalwarts like NotCo, Hungry Planet, Better Balance, and Quorn were all MIA this year.

    It’s disappointing but not surprising, given the state of the industry, the UPF narrative that is dominating the mainstream media, and the current political climate. There was a mix of excitement and concern in the air. Excitement about new consumer health requirements and concern about the impact of tariffs and inflation on the US economy. Still, I enjoyed reconnecting with familiar brands and discovering a few new ones.

    The noteworthy trends I spotted this year centred around boosting protein in snacks, beverages and anything else people consume, a CPG focus on cleaner and healthier ingredient lists, ‘alt’ alt-milks like pistachio milk popping up everywhere, shrooms still reigning supreme (even in the form of gummies), and functional snacks and drinks abound – hydration, baby!

    So, what caught my eye and tickled my taste buds at Expo West 2025? Here are my top 11 picks (in no particular order).

    Beyond Meat’s mycelium steak fillet

    beyond mycelium steak
    Courtesy: Alessandra Franco

    Beyond Meat unveiled its brand-new whole-cut mycelium-based steak at a Happy Hour on the second day of the show. As far as I’m concerned, Beyond very much delivered on its promise of a steak that “mirrors the texture, flavour, and experience of a premium USDA steak fillet”. The mouthfeel, texture, and flavour were all spot on.

    The steak fillet is the latest effort from Beyond to attract health-conscious consumers, and I’m sure it’s going to do just that when it hits retail shelves this year!

    What’s It Made Of? Mycelium, faba beans, and wheat. The full ingredient list is still under wraps. 

    Where Can I Buy It? Coming to selected retailers this spring.

    Chunk’s Pulled Korean BBQ

    chunk foods pulled
    Courtesy: Alessandra Franco

    Chunk Foods debuted its four new Chunk Pulled varieties in Teriyaki, Texas BBQ, Korean BBQ, and Barbacoa flavours. They each come with chef-crafted simmer sauces, are super versatile, can be cooked or microwaved from frozen, and are ready in minutes.

    I really enjoyed the pulled “meat” texture and taste of all four flavours, but my personal favourite was the Korean BBQ. It’s packed with that bold, sweet and savoury traditional Korean BBQ flavour and just the right amount of spiciness.

    What’s It Made Of? Cultured soy, wheat protein, and coconut oil fortified with B12 and iron.

    Where Can I Buy It? Coming to selected retailers later this year.

    Wunder Eggs’s Eggless Salad

    wunder eggs
    Courtesy: Alessandra Franco

    For a limited time last year, Veggie Grill Next Level Burger had a Wunderful BLT-E on the menu, and it was made with Crafty Counter’s Wunder Eggs egg salad. I’m a huge egg salad fan, so of course I had it, and it was delicious.

    The Wunder Eggs Eggless Salad comes in Classic, Italian Herbs & Garbanzo, and Southwest Peas & Potatoes varieties. After trying all three, I can confidently say they’re all delicious. It turns out I’m more of a classic girl than I thought when it comes to my egg salad, and the original flavour is going to be a must-have-at-all-times in my fridge.

    Bonus points for coming in a cup and ready to eat – add a few crackers, and you’ve got yourself a perfect on-the-go snack. The only con for me is that I’m going to need the foodservice tub size to satisfy my egg salad cravings!

    What’s It Made Of? Almonds and cashews, Fabalish Foods upcycled aquafaba mayo, and a touch of seasonings. 

    Where Can I Buy It? Available in all Safeway and Albertsons stores across Washington and Idaho.

    Confetti Snacks’s Black Truffle Mushroom Chips

    confetti mushroom chips black truffle
    Courtesy: Confetti Snacks

    We have written about Confetti Snacks in the past, and I’ve heard a lot about the brand from my good friend Andre Menezes, who is a board member. Still, when I stopped by its booth, I didn’t expect it’d make this list. Boy, oh boy, was I wrong!

    The Black Truffle Mushrooms, whole mushrooms dusted in just the right amount of black truffle, were so addictive I couldn’t put the bag down until it was completely empty. It’s a good thing I got two.

    The Singapore-based CPG snack range gets bonus points for being made of upcycled ugly veggies, fruits, and mushrooms. What’s more, Confetti’s mission is to reduce food waste while fighting to end hunger and malnutrition, so it donates a portion of its snacks to some of the least affluent parts of the world. And speaking of reducing waste, its eco-sustainable booth was made up entirely of its snack boxes.

    What’s It Made Of? ‘Ugly’ veggies, fruits, and mushrooms infused with Asian spices.

    Where Can I Buy It? On its website.

    MyForest Foods MyBacon

    mybacon
    Courtesy: MyForest Foods

    I may be a little late to the party here, but I had never tried MyForest Foods’s MyBacon before. The company makes its plant-based bacon from mycelium grown in indoor vertical farms, harvested in slabs, and sliced just like pork belly.

    I had it plain as well as in a BLT, and it blew my mind. It was as decadent as I remember real bacon being, down to the texture, sizzle, and aroma.

    MyBacon was also on my Expo West 2024 list too, making it a favourite for two years running.

    What’s It Made Of? Five ingredients only: organic oyster mushroom mycelium, organic coconut oil, organic sugar, natural flavour, and salt.

    Where Can I Buy It? Available online and in several natural food stores across the US, including Erewhon and Whole Foods.

    Konscious Foods’s Sno’ Crab Cakes and Smoked Salm’n

    konscious foods salmon
    Courtesy: Konscious Foods

    Given that I’m a former seafood lover, I could not pick only one out of the two hottest newest products by Konscious Foods: Sno’ Crab Cakes and Smoked Salm’n.

    Any self-respecting crab cake aficionado knows peppers – red or any other colour – have no place in a crab cake, which is why I absolutely loved these pepper-free vegan crab cakes. Just a pure, simple, honest-to-goodness vegan crab filling wrapped in a crispy golden-brown crust. 

    The Smoked Salm’n was at Expo West last year, too, but it’s now finally out in the market. The plant-based lox has a hickory applewood cold-smoked salmon taste that makes it indistinguishable from its animal counterpart. Whether you eat it on a bagel with cream cheese or roll it up with crème fraiche, you’ll get that perfect smokiness with a slightly salty kick. 

    What’s It Made Of? The star ingredient in both is konjac root.

    Where Can I Buy It? The Sno’ Crab Cakes will be available at Whole Foods this June and Sprouts in July, with more retailers planned. The Smoked Salm’n is available at Zucker’s Bagels in New York City and on Goldbelly nationwide. Konscious Foods has partnered with the largest smoked salmon distributor across the US, Acme Smoked Fish Brooklyn, so you can expect to see it in retailers nationwide soon.

    Food for Life’s Ezekiel 4:9 Whole Grain Pocket Bread

    food for life ezekiel bread
    Courtesy: Alessandra Franco

    Is Pocket Bread another name for pita bread? Yes, but this is in no way just another pita bread. Food for Life’s sprouted pita is tasty and full of nutritious ingredients. It’s not overly thick or dry like most pita breads out there, so it crisps up nicely in the oven, and I loved seeing the tiny pieces of carrot when I took a bite. 

    What’s It Made Of? Organic 100% stone ground whole wheat flour, organic fresh carrots, organic barley flour, organic millet flour, organic lentil flour, organic soy flour, organic spelt flour, yeast, and sea salt.

    Where Can I Buy It? It’s available in retailers nationwide.

    Whoa Dough’s Brownie Batter Ready-to-Bake Cookie Dough

    whoa dough brownie batter
    Courtesy: Alessandra Franco

    I’m not a chocoholic, but I was really impressed by Whoa Dough’s Brownie Batter Cookie Dough. You get the best of both worlds: cookies that are chewy and packed with that classic fudgy chocolatey flavour that chocolate lovers want from a brownie. The dough is also nut-free, gluten-free and bakes in minutes – you can even eat it right out of the bag!

    What’s It Made Of? The star ingredient is chickpea protein.

    Where Can I Buy It? It’s available in retailers nationwide and on its website.

    Hodo Foods’s Thai Red Curry Tofu

    hodo tofu
    Courtesy: Hodo Foods

    I have tried a few Hodo products before, but none have become a staple in my kitchen so far. I wasn’t expecting to love the Thai Red Curry Tofu, but love it, I did!

    It’s not too spicy, which means you don’t have to be a curry enthusiast to enjoy the bold Thai flavours, the saucy creamy texture, and that hint of zingy lemongrass and ginger. 

    What’s It Made Of? Tofu and coconut-cream-based Thai red curry.

    Where Can I Buy It? It’s available at select Whole Foods Market stores and online.

    Mori-Nu’s Plant-Based Imitation Crab

    imitation crab
    Courtesy: Dent Agency LLC

    I may be the odd woman out, but I’ve always loved making seafood salad with imitation crab. When I spotted Mori-Nu’s plant-based imitation crab made by Morinaga Foods, I had to try it.

    The umami flavour really stood out, and the shreddable texture makes it easy to use in anything from salads to sushi. It also comes fully cooked and ready to eat, with a one-year frozen shelf life. 

    What’s It Made Of? The main ingredient is pea protein.

    Where Can I Buy It? It’s currently only available for foodservice, but it’s coming to Veganssentials.com this April.

    Maïzly Corn Milk

    maizly corn milk
    Courtesy: Maïzly

    Corn has always been a staple in Brazilian cuisine, and I grew up eating my share of corn everything – from flour to soups, puddings, and ice cream – except corn milk.

    We have no shortage of alternative milk options, from pistachio to potato and watermelon seeds, so do we really need one more? I was a bit sceptical and unsure if it was going to taste like milk or, you know, corn. That is, until I tried it.

    I definitely got the dairy milk mouthful and creaminess my taste buds require from any milk alternative. This is probably because, in addition to corn, it also contains chickpea and coconut, making it more of a blended corn milk.

    The verdict? I’m sold. It comes in original and chocolate flavours, but it also has an infant formula. Bonus points for sustainability since corn is one of the world’s most abundant crops, requiring the least amount of land and water, which means it’s even more sustainable than oat milk.

    What’s It Made Of? The main ingredients are non-GMO corn, chickpea protein, and coconut oil with added calcium and vitamins A, D, and E.

    Where Can I Buy It? It’s available at select natural food stores in New York, and on its website.

    Honourable mentions

    tache pistachio milk latte
    Courtesy: Táche

    Despite not making the top list, here are a few products worth mentioning in this Expo West 2025 review:

    GoodPop’s Mickey Mouse Fudge n’ Vanilla Bar: The dairy-free ice cream bar is shaped like the beloved Disney character, made with vanilla oat milk and coated in a chocolate fudge shell. It tastes just as creamy and chocolatey as any conventional ice cream bar, so I’m sure it will be a hit with Disney fans, kids and adults alike.

    Táche’s Single-Serve Pistachio Milk Latte: The vegan latte is made with Táche’s Original Pistachio milk and cold brew coffee. I’ve tried quite a few single-serve vegan lattes, but the nuttiness from the pistachio milk really makes this one stand out. Here’s hoping they’ll add a few more flavours, like vanilla and mocha, soon.

    Eat Just’s Plant-Based Chicken: Most people are familiar with Just Egg – the vegan egg pioneer – and Good Meat, the first company to sell cultivated chicken anywhere in the world.

    What do you get when you combine the two? Hands down the most realistic 100% plant-based chicken I’ve ever tasted. By using Good Meat’s tech platform, Eat Just nailed both the taste and texture of real chicken, but with plants. It was grilled and served plain, allowing the ‘chicken’ taste to really shine through.

    If you’re thinking, “Do we really need one more plant-based chicken option?”, I say: just wait till you try it.

    Hors concours: Mellody’s Plant-Based Honey

    mellody honey
    Courtesy: MeliBio

    Top such list of mine would not be complete without Mellody’s bee-free honey. Ever since I first tried it, I’ve been a huge fan, and I add it to everything – from tea to yoghurt to cakes. Mellody is spot on when it comes to the texture, aroma, and complex taste of honey made by bees. I don’t know how it does this, but blessed bee!

    The post Expo West 2025 Tried & Tasted: Our Favourite Future Food Eats appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Cultured Quail Startup Vow Gets FSANZ Regulatory Approval in Australia & New Zealand

    lab grown meat australia
    6 Mins Read

    Known for its cultured quail, Sydney-based Vow has received regulatory approval from Food Standards Australia New Zealand, a first for cultivated meat in the region.

    Australian food tech startup Vow has become the first startup to be allowed to sell cultivated meat in more than two geographies.

    The Sydney company has apparently received the regulatory green light from Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ), the joint regulator for the Antipodean nations, for its cultured quail, according to an approval report dated today (April 7, 2025) uploaded to the regulator’s website.

    It ends a protracted process that started in early 2023 and involved two rounds of public consultation, during which Vow succeeded in getting regulatory clearance to sell the cultivated meat product in Singapore and by extension, Hong Kong (the latter does not have its own regulatory process for novel foods, but relied on approval Singapore under a framework of international cooperation).

    In an interview with Green Queen last year, Vow co-founder and CEO George Peppou had predicted that the company would receive approval in Q1 2025, and that prophecy rang true, with the FSANZ approving the application on March 27 and notifying the Food Ministers’ Meeting of its decision today.

    “FSANZ conducted a full and independent evidence-based assessment of all media inputs and was satisfied their use and/or presence did not raise any safety concerns,” the agency noted in its assessment.

    “At the estimated consumption levels, there were no toxicological concerns related to the cell media or inputs used in the production process,” it said.

    lab grown meat approved
    Courtesy: Vow

    What the FSANZ said about Vow’s cultured quail application

    Vow submitted its dossier in February 2023, seeking permission to use “cultured quail cells, derived from embryonic fibroblasts of Japanese quail, as a novel food ingredient” in Australia and New Zealand.

    FSANZ issued a call for public comments in December 2023 and another 12 months later. The second round received 22 responses, with each submission considered as part of the agency’s assessment of the cultured quail cells.

    The food safety body noted that “cell line suppliers already operate according to good laboratory practices (GLP) and good cell-culturing practices (GCCP) to manage risks”, and therefore, the overall food safety risk for cell lines is “very low”. It added that cell line suppliers aren’t expressly required to ensure that “inputs do not make cell-cultured food unsafe or unsuitable”.

    FSANZ further noted that cultivated meat cannot be included in “special purpose foods” like sports foods, infant formula, or food for special medical purposes without additional pre-market assessments.

    One public comment brought forward the question of whether cultivated meat products should be categorized as ultra-processed and the “adverse health outcomes” they’re linked to. In response, the FSANZ said the issue of UPFs is beyond the scope of the application.

    lab grown meat approval
    Courtesy: Vow Food

    “The nutrition risk assessment considered the macronutrient and micronutrient content of harvested cells including components introduced during the production process and found no nutritional concerns,” it concluded, adding that the harvested cells were unlikely to pose a food allergenicity risk.

    FSANZ confirmed that Vow did not request that its cultured quail be sold as a single ingredient in retail. Instead, it will be mixed with other ingredients – as is the norm for cultivated meat, including Vow’s – to produce dishes in restaurants and foodservice establishments.

    Addressing concerns about the high costs of cultivated meat and its impact on farmers, the FSANZ suggested that “certain industry costs and regulator costs are necessary to ensure safety and are unlikely to outweigh overall benefits to industry, consumers and government”.

    The assessment’s outlook on the potential for cultivated meat is encouraging for the industry at large: “The consideration of costs and benefits acknowledges that cell-cultured foods are in their infancy with uncertain market growth. That takes into consideration the currently high production costs and uncertainty of the future speed or extent of technology developments for reducing production costs.”

    A huge win for cultivated meat amid global challenges

    This is a big win for Vow and the cultivated meat sector as a whole, which has been embattled of late due to funding and geopolitical challenges. Private investment in cultivated meat startups fell by 75% in 2023 and another 40% in 2024.

    Cultivated meat has faced numerous cultural and political challenges of late. Italy prohibited the production and sale of cultivated meat in 2023. In the US, over 20 states have attempted to ban these proteins, and three have been successful. With Donald Trump as president and Robert F Kennedy Jr as health secretary, regulatory progress for cultivated meat looks uncertain – although the US did issue its third initial approval, for cultivated pork fat by San Francisco-based Mission Barns, last month.

    Still, the future of the sector remains murky in the US, and that has opened up opportunities for other countries to emerge as leaders. Singapore is already at the forefront, having been the first to approve cultivated meat back in 2020, and following it up with its green light for Vow last year.

    fsanz cultured quail
    Courtesy: Vow

    Other leaders could include Israel, which approved its homegrown cultivated beef maker Aleph Farms, and the UK, which has just opened a regulatory sandbox for a select group of cultivated startups. Experts believe South Korea could grant an approval this year as well, while regulators in the EU, Switzerland, and Thailand are evaluating applications. With the Vow approval, Australia and New Zealand are well-positioned to be key players in the field.

    The FSANZ approval comes weeks after Vow cut back 30% of its workforce, a decision Peppou described as coming from a “position of strength as the industry leader, not a position of weakness”.

    “However, given the complexity and novelty of the regulatory process for cultured meat, it has taken far longer than initially expected to secure regulatory approval in the markets which Vow has targeted,” he said at the time. “This is not a criticism of the regulators, but rather an acknowledgement of the care and thoroughness necessary to ensure cultured meat is completely safe for human consumption and regulated appropriately.

    The company, which also makes cultured foie gras, is currently selling its products at various restaurants and bakeries in Singapore through its Forged brand, with rave reviews from tasters. One of them told Green Queen: “What stood out to me was that it was genuinely delicious.”

    And just last week, the company claimed to have broken a world record by harvesting 20,000 litres of cell culture through its Andromeda bioreactor.

    Vow – which went viral and appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert for its woolly mammoth meatball stunt in 2023 – has secured $55M from investors to date, commercialising with a smaller outlay than competitors that have received approval, including Upside Foods ($608M), Eat Just ($270M), Aleph Farms ($147M), and Mission Barns ($60M).

    This is a developing story. Green Queen has contacted Vow for a comment on this story.

    The post Cultured Quail Startup Vow Gets FSANZ Regulatory Approval in Australia & New Zealand appeared first on Green Queen.

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  • Brazilians Cool on Beef as Health Risks Take Precedence

    brazil vegan
    4 Mins Read

    Polling shows that health concerns are the biggest consumption driver in Brazil, potentially pushing 74% of its population to reduce or eliminate meat from their diets.

    Brazil is home to JBS, Minerva and Marfrig, making it the world’s largest beef exporter and second-largest meat producer. 80% of all beef produced here is consumed domestically, accounting for 12% of global beef intake – per capita, only two other countries eat more beef.

    Meat consumption – especially red meats like beef – is linked with a host of chronic diseases, including heart disease, obesity, cancer, and type 2 diabetes. In fact, the annual cost of treating conditions attributed to a diet heavy on processed meat in Brazil is $9.4M.

    Brazilians recognise this risk, with 74% open to reducing their meat consumption out of health concerns, a new survey has found.

    “It is encouraging to see that 74% of Brazilians are considering the possibility of reducing or eliminating meat consumption,” said SVB president Mônica Buava. “The survey confirms that there is a growing awareness about the impact of diet on health, the environment and respect for animals.”

    brazil meat consumption
    Courtesy: Sociedade Vegetariana Brasileira

    Plant-based eating led by Indigenous and older populations

    Conducted by the Datafolha Institute on behalf of the Brazilian Vegetarian Society (SVB), the research polled over 2,000 consumers in December, exploring dietary drivers in the country.

    When asked if they’ve ever tried to stop eating meat, 22% of the respondents said yes, with women and residents in the northern part of the country more likely to do so.

    Apart from health, there are other major drivers, too, with 43% saying they’re open to reducing or cutting out meat because of its impact on the environment. This is key since the food system makes up nearly three-quarters of Brazil’s overall greenhouse gas emissions. Another 42% say they’d stop eating meat to protect animal welfare.

    Meanwhile, 7% of Brazilians either fully or partially agree that they’re vegan, a share that’s similar amongst both women and men. People in the south are the least likely to follow a plant-based diet, as are those in the higher income brackets and Gen Z respondents.

    People aged 60 and above more commonly eat a plant-rich diet (9%) than other age groups, and the same rings true for Indigenous populations (10%).

    brazil vegano
    Courtesy: Sociedade Vegetariana Brasileira

    Latin America’s growing appetite for plants

    While it is home to industry pioneers like NotCo and Future Farm, Latin America has typically lagged behind regions like North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific when it comes to building a domestic alternative protein ecosystem.

    Recent data shows that this may be changing, with frequent consumption of meat-free food declining by at least five points in the latter three markets between 2023 and 2024. In fact, 15% of Latin American consumers now eat vegetarian food regularly, higher than the share in Asia-Pacific (14%) and North America (13%).

    Further, Latin America is the region most open to meat analogues. It’s probably why retail sales of meat and seafood analogues in Brazil increased by 38% in 2023 (reaching $226M), with the country host to the largest Meatless Monday movement globally.

    According to the Good Food Institute, 36% of Brazilians reduced their red meat intake between 2023 and 2024, mainly due to health detriments and high costs. Catering to these trends, there are around 240 meat-free restaurants in Brazil and over 3,200 establishments with at least one vegan option.

    In fact, interest in plant-based eating has remained steady over the past few years here, with SVB-commissioned research from 2018 showing that 14% of Brazilians identified as vegetarian, and 60% indicated they would eat more plant-based food if it were cheaper.

    That the climate argument resonates with over two in five Brazilians is a positive sign too. According to one study, a 40% cut in beef consumption between 2022 and 2050 in Brazil could prevent 65,000 sq km of deforestation and mitigate up to 2.8 gigatonnes of CO2e, representing a third of the world’s potential mitigation from dietary changes.

    The post Brazilians Cool on Beef as Health Risks Take Precedence appeared first on Green Queen.

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  • EU Grants €50M Loan for Swedish Ag Giant to Build Pea Protein Factory for Meat Alternatives

    lantmannen pea protein
    4 Mins Read

    The European Investment Bank has provided Swedish agricultural cooperative Lantmännen with €50M in part financing for a pea protein isolate factory.

    Lantmännen, Sweden’s largest farmer cooperative, has received a big boost from the EU to build a large-scale plant protein facility and supply ingredients to makers of meat and dairy alternatives.

    The European Investment Bank (EIB), which is owned by EU member states, has handed a €50M ($55M) loan to Lantmännen to help fund the construction of a new pea protein isolate factory in Sweden’s Lidköping municipality. The financing will cover about half of the project’s cost.

    The investment aims to strengthen the EU’s food security and reduce its reliance on imported plant proteins, amid calls for a diversifying the bloc’s protein supply in the face of the climate crisis.

    All of the EIB’s investments are aligned with the goals of the Paris Agreement, with 60% of its annual financing supporting projects directly contributing to climate change mitigation and adaptation.

    Lantmannen factory to process 40,000 tonnes of peas annually

    lantmannen lidkoping
    Courtesy: Lantmännen

    Described as Sweden’s first such facility, it was announced last year, with Lantmännen – owned and governed by 17,000 farmers – earmarking an investment of 1.2 billion Swedish kronor ($116M).

    The site would be able to process up to 40,000 tonnes of peas grown by the group’s members every year, producing around 7,000 tonnes of protein. It’s expected to be completed in the first half of 2027, and contribute up to 30 new jobs in the region.

    It will produce plant proteins for use in applications like protein bars, drinks, breads, as well as non-dairy alternatives and meat analogues. The group explains that peas and beans are climate-smart, versatile crops that require relatively little water and nutrients, and benefit biodiversity.

    Lantmännen argues that ramping up the use of Swedish-grown legumes could help lower the share of imported soy in the region’s food production, bolstering both Sweden and the EU’s sustainability goals.

    “It is gratifying that the European Investment Bank sees the long-term value in our investment in the food of the future – plant-based protein – and chooses to support our facility in Lidköping,” said Lantmännen CFO Michael Sigsfors.

    “Promoting exports and increasing food production leads not only to increased profitability for farmers but also to more robust food security. It is a fine and important assignment, and I am pleased that the European Investment Bank supports our work with this.”

    In addition to the facility, the group is working with Örebro University’s PAN Sweden research centre on a state-funded plant protein project and has partnered with ingredient giant Ingredion to speed up the development of pea protein isolates. Moreover, it is part of a consortium with the Chalmers University of Technology and dairy leader Arla, which is focused on advancing fermentation research and developing hybrid foods.

    EU steps up protein diversification efforts

    eu plant based report
    Courtesy: Dimarik/Getty Image, Alessandro0770/Getty Images, Canva AI | Composite by Green Queen

    For the EU, the Lantmännen loan is its latest effort to boost self-sufficiency in plant proteins, promote climate-friendly farming, and lower agriculture’s planetary impact.

    It comes as EU decision-makers are asked to accurate the protein transition towards plants, given the animal agriculture industry’s outsized impact on the planet. Livestock farming accounts for 81-86% of agricultural emissions in the EU, despite only providing 35% of its calories and 65% of its protein supply.

    Farmer groups and climate activists have both urged the EU Commission to deliver an action plan for plant-based food in its agrifood vision, a call backed by doctors, consumer groups, and even some of the largest food companies. While the Commission did not make that commitment in the final plan, it has pledged to create a protein diversification strategy to address the EU’s protein supply challenges.

    “It will focus on fostering the domestic production to improve self-sufficiency to reduce the long-standing dependency on imported plant-based protein and on diversifying imports of plant-based protein to increase the EU food security,” Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen wrote in a letter last month.

    The EU, meanwhile, has been doubling down on its future food investments through various initiatives. It spotlighted several startups at EIT Food’s flagship Next Bite event last year, has included a number of alternative protein firms in its accelerator programmes, and invested €50M in precision-fermented and algae-based foods via the European Innovation Council.

    This is part of the EU’s broader leadership in research funding for alternative proteins. Since 2020, the region has pumped in €252M for future food research, half of which came in 2023 and early 2024, according to GFI Europe.

    “By supporting Lantmännen’s investment in the production of pea protein, we are strengthening both food security and climate work in Sweden and the EU,” said Thoman Östros, vice president of the EIB. “It is also a very good example of how European cooperation can create local benefits.”

    The post EU Grants €50M Loan for Swedish Ag Giant to Build Pea Protein Factory for Meat Alternatives appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Could Extended Reality Be A Silver Bullet for Plant-Based Meat?

    augmented reality food
    4 Mins Read

    Researchers in Finland are using extended reality to create a multisensory eating experience and enhance the appeal of plant-based meat alternatives.

    Forget CRISPR, fermentation or 3D printing – maybe all we need to improve the taste and texture of meat analogues are just a fork and a headset.

    Scientists at Finland’s Tampere University and the VTT Technical Research Centre are proposing the use of extended reality (XR) to make climate-conscious food even more attractive to consumers.

    XR includes all environments where reality means the virtual world, including augmented reality, virtual reality, and mixed reality. In the study published in the Journal on Multimodal User Interfaces, the researchers argue that this technology can artificially modify human sensations, helping sweeten the appeal of meat-free products.

    “This could be one way of facilitating more ecologically diverse food production and, at the same time, encouraging people to eat healthier,” said Roope Raisamo, a human technology interaction professor at Tampere University.

    XR meatballs feel heavier, bigger, and more filling

    augmented reality in food industry
    Courtesy: TAUCHI

    Raisamo has been supported by funding from the Research Council of Finland for research on XR in different applications for over two decades. In this project, he teamed up with VTT’s Nesli Sözer and colleagues to create eating experiences and new food products that would boost satiety and pleasure while being kind to the planet.

    The team developed a multisensory augmentation system for the project, which comprised an XR headset, a prototype olfactory necklace display, and a fork that can provide haptic feedback and contains a visual QR code marker.

    This system made it possible to augment different food products that could be eaten with the fork. The headset and necklace helped alter the size, appearance and scent of the food item where needed, while the fork was used to modify the perceived weight of the dish to investigate how this plays into people’s perception of feeling full.

    “The premise was to bring two previously rarely collaborating disciplines together to do something completely new,” Raisamo explained. He and his colleagues then conducted an experiment with 40 participants, who ate plant-based meatballs made from pea protein, and blended meatballs containing chicken, beef, pork, and soy protein.

    They found that introducing meat-like flavours and fragrances to the plant-based balls changed the eating experience. The augmented meatballs were perceived as bigger and heavier, but taste-testers did not notice a stronger aroma. They found the scent of the modified vegan meatballs less appealing than the non-augmented versions, and the impact on taste perception and overall experience was similar.

    Multisensory changes could help alt-protein perception

    extended reality food
    Courtesy: Natalia Karhu/TAUCHI

    One of the study’s limitations was the requirement of the fork, which meant the experiment couldn’t really be tested on foods traditionally eaten without it, such as a burger or a chicken nugget.

    But the researchers argued that the study could have significant implications for food manufacturers, especially those exploring alternative proteins. It may, for example, lead to foods like seaweed becoming more widely used in food preparation.

    “The positive ratings for haptic and visual augmentations imply that adding multisensory enhancements can elevate the perception of food items. This could be a pivotal strategy for industries aiming to promote plant-based alternatives by making them as appealing and tasty as the traditional meat-based products,” the study stated.

    “By leveraging multisensory augmentations, businesses might be able to drive consumer preference towards more sustainable and environmentally friendly food options,” it added, noting that the results could also help design experiences to mitigate food waste – another major climate change contributor.

    “The results allow for the optimal use of extended reality systems through human-AI cooperation. We measure cognitive responses, task completion and user experience when a user interacts with an AI-based extended reality,” explained Raisamo.

    “We combine cognitive space modelling, detection, personalisation and forecasting with modelling, contextual awareness and adapting interaction methods,” he said, adding that XR-based olfactory and haptic sensations could be used in marketing in the future too, with multisensory modules that can be added to users’ devices.”

    “Once the XR headsets become lighter everyday products with multisensory stimulation capabilities, there is a promise that they may be used to facilitate healthier and more sustainable food choices while ensuring enjoyable eating experiences,” the study said.

    The post Could Extended Reality Be A Silver Bullet for Plant-Based Meat? appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • 5 Minutes with A Future Food VC: Grey Silo Ventures’s Matteo Leonardi

    matteo leonardi
    2 Mins Read

    In our interview series, we quiz future food investors about the solutions that excite them the most, their favourite climate-forward restaurant, and what they look for in successful founders.

    Matteo Leonardi is an Investment Manager at Grey Silo Ventures.

    What future food technologies most excite you?

    Precision fermentation: the whole concept of leveraging microorganisms to produce complex compounds is simply fascinating.

    What are three future food verticals you are actively looking at for 2025?

    1. New crop and genetic variety discovery and/or domestication
    2. Sugar replacement
    3. Soil restoration tech

    What do you consider the food tech sector’s greatest achievement in the past five years?

    Globally, introducing the first cultivated products in the market.

    If you could wave a magic wand, how would you fix plant-based meat?

    I wouldn’t call this fixing, just as I would not call it plant-based “meat”, as these products deserve their own definition and category.

    If there’s one thing I’d like to adjust, though, that is the flavour profile, to make it a bit more complex and longer-lasting.

    What’s the top trait you look for in a founder?

    Relentlessness, drive, and the ability to look at the grand scheme of things without losing touch with the real world.

    The One That Got Away: What is the deal you wish you had gotten into, but didn’t?

    Planet A Foods. We were super late to the party, and the round turned out to be much bigger than planned. Luckily, another great company in the sector came after them (Foreverland), which we invested in.

    What do you consider your most successful future food investment so far?

    xFarm Technologies (also the first).

    What has been your most disappointing investment so far?

    Quite proudly, none. We have a limited portfolio of companies (seven) as we are not forced to invest as a conventional VC following investment/divestment periods, allowing us to invest only when we build strong conviction. Luckily (and kudos to them), the founders we partnered with are all performing according to the plan.

    What do people misunderstand/get wrong most about VC?

    Timing plays a much bigger impact than anything else.

    What is the most ‘future food’ thing you have eaten this month?

    Gotta be the new version of Choruba, Foreverland’s chocolate alternative made with carobs.

    Where is your favourite climate-forward restaurant/dish/place to eat anywhere in the world?

    I’ll stick to my roots: a simple pasta al pomodoro. Quality ingredients, tasty, and climate-friendly.

    What’s your ‘why’? What motivates you to do what you do?

    Working with ambitious people trying to change the planet we live on for the best. No matter what you’re working on, if you are an entrepreneur in our field, you might not always get our money, but you surely (for what it’s worth) have my complete esteem.

    The post 5 Minutes with A Future Food VC: Grey Silo Ventures’s Matteo Leonardi appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Heura & Swap Say Collaboration – Not Competition – Is the Future of Plant-Based Meat

    6 Mins Read

    Spanish plant-based meat leader Heura Foods and French vegan whole-cut specialist Swap Food have teamed up to launch a Suprême chicken fillet in three European markets.

    With an aim to “revolutionise the plant-based fillet experience”, Heura and Swap (formerly Umiami) have linked up to introduce a whole-cut chicken breast.

    The Suprême fillet is rolling out in over 2,000 supermarkets in France (including Carrefour, Leclerc, Monoprix, Intermarché, and Super U), 1,000 stores in Spain, as well as retailers in Portugal. It enables Heura to expand its product range and Swap to enter the mass retail market in Europe.

    “The biggest challenges aren’t solved alone,” Laurent Gubbels, global head of content at Heura, told Green Queen. “While it might be natural to see other plant-based companies as competitors, that’s not how we see it. We see them as mission partners. When we collaborate, when we improve the offer together, everyone wins: the market, the companies, the consumers, the planet, and the animals.”

    He added: “From the moment we met Swap, we knew this could be one of those rare, game-changing moments.”

    Christel Delasson, VP of sales and marketing at Swap, said: “We have joined forces with a common goal – to break the mould by offering products that appeal equally to meat lovers, flexitarians, vegans, and vegetarians. With this launch, our expertise can reach a wider audience and introduce more consumers to a new way of enjoying plant-based food.”

    Bidding adieu to dry vegan chicken

    swap chicken vegan
    Courtesy: Swap Food

    The new fillet boasts a clean-label, additive-free recipe with 20g of protein per serving, offering nutritional values “comparable to a traditional chicken fillet”. It also has a Nutri-Score rating of A. It’s made from water, soy protein (22%), sunflower oil, natural flavours, pea protein flour, citric acid, and salt.

    “A product like this was missing from the plant-based market, a fillet that’s remarkably close to chicken in both taste and texture, made with just seven natural ingredients,” said Gubbels. “All the good, but without trans fats, cholesterol and filled with fibre. It’s something truly unique.”

    He continued: “Thanks to the complementarity of our expertise, we were able to co-develop a product that combines natural ingredients, pleasure, and accessibility, on a European scale.”

    The “tender and juicy” product is manufactured in France, and can be breaded, grilled, fried or braised, and aims to provide home cooks with both indulgence and an easy-to-prep ingredient. Both brands are leaning into the textural characteristics, noting that solving the “dryness” of vegan chicken was one of the main reasons they collaborated.

    “We wanted to make you believe it was just like chicken. Same shape. Same taste. Same crispiness,” the brands said in one marketing poster. “But we failed to recreate… chicken’s dryness. Our fillet is juicy. Tender. Enjoyable. A real shame, honestly,” they added ironically.

    heura chicken
    Courtesy: Heura Foods

    Research has shown that Europeans want their vegan chicken to be more tender and have a uniform texture. However, only 18% are avoiding animal products today, and taste is a detractor for 37% of these consumers when it comes to plant-based meat.

    That said, 29% of them are cutting back on meat, presenting an opportunity for brands that can meet consumer preferences. In France, too, while the government continues to battle plant-based meat, six in 10 citizens aren’t familiar with vegan alternatives to meat, and nearly half (44%) feel they don’t taste as good.

    It’s why the Heura-Swap chicken is targeting not just vegans, but flexitarians and meat-eaters too. “This collaboration allows us to continue offering excellent products without compromise, with superior nutritional quality and a positive impact on the planet,” said Heura co-founder and CEO Marc Coloma.

    Swap targets home market with Heura link-up

    swap plant based meat
    Courtesy: Swap

    The companies called the collaboration a “turning point” for each of their European ambitions. Swap, which has raised $107M so far, uses its Umisation texturising platform to produce whole-muscle replicas of conventional fillets like chicken and fish. This involves a technique that transforms plant proteins into structured fibres without high heat or pressure.

    The technology allows the startup to produce plant-based meat with minimal ingredients, with the chicken using eight ingredients and no artificial flavours, colourants or texturisers.

    It operates a 14,000 sq m facility in the Alsace region, which can produce 7,500 tonnes of plant-based meat annually, eventually rising to 20,000 tonnes.

    Last year, it entered the US foodservice sector, with its chicken fillet appearing on the menu of several Chicago eateries, including Majani, The Chicago Diner, Spirit Elephant, Soul Veg City, Duke’s Alehouse, and Clucker’s Charcoal Chicken.

    Swap Chicken was the recipient of a Tasty Award by sensory-based research firm Nectar last month, signalling that more than half of taste-testing omnivores found it to taste the same or better than animal protein.

    Heura teases chicken burger and two ‘game-changing’ launches

    heura
    Courtesy: Heura

    Heura, meanwhile, claims it’s responsible for four of the five bestselling vegan products in Spain. In 2023, it grew sales by 22%, reaching €38.3M, and it’s charting a path to profitability this year.

    Having raised €88M to date, its products are available in more than 20,000 stores in 20 countries. After Spain, France is its second-largest market, where its sales hiked by 88% in 2023. “With over 2,000 points of sale, French consumers will now have access to this new innovation,” Coloma said of the Suprême chicken fillet.

    “It also meets the expectations of French consumers, who are increasingly incorporating plant-based foods into their diets,” he added. Indeed, despite the lack of familiarity, a quarter of French people eat meat and dairy alternatives weekly, and 14% do so several times a week – a three-point increase from 2022 and 2023.

    The Spanish startup is now working on vegan cold cuts, cheese, and pasta as well, aiming to tackle a wider range of categories with nutrient-dense alternatives and entice a larger share of consumers dissatisfied with ultra-processed foods. “They’re currently in development,” said Gubbels. While he did not share a timeline, he suggested that they have already undergone some taste tests.

    This is Heura’s second launch this year, following the chicken chunks it introduced in February. “This month, we’re also launching a ‘chicken-style’ burger, and two more game-changing products are lined up for summer,” he revealed.

    “2025 will be a transformative year for Heura. Last year was all about laying the foundation – we didn’t launch new products, but we developed patents and improved our current products. And this year, we’re set to see the results. Our goal is clear: to become profitable and prove to the world that a plant-based meat company can stay and succeed.”

    The post Heura & Swap Say Collaboration – Not Competition – Is the Future of Plant-Based Meat appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Future Food Quick Bites: CO2 Ice Cream, Cocoa-Free Chocolate & A Tri

    solein ice cream
    5 Mins Read

    Our weekly column rounds up the latest sustainable food innovation news. This week, Future Food Quick Bites covers Ajinomoto and Solar Foods’s latest product launch, Unity Diner’s return, and a new meat-free omakase experience in Hong Kong.

    New products and launches

    Japanese food giant Ajinomoto‘s Atlr.72 brand has released its latest product range featuring Solar Foods‘s Solein gas protein in Singapore. The Flowering Ice Creams come in vanilla and mochi (which contains dairy), chocolate and lemon peel, and salted caramel and nuts (both non-dairy) flavours, and can be found at the brand’s food truck.

    ajinomoto solein
    Courtesy: Atlr.72

    Nurasa, the sustainable food innovation platform owned by Temasek, will unveil NuFood Concept Studio, an innovation platform designed to speed up the commercialisation of healthier products, at the FHA-Food & Beverage 2025 event in Singapore (April 8-11). Here, it will showcase a blended meat product made with Quality Meat‘s Q Protein, featuring lower cholesterol and higher fibre.

    In the UK, Earthling Ed-owned Unity Diner is returning to London just two months after shutting down. The vegan restaurant had successful negotiations with its landlords, allowing it to open doors again later this week (April 4). It will also open a carvery on April 20.

    Meanwhile, plant-based leaders Beyond Meat and La Vie have collaborated on a joint marketing campaign with a new ad, with the brands offering a BBQ burger recipe and directing consumers to Honest Burger to try the Bacon Plant 2.0.

    San Diego-based CV Sciences Inc has expanded its plant-based portfolio with Lunar Fox Food Co, a new brand that sells animal-free alternatives to meat, cheese, and eggs. It’s also the owner of vegan egg and cheese maker Cultured Foods.

    lunar fox food co
    Courtesy: Lunar Fox Food Co

    Seafood chain Wintzell’s Oyster House has introduced Plant Based Seafood Co‘s Mind Blown range to its menu. It will offer vegan oysters, crispy fried shrimp, and crab cakes as salad toppings, entrées, and sandwich fillings.

    Brooklyn-based upcycled snack brand B-Sides has launched vegan Crunch Puffs made from the leftover pulp from oat milk production. They’re available in Cheddar, ranch and jalapeño flavours, and can be found on its website, Amazon, or independent retailers in New York City.

    choviva
    Courtesy: Planet A Foods

    German cocoa-free chocolate player Planet A Foods has expanded in three markets ahead of Easter: it’s co-launching eight products featuring ChoViva with chocolate maker Abtey in France, two innovations with retailers Lidl and Penny in Germany, and a new offering in the UK in collaboration with Wawi Schokoladen.

    Fellow cocoa-free chocolate maker Foreverland has released a 240g Easter egg featuring its carob-based Choruba alternative, in collaboration with chocolate giant Dulciar.

    foreverland
    Courtesy: Foreverland

    Israeli 3D-printed meat producer Redefine Meat has gained a listing at Rami Levy Hashikma Marketing, the country’s third-largest retail chain. Its New-Meat lineup of steaks, sausages, kebabs, and shawramas are available at all 57 branches.

    Hong Kong restaurant Niwa has introduced a Vegetarian Omakase Menu, featuring 14 items – from a tofu-pickle wafer and balsamic vinegar tomato to black truffle somen and mushroom sushi – for HK$780 ($100).

    vegan restaurants hong kong
    Courtesy: Niwa

    And in more good news for vegans in Hong Kong, famed meat-free dim sum restaurant Veggie Kingdom has opened its second site at Causeway Bay for perfect plant-based yum cha.

    Company and finance developments

    In a sign of the cultivated meat industry’s scalability potential, Australia’s Vow claims to have broken a world record by harvesting 20,000 litres of cell culture through its Andromeda bioreactor.

    differential bio
    Courtesy: Differential Bio

    Fellow Munich-based startup Differential Bio has emerged from stealth with €2M ($2.2M) in pre-seed funding to advance its Virtual Scale-up Platform for biomanufacturing firms, which combines advanced microbiology, lab automation, and artificial intelligence.

    French vegan seafood brand Olala! has ceased operations after three years, citing a lack of sufficient turnover. The company said it hadn’t found its market, and its industrial model needed a market dynamic.

    After completing its purchase of a 26-acre piece of land in Jefferson, Wisconsin for $777,000, Finnish precision fermentation firm Onego Bio is expected to spend $250-300M to build its new facility for animal-free egg proteins, set to be operational in 2028.

    vegan marbled steak
    Courtesy: Melt&Marble

    Swedish precision-fermented fat producer Melt&Marble has hired veteran pharma leader Tue Hodal as its first CTO, and Paulo Teixeira (formerly at Mycorena) as product manager.

    Californian biotech startup Triplebar has announced Shawn Manchester as its new CEO, who has been promoted from his role as COO. He takes over from outgoing chief Maria Cho.

    British vegan meal startup Planty, meanwhile, has appointed Samuel Rodriguez as head chef and Mimi Phillip as a freelance development chef – both used to work at rival firm Allplants, whose assets are now split between Plants (by Deliciously Ella‘s founders) and Grubby.

    UK vegan charity Viva! has hit its £400,000 crowdfunding target and secured screenings in 300 cinemas for its 62-second Dairy is Scary ad.

    Policy and awards

    Speaking of British non-profits, The Vegan Society has announced Libby Peppiatt as its new CEO. She will take over from interim chief Abbey Mann on May 14.

    Also in the UK, the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology has awarded £1.4M to the Food Standards Agency to support a new innovation hub for foods made via precision fermentation, another step towards novel food leadership for the country.

    new york city hospitals vegan
    Courtesy: NYC Health + Hospitals

    New York City’s Health + Hospitals programme has now served over two million plant-based meals to patients since it began in 2023, with 900,000 dishes served in 2024 alone. The initiative has a 90% satisfaction rate, and has reduced emissions by 36% and costs by 59 cents per meal.

    Finally, mycelium protein maker 50Cut (formerly Mush Foods), which is focused on blended meat, has been named the 2025 FABI Favorites Award Winner at the National Restaurant Association Show.

    Check out last week’s Future Food Quick Bites.

    The post Future Food Quick Bites: CO2 Ice Cream, Cocoa-Free Chocolate & A Tri appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Protein Shift: This One Change Could Create 70,000 Jobs in the US

    plant based economy
    5 Mins Read

    Amid trade wars and a potential recession, the solution to a strong US economy could simply be on your plate.

    Can more plants equal more jobs? That’s the central argument from a new report suggesting that the US could create tens of thousands of roles and witness an economic boost by simply making plant-based food more common.

    While only around 5% of Americans identify as vegan or vegetarian, strengthening the economy is the policy priority for 73% of them. Nearly half (49%) say improving the job situation should be top of mind of the president and Congress.

    Analysis from BW Research Partnership and Faunalytics suggests that over the next 15 years, making plant-based milk, meat and eggs a more regular occurrence in shopping carts can bolster employment and economy alike.

    The researchers compared two scenarios – one with a moderate shift towards vegan products and another with a more significant transition – with the rate at which these foods are consumed today.

    With moderate growth, the US could see thousands of new jobs, with the affected industries contributing 0.3% more to the GDP, 0.2% more to total tax revenues, and 0.4% more to the overall labour income. But under the larger growth model, the country would open up tens of thousands of jobs, with the industry’s GDP share up by 4%, tax revenue by 2%, and labour income by 4%.

    “Despite the prevalence of animal products in US diets, the continued dominance of animal agriculture is not integral to the health of the country’s economy,” lead author Zach Wulderk wrote. “Indeed, this analysis predicts that the economy may perform better if the US moved away from animal agriculture.”

    Moderate growth of plant-based foods only brings minimal change

    plant based food market share
    Courtesy: Faunalytics

    According to SPINS data crunched by the Good Food Institute, plant-based milk takes up a 14.5% share in the overall milk industry. Meat alternatives, meanwhile, comprise 0.9% of the market, and vegan eggs are responsible for a 0.4% share of their respective category.

    Under this new report’s moderate growth scenario, the market shares of plant-based milk, meat and egg would be 20.8%, 1.8%, and 0.8%, respectively. It would mean that Americans spend $4.4B on non-dairy milk, $2.5B on meat analogues, and $90M on chicken-free eggs.

    However, this would only have a minimal impact on the US economy, despite sales of plant-based milk growing by 40% and meat and egg alternatives selling twice as fast. The affected industries would require over 7,000 more jobs than in the baseline scenario, making the change in employment negligible, according to the authors.

    plant based jobs
    Courtesy: Faunalytics

    The most affected industry is plant-based agriculture, which would see 13,000 new jobs as key inputs like soybeans would need to be scaled up. Meanwhile, the construction sector would add nearly 2,200 jobs in line with this capacity expansion. On the other hand, livestock farming and non-plant-based manufacturing would lose about 5,600 and 3,100 jobs, respectively.

    As things stand, industries affected by plant-based food would contribute $216B to the national GDP, and this would only rise to $217B with moderate growth. This minimal change is also seen in total labour income, which would increase by just $440M under this scenario.

    “Despite being small percentages, each of these changes represents tens of millions of dollars or more,” the report noted. “They show that the ripple effects of a small increase in the popularity of plant-based foods can have noteworthy benefits to the US economy and government revenue.

    Significant expansion of plant proteins key to economic benefits

    plant based food jobs
    Courtesy: Faunalytics

    The true potential of a plant-based transition can be seen under the more optimistic growth model. Here, plant-based products would account for half of the milk market, surpassing $10B in annual sales, and the share of vegan eggs would rise to 6.4% with $680M in sales.

    Meat analogues, meanwhile, would rack up over $20B in sales with a 14.5% share (which means they would be as popular 15 years from now as plant-based milk is today).

    All this would point to a remarkably different average American diet, which would result in nearly 70,000 new jobs (a 3.45% increase from the baseline). Plant-based agriculture would add 137,000 roles, though this would come at the expense of animal agriculture and its related manufacturing sector, which would lose a combined 100,500 jobs.

    In addition, this scenario will help boost these industries’ GDP contribution to $224B. While this is just a tiny fraction of the total GDP (which was $29T in 2024), each scenario still accounts for well over $200B, making plant-based food’s contributions “still quite sizeable”.

    Significant growth in plant-based consumption would also help increase labour income by $4.95B, reaching a total of $126.2B. “A larger shift toward plant-based eating would result in comparably larger positive changes in economic indicators,” the study read. “The more plants the US eats, the more its economy will grow.”

    plant based gdp
    Courtesy: Faunalytics

    Some fallout is unavoidable, though policy support can ease the transition

    The researchers pointed out that plant-based jobs may not be interchangeable with those in the animal agriculture industry. For example, most of America’s milk comes from California, Wisconsin, Idaho, Texas and New York – but plant-based producer Oatly only has facilities in Utah, Texas and New Jersey.

    “Workers who lose their jobs in California or Wisconsin can’t simply relocate to Utah to take a job at an Oatly facility there,” they said. “On the agricultural side, someone who has spent their life working on chicken farms in Arkansas can’t simply pivot to oat farming in Minnesota – the skills required in the non-plant-based milk industry may be quite different from those needed in the plant-based milk industry.”

    So even if the total number of jobs increases with the protein transition, some workers will be negatively impacted, which the report called an “unavoidable result of reshaping the economy”. That said, building plant protein factories and providing training in areas already home to animal production could allow for an easier transition.

    Support from stakeholders at the federal, state and local levels is therefore crucial. The report said industry advocates should lobby policymakers and business leaders to invest more in plant-based R&D to make these products tastier, cheaper, and more accessible, as well as craft policy proposals and encourage public opinion in favour of animal-free diets.

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  • Aussie Investment Firm Rescues Leading Plant Protein Manufacturer to Protect Jobs & Farmers

    australian plant proteins
    5 Mins Read

    Australian Plant Proteins, which went into insolvency last year, has been acquired by investment firm My Co and will resume operations next month.

    My Co, the investment vehicle of the Paule Family Office, has taken over Melbourne-based manufacturer Australian Plant Proteins (APP), 10 months after it went into voluntary administration.

    The move is said to support local farmers, protect jobs, and reinforce Australia’s status as a plant-based leader, with APP co-founder Phil McFarlane continuing as CEO. Fellow founder Brendan McKeegan has exited the company, according to information on LinkedIn.

    “APP is a natural fit into our investment portfolio and complementary to our Biocheese and Meliora plant-based businesses,” My Co CEO Vicky Pappas told Green Queen.

    She added: “APP will be fully operating in May 2025, and we will take the opportunity to first assess all areas of the business before embarking on further investment for exponential growth.”

    Why Australian Plant Proteins went insolvent

    australian plant proteins liquidation
    Courtesy: Australian Plant Proteins

    APP, which was founded in 2020, was the first firm to develop plant protein isolates in Australia. It entered insolvency in June, with industry experts blaming a lack of government support rather than a company failure.

    At the time, Simon Eassom, CEO of alternative protein think tank Food Frontier, called it “a warning that building a long-term sustainable industry takes time, ongoing investment, and commitment from government”.

    APP’s insolvency, he said, resigned Australian manufacturers to “relying on the importation of soybean concentrates and protein ingredients, often of variable quality and suitability” and put the country at risk of deepening its reliance on imports instead of becoming a leading exporter of innovative foods.

    “We hope that APP finds a buyer before it’s too late but, really, the support needs to come from government,” Eassom said in July.

    My Co, which focuses on agrifood and biotech startups at seed and Series A stages, has now swooped in to do just that. Pappas said APP’s insolvency was caused by “a variety of contributing factors exacerbated by tough economic conditions”.

    “The fundamentals of the business are sound with an exceptional, high-quality product,” she told Green Queen. “My Co has a long track record of successfully working with businesses like APP with a hands-on approach.”

    In a statement in the announcement, she added: “The potential of APP is immense. Its game-changing technology aligns with our vision of fostering innovation in the food sector and contributes to a sustainable future. We are excited about expanding APP’s capabilities and enhancing its presence in both domestic and international markets.”

    New products and capacity expansion planned

    plant protein isolate
    Courtesy: Australian Plant Proteins

    Operating the largest plant protein fractionation facility in Australia, APP manufactures protein isolates from locally grown faba beans, yellow peas, lentils, mung beans and other pulses.

    It uses a proprietary membrane extraction technology to create the ingredients, which boast more than 85% protein content. The isolates offer superior functional properties, including enhanced fortification, solubility, and texture, plus a neutral flavour, and can be used in numerous plant-based applications like dairy, bakery, nutrition, beverage, and meat alternatives.

    MacFarlane suggested that APP’s unique extraction process “differentiates it from other plant protein manufacturers” globally. “Unlike conventional methods that often rely on harsh chemicals or enzymes, APP extracts protein from pulses using a clean, non-solvent method,” he said.

    The process allows APP to manufacture plant protein isolates at scale and help food and beverage companies tailor their plant-based alternatives, meeting consumer demand and bridging the sensory gap with animal proteins. Its plant protein isolate powder even won the Best Ingredient honour at the 2024 Hive Awards.

    For My Co, integrating APP into its existing portfolio will enhance the latter’s operational efficiencies and marketing strategies, allowing it to double down on developing new products for evolving consumer needs.

    APP already has plans to kickstart several projects – including establishing a fibre and starch processing facility – which will increase its production capacity and diversify its product offerings.

    “This is more than just an acquisition; it’s about creating a sustainable future for food production,” said Pappas. “By acquiring APP, we are shaping the future of plant-based innovation in Australia and beyond.”

    A topsy-turvy plant-based sector down under

    australian plant proteins
    Courtesy: Food Frontier

    APP’s insolvency last year came amid several stories of alternative protein startups – both locally and overseas – ceasing operations, or coming close to it.

    Last year, New South Wales-based ProForm Foods – the company behind the Meet range of plant-based analogues – wound down after entering voluntary administration, and vegan burger chain Flave shut its doors too. Meanwhile, New Zealand’s Sunfed Meats ceased operations after nearly a decade in operation.

    The Aussie Plant Based Co also went into liquidation in October, before being swiftly acquired by Queensland’s Smart Foods eight days later.

    All this came amid a backdrop of a 59% hike in wholesale demand for plant-based meat in foodservice in 2023, and a 1% drop in annual retail sales between 2020 and 2023. Research by Food Frontier shows meat analogues are yet to reach 65% of Australia’s population. And of those who have tried them, only 22% say they’d buy them again, signalling a gap in consumer liking, and an uphill battle for brands in the space.

    However, with two in five Australians identifying either reducing or not consuming meat at all in 2024 (with 22% identifying as ‘meat reducers’), the opportunity is ripe for plant-based companies to attract this market. Can My Co help APP do so?

    The post Aussie Investment Firm Rescues Leading Plant Protein Manufacturer to Protect Jobs & Farmers appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Trend Report: From Syrups to Cereal, Protein is Everywhere – These Startups Make Sure It Doesn’t Cost the Earth

    protein syrup
    6 Mins Read

    We may be overconsuming protein, but the global appetite for the nutrient shows continues to grow – and future food brands are listening.

    Protein-enhanced coffee may have been around for a few years, but how often do you find protein in your simple syrup?

    Brands are continuing to find ways to deliver America’s favourite macronutrient. The number of people trying to consume more protein has been steadily increasing in the US, from 59% in 2022 and 67% in 2023 to 71% in 2024, according to a 3,000-person survey.

    The same poll found that 94% of these consumers source protein from foods and 25% from beverages, compared to just 18% who rely on supplements. At the same time, a quarter of Americans are concerned about the health impact of animal proteins.

    This has left future food brands – those producing proteins from plants, microbes, animal cells, or even air – with a huge opportunity. And it seems like they’re listening.

    Can protein syrups change the game for coffee?

    the every company egg
    Courtesy: The Every Company

    At the Future Food-Tech event in San Francisco (March 13-14), California’s The Every Company showcased its new protein syrup to attendees.

    The startup uses precision fermentation to make recombinant egg proteins, and has received a ‘no questions’ letter from the Food and Drug Administration for three proteins, including Every EggWhite (which contains animal-free ovalbumin) and a nearly transparent Every Protein (bioidentical to glycoprotein).

    Last year, at the IFT Expo Startup Pavilion, The Every Company unveiled Every OvoBoost, a neutral-tasting, colourless protein ingredient with low viscosity and zero sugar. This was exhibited in a protein syrup for cold brew coffee.

    This evolved into the Dash Protein Syrup seen at all coffee stations at Future Food-Tech this month. The sweetener contains 5g of recombinant egg protein per ounce, with the added benefit of being sugar-free.

    “The enthusiasm around our protein syrup was electrifying, and the feedback we received was nothing short of amazing,” the company noted after the event. And now, it is bringing the ingredient to market.

    “We’re about to pour protein into places it’s never been before,” The Every Company wrote on social media last week. “We’re shaking up the functional beverage category as we introduce the world’s first protein-boosted beverage syrup to consumers.”

    It is launching the syrup as part of a protein mocha and protein matcha latte at wellness retailer Earthbar, where it will be available for a limited time in several locations across California.

    “With OvoBoost, we’ve created a game-changing ‘Protein Pump’ that allows for easy protein-boosting in almost any kind of drink,” said Arturo Elizondo, co-founder and CEO of The Every Company. “Whether it’s black coffee, carbonated soft drinks, tea, water – you can now boost them with protein.”

    He added: Our protein syrup is truly a first-of-kind industry disruptor as consumers continue to demand more convenient ways to add protein to their diets without the added calories, chalkiness, or compromises.”

    A protein expo

    simply protein tortilla chips
    Courtesy: SimplyProtein

    The Every Company’s move to pack protein inside coffee syrups is reflective of the macro trend in the food and beverage industry: if there’s a way to add protein to an everyday food, brands are lining up to do so.

    This was evident at Natural Products Expo West trade show in Anaheim, California last month. Famed wholegrains food brand Bob’s Red Mill expanded its Protein Oats line with an overnight oats range in blueberries and cream and vanilla almond flavours. Interestingly, the protein comes from a particular crop of oats that have been bred to produce higher amounts of the nutrient, as opposed to a separate ingredient.

    Speaking of breakfast, Stoked Oats exhibited its Protein Oat Cereal (which will roll out at Sprouts later this year). The Cheerios-like product line contains 5g of protein per serving. And ChiChi Foods updated its packaging from ‘Grain Free Hot Cereal’ to ‘Protein Hot Cereal’ in response to consumer attitudes – each serving of its chickpea cereal contains 10g of protein.

    Also at Expo West, SimplyProtein unveiled new candy-like bars with 10g of plant protein per 45g serving, as well as two new flavours of its pea-protein-boosted tortilla chips (with 7g of protein per 100g).

    Meanwhile, New York-based brand Crisp Power gave attendees a taste of its patent-pending protein pretzels. Containing wheat protein, carob seed protein, and soy protein isolate, they boast 28g of protein and 36% of your daily recommended intake of fibre per pack.

    Protein for one, protein for all – but what about the climate?

    impossible steak bites
    Courtesy: Impossible Foods

    Americans overconsume protein. Men are eating 31% more than what’s recommended, and women 12%. At the same time, 95% are not getting enough fibre into their diets, which is crucial to their gut microbiome and general wellbeing.

    The protein craze shows no sign of slowing down anytime soon. So one way for companies to give people both what they want (protein) and what they need (fibre) is by focusing on alternative proteins, which have tons more fibre than animal-sourced versions.

    This is the focus of products like Impossible Foods’s new Steak Bites (21g of protein and 3g of fibre per serving), Immi’s vegan cup noodles (18g of protein, 10g of fibre per pack), and Cocojune’s high-protein Greek coconut yoghurts (8g of pea protein, 2g of fibre per 5oz pack) – all of which were featured at Expo West.

    Numerator data shows that the demand for these nutrients will continue to grow, with 39% and 28% of Americans tracking protein and fibre, respectively, more closely in their diets in 2025 (a six-point increase over last year). A survey by Chobani similarly suggested that 85% of Americans want to increase their protein intake this year.

    The protein explosion exposes a significant issue: with consumers demanding more and more protein, what happens to global greenhouse emissions?

    The growing shift towards animal-based foods in the US – think crisps made from chicken breast, tortilla chips fried in tallow, shakes containing bone broth, and raw milk– means more land, more water and more intensive livestock farming.

    Globally, livestock farming accounts for up to a fifth of all emissions and half the world’s farmland, and one recent study called it the leading cause of climate change. Plant-rich diets, on the other hand, can reduce emissions, land use and water pollution by 75% compared to meat-rich diets. Consumers may not see it this way. Sales of plant-based meat, meanwhile, fell by 9% between July 2023 and 2024.

    This is why as food companies rush to meet the skyrocketing appetite for protein, it’s critical to use ingredients and supply chains that don’t take up vast amounts of land and energy or produce as much carbon, methane, and other gases into the atmosphere. The need to decarbonise our protein supply is more important than ever.

    With the upcoming dietary guidelines putting plant proteins above meat and dairy, could alternative protein brands seize that opportunity?

    The post Trend Report: From Syrups to Cereal, Protein is Everywhere – These Startups Make Sure It Doesn’t Cost the Earth appeared first on Green Queen.

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  • Meatable CEO: Uniting Innovation with Tradition is the Way Forward for Sustainable Meat Production

    jeff tripician
    4 Mins Read

    Jeff Tripician is the CEO of Meatable, a Dutch food tech startup working on cultivated pork. A former meat industry exec, he argues that a collaborative approach is the only recipe for success.

    As global demand for meat rises, one thing is clear: the only sustainable path forward is collaboration – between the meat industry, farmers, ranchers, and all those who have long secured our protein supply.

    By combining existing knowledge and infrastructure with new technology, cultivated and conventional meat can work together to make sustainable protein widely available at scale. Cultivated meat isn’t here to replace the industry – it’s here to complement it. Rather than competing, innovation and tradition must join forces to drive the industry forward, benefiting ranchers, businesses, and the environment alike.

    This was the focus of Meatable’s recent global summit, where over 80 industry leaders, meat executives, investors, and policymakers gathered to discuss how cultivated and conventional meat can collaborate to really make a difference.

    The problem

    The problem is undeniable: our current food production system is unsustainable. It harms the climate and depletes vital resources like water and land, and is subject to supply disruptions due to livestock disease, weather conditions and global conflict. If we continue down this path, we won’t be able to feed our growing population without devastating the planet. It’s time to change course and give the Earth a break.

    Farmers, ranchers, and the meat industry face immense pressure to meet the surging global demand for protein with finite land, water, and resources – all while minimising their environmental footprint. By 2050, global protein demand is projected to rise by a staggering 70%, relating to two billion more people needing 2 trillion meals per year, putting even more strain on an industry that is already pushing the limits of efficiency and scale. Therefore, it is becoming increasingly clear that relying solely on conventional methods is neither practical nor sustainable.

    As the Rt Hon Chris Skidmore, former UK Minister of Energy, stated during the event: “Every human being deserves the right to better nutrition, and to protein-rich meals, just as everyone should have the ability to access energy, electricity, or the internet. These are the global goals that sustainability has to deliver: not to ration, nor to restrict the choices and lifestyles of those who have been denied choice or freedom for too long.”

    The solution

    lab grown meat event
    Courtesy: Meatable

    Instead of competing in a zero-sum game, the meat industry has an opportunity to evolve by embracing cultivated meat as part of the solution. By incorporating this technology we can alleviate the burden on farmers and ranchers to continuously increase production under volatile market conditions. Rather than forcing a binary choice between traditional and cultivated meat, cultivated meat will be able to provide additional supply, so the industry can use both to build a more resilient and adaptable food system.

    At the same time, cultivated meat’s reduced environmental footprint offers a path toward a more sustainable future. By requiring significantly less land and water while generating fewer emissions, it minimises deforestation, preserves natural ecosystems, and reduces pollution from livestock waste.

    With the right approach, the industry can strike a balance between meeting growing consumer demand and protecting the planet for future generations. The future of meat production isn’t about replacement – it’s about integration.

    The way forward

    Courtesy: Meatable

    There is growing interest to do so. As an example, a representative from the New Mexico Partnership (US) outlined during the event that the state of New Mexico, an agricultural hub, is actively exploring opportunities in food innovation, including cultivated meat, and promoting the state as a business hub in this regard.

    And we don’t need to reinvent the wheel. The meat industry is built on centuries of expertise, finely tuned supply chains, and an extensive infrastructure that already feeds billions. This foundation provides an enormous advantage – one that cultivated meat is set to integrate with rather than replace. By working together, we can scale up high-quality, sustainable protein production without starting from scratch, ensuring a more efficient and practical path forward.

    My charge? Give future generations a chance, and give consumers a choice. Innovation has always shaped the food industry, and the market will naturally adapt, as it always does. If we strike the right balance, ranchers will not only survive but thrive, the industry will expand rather than contract, and consumers will enjoy more choices than ever before. This is what the future of meat should look like – one driven by innovation and collaboration, not restriction and competition.

    By supporting local farmers and ranchers, continuing the responsible production of conventional meat, and integrating high-quality, great-tasting cultivated meat as a complementary innovation, we can create a more resilient and sustainable future. The path forward isn’t about division or trade-offs – it’s about working together to feed a growing world while protecting the planet.

    This is not a battle between old and new. It’s an opportunity to evolve, using the best of what we already have to build something even better. The only way forward is together.

    Want to discuss further? I’m always ready to pull up a chair. Contact me on LinkedIn.

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  • Chinese Lawmakers Promote Alternative Protein Policies During Annual Political Summit

    china novel food regulation
    5 Mins Read

    Chinese government officials have called for a boost to the national biotech capacity and the introduction of a novel food framework at its Two Sessions summit.

    Chinese lawmakers have issued calls to speed up the development of its alternative protein ecosystem, with a focus on R&D and manufacturing, IP protection, and regulatory support.

    This month’s Two Sessions summit in Beijing convened lawmakers from across the country to ratify legislation, review government work, and set an economic agenda for the forthcoming year.

    Preceding the event were several documents indicating the government’s willingness to propel its alternative protein industry to new heights, which analysts saw as a sign of more things to come.

    At the summit, some of China’s top government officials proved them right. For example, in his opening day speech to the National People’s Congress (NPC), Li Qiang, the premier of the State Council, called for deeper integration of strategic emerging industries, which included biomanufacturing, according to industry think tank the Good Food Institute (GFI) APAC.

    This was followed by calls from several of his deputies who identified parts of the food system where China needed to ramp up its efforts. This included “strengthening IP protections for microbial proteins, leveraging underutilised ingredients like microalgae to help achieve China’s carbon neutrality goals, and redoubling efforts to upskill and grow the domestic future-food workforce”, said GFI APAC.

    National and local governments enthused about novel foods

    cultivated meat china
    Courtesy: CellX

    Perhaps the most sweeping statements came from Wei Chen, deputy of the NPC. In his address, he recommended that the country “expand the boundaries of food resources” and promote resource innovation, including “in-depth exploration, nutritional evaluation, and industrial production of alternative proteins”.

    He further highlighted the importance of increasing “the policy guarantee for the development and application” of novel foods and developing talent in this industry to upgrade the national food system and improve global competitiveness.

    Technologies like gene-editing and synthetic biology could help “create high-nutrition, high-function novel food ingredients”, according to Chen, who promoted multidisciplinary integration to realise the potential of microbial technology for nutrition, health and sustainable development goals.

    Additionally, he called upon the National Health Commission and the State Administration for Market Regulation to establish “a flexible regulatory framework” to ensure the safety and traceability of novel food resources, according to GFI APAC. Chen stressed the goal of introducing unified novel food standards “as early as possible”.

    It’s not just national policymakers promoting alternative proteins. Provincial and city governments are doing so too. The Suzhou Industrial Park, jointly governed by Chinese and Singaporean officials, this month released its 2025-27 action plans for biomanufacturing food, which state its “intent to obtain cell engineering equipment and microbial identification devices that can help scientists cultivate new food ingredients”, said GFI APAC.

    In China’s most populous region, the Guangdong province, local officials are planning to build a biomanufacturing hub to pioneer tech breakthroughs in plant-based, microbial and cultivated proteins. “The officials said that the new hub will be specifically geared towards expanding market acceptance of future foods by enhancing their ingredients, texture, and functionality,” GFI APAC noted.

    Meanwhile, the country saw its first alternative protein innovation centre open in Beijing last month, fuelled by an $11M investment from public and private investors to develop cultivated meat and fermentation-derived proteins.

    Can the statements turn into reality?

    cultivated chicken china
    Courtesy: Jimi Biotech

    The remarks at the Two Sessions summit are the latest in a long list of policy efforts to put China atop the global alternative protein race.

    In an official notice about China’s agricultural priorities before the summit, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MAFRA) identified the safety and nutritional efficacy of alternative proteins as a key priority, while research in novel food tech to create the next generation of food was also highlighted.

    A week later, the No. 1 Central Document (which signals China’s top goals for the upcoming year), underscored the importance of “building a diversified food supply system”, including efforts “to cultivate and develop biological agriculture and explore novel food resources.”

    The following day, a briefing by MAFRA featured a call to action to “develop new food resources such as plant-based meat”, according to GFI APAC.

    The government’s current five-year agriculture plan encourages research in cultivated meat and recombinant proteins, while the bioeconomy development plan aims to advance novel foods too. President Xi Jinping has called for a Grand Food Vision that includes plant-based and microbial protein sources.

    Leaders in the US have already highlighted fears of being overtaken by China’s biotech prowess. And experts suggest that for the East Asian country to decarbonise, half of its protein consumption must come from alternative sources by 2060.

    How likely are all these statements to become a reality? “After a National People’s Congress deputy puts forward a suggestion during the Two Sessions conference, the Working Committee for Deputies Affairs takes these suggestions and directs them to the relevant government departments for further consideration,” Mirte Gosker, managing director of GFI APAC, told Green Queen.

    She clarified that in most cases related to alternative proteins, the relevant department would be MAFRA. “The exceptions would be for situations like regulatory supervision or judicial affairs, which are instead sent to the National Supervisory Commission,” she said.

    “After further study, the reviewing department will provide feedback on the suggestion as to whether or not it will be pursued further, but any deputy suggestions are taken very seriously. That’s why it’s so significant that deputies are lining up to show their support for deeper public investments in protein diversification.”

    The post Chinese Lawmakers Promote Alternative Protein Policies During Annual Political Summit appeared first on Green Queen.

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  • Can Hoxton Farms’s Cultivated Fat Satisfy Asia’s Appetite for Pork?

    hoxton farms
    5 Mins Read

    British cultivated meat player Hoxton Farms has partnered with Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation to bring its pork fat ingredient to Asia.

    For cultivated meat, fat is all the rage right now.

    In Europe, Mosa Meat has filed for regulatory approval to sell its cultivated beef fat in Switzerland and the EU. Across the Atlantic, Mission Barns has received the go-ahead from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to take its cultured pork fat one step closer to commercialisation in the US.

    Now, a British cultivated fat startup has set its sights on Asia, the world’s largest consumer of pork. Hoxton Farms has partnered with Japanese conglomerate Sumitomo Corporation to bring its pork fat to the country and the wider Asia-Pacific region.

    The two companies will work to secure partnerships with food manufacturers to integrate Hoxton Fat into their products, support awareness initiatives to highlight the potential of the ingredient, and work with regulators and stakeholders to obtain approval ahead of its market entry.

    “The partnership spans multiple countries, including Japan, Singapore, Korea and beyond,” Hoxton Farms co-founder and CEO Max Jamilly tells Green Queen.

    The company’s plans are firmly global, with regulatory filings ongoing for multiple markings. “We will file this year in Singapore and the US, followed by UK and other jurisdictions such as Thailand, Japan, Korea, and Australia and New Zealand,” he says. “We expect to go to market in Singapore first.”

    Hoxton Farms takes on conventional animal and plant fats

    lab grown meat fat
    Courtesy: Hoxton Farms

    Founded in 2020 by Jamilly and COO Ed Steele, Hoxton Farms derives its ingredients from a few pig stem cells, which are fed on a blend of plant-based nutrients to multiply and mature into fat. It makes use of cell biology and machine learning to grow pork fat in modular bioreactors and currently operates a 14,000 sq ft facility in London, which has a fermentation capacity of over 1,000 litres.

    This is intended as a drop-in replacement for animal fats and plant-based oils, which can be mixed with plant proteins to create products like soups, sauces, and hybrid meats, which are seen as the most viable way for cultivated meat to get to market in the current climate.

    There are various motivations driving this innovation. It’s much more sustainable than the alternative – pork is a highly emissive food product, and farming pigs requires excessive amounts of water and land. And common plant-based fats like coconut or palm oil, which are preferred by many manufacturers for their functionality, are the primary contributors to tropical deforestation.

    Fat is also key to flavour and mouthfeel, which is the most important aspect of meat for many omnivores. By recreating pork fat in bioreactors, Hoxton Farms can offer meat-eaters the same flavour, minus the environmental and health harms.

    Speaking of which, processed meats like bacon and sausages are classed as carcinogenic by the WHO, while red meats such as pork are deemed possible carcinogens. Pork fat, coconut or palm oil, meanwhile, are high in saturated fat, which can raise bad cholesterol levels and the risk of heart disease.

    Since Hoxton Farms can precisely control the composition of its fat, its team is developing versions that are lower in saturated fat and higher in beneficial elements like omega-3 fatty acids. It’s doing this specifically to reduce the risk of diet-related diseases, which can help address public health concerns in Asia.

    More than 40% of adults are overweight or obese in Asia-Pacific, and up to 12% of total healthcare spending goes towards treating obesity or related conditions.

    “Cell-based foods are an innovative source of protein that can help address future food security challenges without the need for animal sacrifice and with a lower environmental impact,” says Takeo Kojima, agri-innovation head at Sumitomo. “We see Hoxton Farms’s cultured fat as a groundbreaking ingredient that contributes not only to better taste, but also to sustainability.”

    Targeting Japan’s curiosity for cultivated meat

    lab grown meat regulatory approval
    Courtesy: Hoxton Farms

    Asia’s demand for meat is set to increase by 78% by 2050, putting further strain on the planet’s resources and public health. “Asia is the world’s largest consumer of pork, but supplies are threatened by an array of challenges, including disease (African swine fever massively disrupted the global pork market in 2018),” Jamilly points out. “Further, countries in Asia have a strong regulatory environment for cultivated products.”

    The startup, which has raised $35M to date, will co-develop products with food manufacturers via its collaboration with Sumitomo. “With Sumitomo’s unmatched expertise and network, now is the time to bring our cultivated fat to Asia and set a new standard for food innovation,” he says.

    The two firms will closely work with food safety bodies in various countries to obtain regulatory approval for the novel ingredient. This includes Japan, whose government is “making steady progress in developing a novel food regulatory framework”, according to Kimiko Hong-Mitsui, managing director of alternative protein think tank the Good Food Institute Japan.

    Hoxton Farms and Sumitomo are consulting with the Japan Association for Cellular Agriculture (JACA), an industry non-profit, which they claim will play a crucial role in shaping regulatory and social acceptance of cultivated meat in the country.

    The collaboration gives Japanese stakeholders “efficient access to groundbreaking technologies, production facilities, and essential information regarding safety and taste in addressing challenges in food supply”, notes JACA president Megumi Avigail Yoshitomi.

    A 2024 survey found that 42% of Japanese consumers are willing to try cultivated meat products; the creation of government regulations is key for 44% of those who are unsure about their safety aspects.

    “We hope that this partnership will serve as a key pillar in strengthening bilateral cooperation between Japan and the UK in the field of food technology,” adds Yoshitomi.

    Currently, only a handful of cultivated meat firms have been approved to sell their products. This includes Eat Just (in Singapore and the US), Upside Foods,  Mission Barns (both US), Aleph Farms (Israel), Vow (Singapore and Hong Kong), and Meatly (UK). Regulators in the EU, Switzerland, Australia and Thailand are evaluating applications too.

    The post Can Hoxton Farms’s Cultivated Fat Satisfy Asia’s Appetite for Pork? appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • 5 Minutes with A Future Food VC: Paulig Incubator’s Erika Hombert

    erika hombert
    2 Mins Read

    In our interview series, we quiz future food investors about the solutions that excite them the most, their favourite climate-forward restaurant, and what they look for in successful founders.

    Erika Hombert is a Senior Investment Manager at Paulig Incubator (PINC).

    What future food technologies most excite you?

    1. The use of AI across the board.
    2. Advancement in crop development.
    3. Bioproduction with low energy requirements.

    What are three future food verticals you are actively looking at for 2025?

    1. Sustainable agriculture
    2. Circularity in food production
    3. Sustainable packaging

    What do you consider the food tech sector’s greatest achievement in the past five years?

    Bringing an entrepreneurial culture to the F&B industry.

    If you could wave a magic wand, how would you fix plant-based meat?

    I wouldn’t.

    I’d fix people’s pre-judgements and attitudes towards vegetarian and low-meat diets.

    What’s the top trait you look for in a founder?

    1. Intellectual honesty
    2. Ambition
    3. Empathy (this is important to lead a team and make sound business decisions)
    4. Transparency
    5. Resilience

    What do you consider your most successful future food investment so far?

    I think Win-Win (formerly WNWN Food Labs) in the UK is doing a really good job in alt-chocolate.

    What has been your most disappointing investment so far?

    In my own portfolio, I don’t have any deals that have died yet.

    What do people misunderstand/get wrong most about VC?

    That it’s a job for men. I constantly see women outperforming their peers and make better investment decisions.

    What is the most ‘future food’ thing you have eaten this month?

    Cell-based chocolate – yummy!

    Where is your favourite climate-forward restaurant/dish/place to eat anywhere in the world?

    I’m currently obsessed with ancient grains grown in my region, like Öland wheat, spelt, and rye. They are great for the soils and ecosystems, and very nutritious and tasty!

    What’s your ‘why’? What motivates you to do what you do?

    I’m driven by impact. My why is a liveable future for my children and the continuation of humanity.

    The post 5 Minutes with A Future Food VC: Paulig Incubator’s Erika Hombert appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Grass-Fed Beef A Deceptive Climate ‘Solution’ That Misleads Consumers, Confirms New Study

    grass fed beef climate change
    5 Mins Read

    Grass-fed beef is as bad for the planet as the industrial version, and significantly more carbon-intensive than plant proteins, a new study has found.

    You may be eating grass-fed beef because you’ve been told it’s better for the climate. Turns out this claim is misleading “a large portion of the population who really do wish their purchasing decisions will reflect their values”, according to Gidon Eshel, an environmental physics professor at Bard College and the lead author of a new study lifting the curtain on the planetary impact of beef.

    Proponents of grass-fed beef argue that it’s more environmentally friendly because cattle grazing can enhance soil carbon sequestration (offsetting production emissions in the process), but Eshel and his colleagues found that this wasn’t the case.

    Published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal, their research suggests that beef derived from cows only raised on pastures does not present a climate benefit over grain-fed beef. Even the most efficient grass-fed operations had 10-25% higher emissions than industrially farmed beef. The former were also three to 40 times more carbon-intensive than proteins derived from plants or other animals.

    In fact, replacing cropland-based beef with plant proteins is “far more environmentally lucrative”, according to the authors. While this is not the first study proving that grass-fed beef is a source of greenwashing rather than a climate solution, it’s still a damning indictment of the claim that any kind of beef is good for the planet.

    Grass-fed beef is just as bad as industrial farming

    grass fed beef better for environment
    Courtesy: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

    Beef is the most polluting food on Earth, generating twice as many emissions as the second-worst product (dark chocolate). About half of these emissions come from methane, a harmful gas 80 times more potent than carbon over a 20-year period.

    The average cow produces 200 lbs of methane a year – about half the emissions of an average car. According to the UN, cattle are responsible for over 60% of livestock emissions, which itself account for up to 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

    In the US, only about 5% of cows are grass-fed, with the majority being raised in concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), which are not just harmful to the animals, but also to human health and the planet.

    Eshel and his colleagues used newly available estimates of beef cattle yields, herd methane production, and feed needs from across the US, and factored this data into a model that simulated and compared the emissions of grass-fed and industrial beef.

    They incorporated estimates on the carbon uptake of grasslands into the model and excluded lush pasturelands with high rainfalls where other crops could be grown. This was done to align with the idea that cattle should only eat what humans cannot, and thus not take up land suitable for growing food crops.

    The researchers found that grass-fed beef produces more emissions than industrial beef. While the carbon footprint of the former shrunk after factoring in the effects of soil carbon sequestration, it was still not low enough to position grass-fed beef as a better-for-the-planet solution.

    This is because soil sequestration through grazing reduced grass-fed beef’s emissions from 280-390 kg of CO2e per kg of protein to 180-290 kg of CO2e, but industrial beef’s emissions were still at 180-220kg of CO2e.

    “Accounting for soil sequestration lowers the emissions, and makes grass-fed beef more similar to industrial beef, but it does not under any circumstances make this beef desirable in terms of carbon balance,” Eshel told the Washington Post. “That argument does not hold.”

    Swapping beef for plant proteins could bring large climate benefits

    grass fed beef
    Courtesy: BananaStock via Photo Images

    In stark contrast, non-beef alternatives generated 10-70 kg of CO2e per kg of protein, meaning that plant-based alternatives, pork, poultry, cheese and milk produced just 5-35% of the emissions of the least intensive grass-fed beef modelled in the study.

    The researchers highlight how beef only contributes 5-20% of the calories from protein intake in the US, despite its production dominating the resource use in the food industry.

    “Compared with non-beef alternatives, grass-fed beef yields at most one-tenth of the protein per kg CO2eq emitted regardless of agricultural intensity,” the study reads. “Beef – extensive, intensive, or anything in between – is not a competitive form of resource use.”

    The authors argue that pasturelands should be rewilded to provide nature-based carbon sequestration and biodiversity benefits, as well as boost food security. Plant proteins can prove handy here – if 120 million hectares of semi-arid rangeland in the US were converted from beef to plant production, it would save annual emissions between 85 and 195 million tonnes of CO2e.

    Likewise, croplands in high-rainfall areas can be repurposed from beef grazing to plant-based food for direct human consumption. Using only as much of these areas as required to replace protein from beef with plants would lower yearly emissions by 260 to 400 million tonnes of CO2e and free 50 to 120 million hectares of farmland.

    Environmental journalist George Monbiot has famously railed against grass-fed beef advocates, calling pasture-fed meat production the “major cause of agricultural sprawl”. “The world’s urban areas occupy just 1% of the planet’s land surface, in comparison with the 26% used for grazing. Agricultural sprawl inflicts a very high ecological opportunity cost: the missing ecosystems that would otherwise exist,” he wrote in 2022.

    “We live in a bubble of delusion about where our food comes from and how it is produced. We’ve been dealing in stories when we should be dealing in numbers,” he added.

    The new study is especially relevant as it comes during the tenure of Robert F Kennedy Jr as US health secretary. He has previously laid out plans to shift away from intensive meat production and advocated for grass-fed, pasture-raised meat, despite limited evidence about the latter’s health benefits, and a trove of evidence finding it just as bad for the climate.

    “I have a hard time imagining, even, a situation in which it will prove environmentally, genuinely wise, genuinely beneficial, to raise beef,” Eshel told the Associated Press. His advice for people who truly want to look after the planet? “Don’t make beef a habit.”

    The post Grass-Fed Beef A Deceptive Climate ‘Solution’ That Misleads Consumers, Confirms New Study appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • BioCraft Pet Nutrition Gets EU Registration to Sell Cultivated Mouse Meat for Dogs & Cats

    lab grown meat eu
    5 Mins Read

    Food tech firm BioCraft Pet Nutrition has received registration from Austrian authorities to sell its cultivated meat ingredient in pet food applications across the EU.

    After a string of developments last year, 2025 is shaping up to be a big year for cultivated pet food. Just weeks after the first such product went on sale in the UK, another startup is gearing up to sell its version in the EU.

    BioCraft Pet Nutrition, a Delaware-based firm with a lab in Vienna, has received registration from Austrian authorities to use Category 3 animal byproducts (ABPs) in the EU, allowing it to sell its cultivated mouse meat to pet food producers in the region.

    Companies looking to sell animal-derived ingredients to pet food manufacturers need to meet legal requirements ensuring the ingredients are safe, and register as a user of animal byproducts. BioCraft notes that it has met its obligation as a Feed Business Operator and notified the EU Feed Materials Register.

    “It’s important to note that there is no pre-market approval process to sell feed ingredients in the EU, which means that animal cell-cultured ingredients themselves are not subject to ‘approval’ or ‘registration’ directly,” outlines BioCraft co-founder and CEO Shannon Falconer. “Rather, ‘approval’ or ‘registration’ is granted to the facility producing these animal byproducts.”

    “Cultured mouse is a biomass suspended in liquid-nutrient broth from a safe, non-GM cell line in a controlled, antibiotic-free, animal-free medium. It is a source of polyunsaturated omega fatty acids, protein, and nutrients, for use in pet food only,” the register reads.

    “BioCraft has now met all its legal obligations to sell its ingredient to pet food manufacturers directly,” says Falconer, adding that the company “is not positioning itself to sell to consumers directly”.

    lab grown meat for pets
    Courtesy: BioCraft Pet Nutrition

    Cultivated mouse meat passes three-year-long safety testing

    According to Falconer, facility registration or approval is “not a long process”. BioCraft filed its application to the EU in August 2024 – but it only did so after three years of rigorous safety assessments.

    “What does take time are the many, many tests to validate the safety and nutritional profile of the feed material being sold – especially when it’s something new, such as an animal cell-cultured ingredient,” she explains.

    This includes a full genetic analysis of its cell line, a toxicological review of each ingredient that goes into the product, extensive nutritional profiling of the ingredient, as well as the generation of a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) plan, which is a legal requirement to sell any feed material in the EU).

    BioCraft enlisted a team of veterinary, food safety, and food science experts – both in-house and third-party – to generate safety data for its cultivated ingredient based on dossier requirements for an EU feed additive.

    biocraft pet food
    Courtesy: BioCraft Pet Nutrition

    Studies confirmed that the company’s ingredient is produced using stable, non-immortalised, non-genetically modified animal cells, and is free from bacterial pathogens, viruses, mycotoxins, moulds and yeasts. The cultivated mouse meat doesn’t contain biogenic amines or heavy metals either.

    Following the safety testing, BioCraft filed for facility registration with Austrian authorities, who granted it “for the purpose of multiplying cells for the production of pet food”.

    “This comprehensive safety analysis goes well beyond regulatory compliance and provides a meticulous breakdown of our feed safety protocols, including stringent supplier verification processes, traceability documentation, risk assessments, and SOPs for every critical control point,” says Falconer.

    “We’ve implemented rigorous quality control measures and transparency across our supply chain, and the result is the highest industry standards for safety and integrity in alternative protein production,” she adds.

    BioCraft in talks with leading pet food manufacturer

    It’s the biggest milestone in the startup’s nine-year history, allowing it to commercialise its debut product in the EU market. The cultivated mouse meat slurry can be used as a one-to-one replacement in wet or dry pet food at similar inclusion levels to conventional slurry, since it has a similar nutritional profile and consistency.

    Third-party profiling of over 100 nutrients showed that BioCraft’s cultivated meat has comparable levels of taurine, lysine, methionine and tryptophan to that of chicken slurry, and a superior omega-6 to omega-3 ratio.

    Last year, BioCraft announced that its product now had a sale price of $2-2.50 per lb. It achieved this feat by developing a plant-based growth medium formulated to provide a nutritious boost to the end product. Typically, animal-derived growth media – the mix of proteins, sugar and nutrients that feed animal cells in a bioreactor – cost hundreds of dollars per litre.

    biocraft pet nutrition
    Courtesy: BioCraft Pet Nutrition

    Formerly called Because Animals, the firm has raised $6.7M in funding to date, and previously earmarked early 2026 for its market launch. Leading manufacturer Partner in Pet Food (PPF) is now “investigating options” with BioCraft. “Pet food producers are following this market space eagerly because there is a need for more ingredients that are supply-chain stable, sustainable, scalable, safe, and ethical,” said Patricia Heydtmann, quality and product development director at PPF.

    Czech startup Bene Meat Technologies was the first to register cultivated pet food as an EU feed material back in 2023, although it did so under the fermentation category instead of as an ABP. It has since also filed an application to the US Food and Drug Administration.

    Meanwhile, Cult Food Science conducted feeding trials in the US in pursuit of regulatory approval for its Noochies! brand, and Friends & Family Pet Food Co has inked two deals to launch stateside and in Singapore.

    The UK appears to be leading the race, with London-based startup Meatly passing stringent inspections from its regulatory bodies and partnering with vegan pet food maker The Pack to launch its cultivated chicken in dog treats at Pets At Home.

    The post BioCraft Pet Nutrition Gets EU Registration to Sell Cultivated Mouse Meat for Dogs & Cats appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Future Food Quick Bites: Impossible Sliders, Major League Baseball & Cat Jewellery

    impossible beef sliders
    5 Mins Read

    Our weekly column rounds up the latest sustainable food innovation news. This week, Future Food Quick Bites covers Impossible Foods’s beef slider rollout, the New York Mets’s new vegan sandwich, and Grubby’s vegan meal kits for B Corp Month.

    New products and launches

    Impossible Foods has introduced its latest product, Beef Sliders, exclusively at Walmart stores. The mini vegan patties are available as a six-pack for $7.48.

    impossible sliders
    Courtesy: Impossible Foods

    Plant-based startup Daily Harvest has launched a USDA-certified Organic Pea Protein Powder with 24g of protein per 120-calorie serving, which would cost roughly $2.

    Tex-Mex chain Pancheros Mexican Grill has rolled out a Tofurizo on its menu, which includes sautéed peppers and onions, paprika, cumin, cayenne, and chilli powder. It’s available at all locations nationwide.

    With the Major League Baseball season underway, catering giant Aramark‘s Sport + Entertainment division has introduced a vegan pulled BBQ jackfruit sandwich (with a plant-based pretzel bun and coleslaw) at Citi Field, home of the New York Mets.

    mlb vegan
    Courtesy: Aramark

    In the UK, meal kit startup Grubby has partnered with leading plant-based players Oatly and This, nut butter maker ManiLife, and ingredient brand Belazu on a special range of recipes for B Corp Month. These include Creamy White Sausage Ragù Linguine, Greek Mushroom Pastitsio with Cucumber Salad, and Pesto Courgette Tarts with Tomato & Basil Salad.

    Speaking of Oatly, the oat milk giant has released two new flavours of its iKaffe range (as its barista edition is known in the Nordics) at coffee chain Espresso House. The vanilla and caramel barista milks are available in both hot and cold drinks at stores in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Finland.

    oatly ikaffe
    Courtesy: Oatly/Espresso House

    Scottish nutrition brand Vybey has expanded into the snacking category with plant-based Complete Nutrition bars in chocolate brownie, raspberry white chocolate, and mint chocolate flavours. Each 80g bar contains 20g of plant protein.

    And French supermarket E.Leclerc has launched a Végé line under its own-label brand, Marque Repère, which comprises 45 animal-free alternatives priced similarly to their conventional counterparts.

    Company and finance updates

    Indian plant-based nutrition startup Nourish You has raised ₹16 crores ($1.8M) in a Series A funding round led by SIDBI Venture Capital. The parent company of alt-dairy brand One Good, the firm will use the funds to scale operations, launch new products, and expand into new markets, including Australia, Europe, and the US.

    nourish you
    Courtesy: Nourish You

    Israeli cultivated meat pioneer Aleph Farms has raised $29M in new funding, as part of a larger tranche of financing it expects to close in the coming months. The firm reportedly slashed its valuation in the latest round.

    Further Foods, a subsidiary of Canadian cellular agriculture firm Cult Food Science, has signed an R&D supply agreement with a cultivated meat company to develop its Noochies! line of pet food treats, which it will showcase at the Global Pet Expo this week (March 26-28).

    noochies pet food
    Courtesy: Veronika Dvorakova

    Also in the cultivated meat space, Californian pioneer Upside Foods has conducted a fresh round of layoffs as it restructures to focus on commercialisation and scale. It is currently awaiting regulatory approval for its second cultivated chicken product in the US.

    Catering company Sodexo has announced that it is on track to halve its food waste in the UK and Ireland this year (compared to 2017 levels), five years ahead of schedule.

    sodexo plant based
    Courtesy: Sodexo

    Belgian food group Vandemoortele has agreed to acquire the European spreads and margarine business of US producer Bunge for an undisclosed sum, which includes several plant-based brands.

    The Plant Based Foods Institute has appointed Sanah Baig, former senior policy advisor for agriculture and nutrition at the White House, as its new executive director. She will join the organisation in June.

    Policy and awards

    The Plant-Based Treaty is working with the Red Cross to provide plant-based food options to people during emergencies and disasters in Los Angeles.

    British startup Potina, which makes banana oat milk for kids, has won IFE Manufacturing‘s Clean Label honour, awarded in partnership with the Institute of Food Science & Technology.

    Discount retailer Lidl and the ProVeg Incubator have kickstarted a Cheese Alternative Innovation Competition, where participants will pitch their plant-based products to Lidl. Winners will get a listing under the retailer’s vegan private-label brand, Vemondo, in Germany.

    Indian cultivated meat startup ClearMeat has struck a partnership with the National Institute of Food Technology Entrepreneurship and Management (NIFTEM), to scale biotech and food tech innovations and leverage their combined expertise and resources to drive the sector forward.

    vegan jewellery
    Courtesy: Catastrophy

    Finally, Singaporean jewellery brand Catastrophy, which makes ethical jewellery for cat lovers and donates 10% of all proceeds to animal welfare organisations, has received The Vegan Society’s Vegan Trademark, a world-first for a jewellery line.

    Check out last week’s Future Food Quick Bites.

    The post Future Food Quick Bites: Impossible Sliders, Major League Baseball & Cat Jewellery appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • The Biased Science That Fuelled Italian Farmers’ Anti-Cultivated-Meat March

    coldiretti lab grown meat
    5 Mins Read

    One of the loudest opponents of cultivated meat, Coldiretti rallied thousands of farmers to demand the EU assess novel foods like new drugs. It cited concerns from scientists, but half of them are members of the organisation.

    It was only a week ago that thousands of farmers from across Italy marched the city of Parma with yellow and blue flags to demand an overhaul of European food safety regulations, specifically against cultivated meat and precision-fermented foods.

    The procession was organised by Coldiretti, Italy’s leading farmers’ association, which has been a key voice in lobbying for anti-cultivated-meat legislation in the country. The group’s 2022 petition, signed by nearly half a million people and 3,000 local governments, called on policymakers to ban “synthetically produced food” and eventually led to Italy’s world-first ban on cultivated meat a year later.

    During the march, Coldiretti – led by its President Ettore Prandini and its General Secretary Vincenzo Gesmundo – rallied against the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to “shed light” on the safety assessments around novel foods. The group’s big ask? For the EU body to require novel food companies to carry out clinical and preclinical medical studies before their products are greenlit.

    In a statement justifying its protest, Coldiretti said it was acting upon requests from “illustrious scientists” to ensure greater transparency and scientific attention in the evaluation of novel foods, noting that they “cannot be treated as simple new foods, but must follow the same procedure as drugs”.

    As it turns out, the scientists Coldiretti is referring to may not be as independent as they claim, resulting in a significant conflict of interest in the association’s demands, according to reports first reported in Italian media.

    ‘Concerned scientists’ belong to Coldiretti think tank

    italy bans lab grown meat
    Courtesy: Coldiretti

    Coldiretti cited an inter-institutional technical roundtable established by Health Minister Orazio Schillaci and Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida in 2024, mere months after the country banned the sale or production of cultivated meat in violation of EU law.

    The roundtable assessed the impact of cultivated meat on health, farmers, the economy, and more. Last month, it presented recommendations that cultivated meat and other novel foods should be treated as pharmaceuticals subject to lengthy trials, mimicking the procedure applied by the European Medicine Agency for new drugs.

    Meanwhile, a think tank called Aletheia Foundation submitted 11 critical comments to the EFSA early last year, as part of its public consultation on its updated guidelines for cultivated meat regulation, unveiled in July. On its website, Aletheia describes itself as an organisation clarifying “the inextricable link between food and health” via “independent and free research”.

    But its recommendations were strikingly similar to those of the roundtable. And according to Italian newspaper Il Foglio, this should come as no surprise, since five of the roundtable’s members are part of Aletheia, which was founded by Coldiretti.

    It would appear that the protests sparked by what the union says was a concern from independent scientists are the result of pushback from Coldiretti’s own members.

    It also appears the Italian government was aware of the conflict of interest – Schillaci, the Health Minister, was a guest of honour alongside Prandini and Gesmundo in a ‘food and disease’ event held by the ministry and Aletheia last year. During the event, Gesmundo attacked the EFSA for promoting practices that he felt did the most harm to the EU population.

    EU clarifies policy after Coldiretti claims victory

    coldiretti efsa
    Courtesy: Coldiretti/EFSA

    After the protest, Coldiretti was quick to claim victory, saying it was “satisfied with EFSA’s commitment to conducting every necessary analysis on every single notified product, including pre-clinical and clinical tests on foods derived from cell cultures and precision fermentation”.

    In a statement, EFSA’s senior policy coordinator, Alberto Spagnolli, called the discussion with the group “constructive” and said the request to apply high scientific standards matched the EU’s mission.

    “EFSA Panel members will use conditions and requirements for the scientific assessment based on the most recent experience of evaluations, as provided for in the new guidelines in force today,” he said in a statement. “EFSA’s task is precisely to clarify doubts or uncertainties with regards to human health effects, nutritional profiles of these foods, risks linked to the production process or substances used. :

    Spagnolli added that the panels would conduct “in-depth, case-by-case, evaluations for each product” and “may use every level of study required (including pre-clinical and clinical tests) to determine safety”.

    Speaking to Green Queen, he explained that the “need for clinical trials is already considered” in its guidelines. “Our updated guidance requires that applicants provide comprehensive toxicological studies (similar to pre-clinical studies) to establish the safety of novel food, including cell culture-derived food,” he said.

    “If these studies do not enable a conclusive risk assessment, additional tests, including clinical trials in humans, may be requested to resolve data gaps or uncertainties,” Spagnolli added.

    However, there’s no precedent for that happening in food, and the EFSA confirmed that Coldiretti’s march hadn’t brought about any additional reforms. “The policy has not changed,” Spagnolli told Green Queen. “We always follow our guidelines for our scientific work, and these were recently updated.”

    The protest caused the EFSA to proactively shut down its office for the day and ask employees to not come to work, perhaps mindful of the commotion caused by Coldiretti’s previous protest during the parliament’s final vote on the cultivated meat ban.

    Coldiretti’s stunt was criticised by some in the alternative protein industry. “It is not acceptable for an organisation to disrupt the workings of a scientific agency that successfully keeps Europe’s food the safest in the world and, if the results of the investigation are accurate, disturbing that they may have fabricated research to justify their anti-innovation agenda,” Robert E Jones, VP of global public affairs for Mosa Meat, told Green Queen.

    The company recently filed for novel food approval for its cultivated beef in the EU. “Fortunately, we know from hundreds of conversations across the EU that [Coldiretti’s] views do not represent mainstream farmers or the agri-food value chain,” Jones added.

    The post The Biased Science That Fuelled Italian Farmers’ Anti-Cultivated-Meat March appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • In Thailand, Eating Plants Could Prevent 100,000 Deaths from the Burning Season

    thailand air pollution
    4 Mins Read

    Replacing half of meat and seafood production with plant proteins could save 100,000 lives lost from air pollution in Thailand, a new study has found.

    Thailand’s annual crop-burning season causes air pollution lethal enough to prematurely kill 34,000 people every year but the solution lies in another agricultural element: plants.

    Specifically, plant-based proteins. Agricultural burning is the biggest source of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the country, which is one of the main air pollutants. During the December-April season, PM2.5 levels are three times higher than the national acceptable standard.

    The problem is maize, which accounts for a majority of the crops burned – and nearly all of this (99.83%) is reserved for animal feed. This, in turn, contributes to Thailand’s thriving meat and seafood industry.

    If this sector grows as projected, the number of premature deaths associated with burning residues of maize could reach 361,000 (between 2020 and 2050), according to new analysis from non-profit Madre Brava and sustainable development consultancy Asia Research Engagement (ARE).

    Instead, a 50% switch from meat and seafood to plant-based proteins could reverse this trend, preventing 101,000 deaths in this period. This number takes in previous research by the two organisations, which found that such a shift would lower animal production by 28% by 2050.

    That study further revealed that doing so would create 1.3 million jobs and $37B in economic value, lower national emissions by 79%, and spare up to 2.17 million hectares of farmland.

    The link between meat, the burning season, and pollution

    planetary boundaries
    Courtesy: Azote/Stockholm Resilience Centre

    The study is based on the planetary boundaries framework, which identifies nine processes critical to the environment’s ability to regulate itself and life on Earth. In 2009, we had crossed three of these boundaries. By 2023, that number jumped to six.

    One of these processes concerns aerosols – tiny liquid or solid particles suspended in the air, such as PM2.5. These are small enough to penetrate deep into the respiratory system and enter the bloodstream, causing serious health problems, including respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, asthma, reduced lung function, and premature death.

    Wanarak Saiphankaew, a former lecturer at the Faculty of Science at Chiang Mai University, knows all about this. She has lost both her parents to respiratory diseases, as well as a colleague from the university. None of them were smokers, and the biology expert is convinced that air pollution was conducive to their deaths.

    “I have been having problems with my respiratory system, and it is getting worse. I don’t know how much time I will have left in my life,” she said, adding that she is now considering moving away from the northern Thai city. “So I decided to leave my job to do what I want to do.”

    Sureerat Treemanka, vice-president of the Chiang Mai Breath Council, said: “People in the north of Thailand bear the brunt of maize burning. Our region has the highest rates of lung cancer in the country and higher premature deaths from air pollution than other regions.”

    Animal agriculture dominates PM2.5 production emanating from the food system – this is because livestock production accounts for 80% of farmland and 42% of all human-caused ammonia (a PM2.5 precursor).

    “The meat and seafood industry feeds the entire country, including some export markets. The long-term solution should not be an indiscriminate penalty for farmers who burn crops, but should include supporting the shift away from monoculture of maize for animal feed and to more sustainable crops,” said Treemanka.

    The Thai government must lead by example with protein diversification

    thailand plant based meat
    Courtesy: Absolute Plant

    Madre Brava and ARE propose protein diversification as a “long-term, systemic solution” that can address the root cause of PM2.5 by reducing the demand for animal feed – and meat.

    The groups encourage Thai policymakers to build on the Department of Industrial Promotion’s Reshape the Future scheme, which supports small- and medium-sized plant-based businesses with tech and innovation access.

    One way to get consumers excited about more plants is by introducing financial incentives that vegan alternatives cheaper and more accessible. Lawmakers must support farmers transitioning into crop production for plant-based proteins via education, financial assistance, and capacity-building initiatives.

    Another step is to lead by example: serving meat-free meals at public events and increasing these options at government institutions (including schools and hospitals) can help generate demand.

    “The air pollution that chokes Thailand during the burning season places an unacceptable burden on the health and lives of Thai people. That’s why the government has introduced measures to reduce it,” said Wich Piromsan, Thailand director for Madre Brava.

    “But the role played by animal agriculture is largely overlooked. Cutting burning from animal feed production could save hundreds of thousands of lives and help many more lead healthier lives.”

    The report also recommends retailers and foodservice players to increase their plant-based offerings. Equally important is the role of Thai meat and seafood producers, which must incorporate protein diversification into their climate plans, and invest in R&D to enhance alternative protein products for both domestic and international markets.

    “The quality of the air you breathe should not be dictated by your zip code,” said Piromsan. “With a national shift in protein production, it wouldn’t be.”

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  • Hooked Foods CEO: Underwhelming Sales of Plant-Based Leaders Has ‘Scared Investors’

    hooked foods
    4 Mins Read

    Tom Johansson, co-founder and CEO of Swedish vegan meat maker Hooked Foods, says3 underperforming big players have “scared” investors interested in the plant-based sector.

    The slow sales progress of leading plant-based companies in recent years has made investment a challenge for the whole vegan category, according to one startup founder.

    “The market growth has slowed and big leading players such as Oatly and Beyond Meat have performed very badly on the stock market. This scares the general investors that were interested in this space before, and with less demand, there are lower valuations and less capital available to raise,” says Tom Johansson, CEO of Swedish plant-based meat startup Hooked Foods.

    “The broader economic climate has indeed impacted investor appetite,” he says. “However, we see sustained interest from forward-thinking investors who recognise the long-term growth potential in sustainable food systems.”

    Johansson is speaking to Green Queen after his firm raised 8.4 million kroner ($830,000) via equity financing, loans, and grants, in support of its new product launches.

    “We’re delighted to have secured capital from a mix of institutional investors and strategic partners, including notable support with loans and grants from EIT Food and the EU Commission, alongside private investors aligned with our vision to transform the protein industry into a more sustainable and healthier system,” he says.

    It takes the startup’s total raised to €6M, and will help it enhance distribution and invest in technology and innovation. “Companies demonstrating product-market fit, efficient operations, and consumer demand, like Hooked Foods, continue to attract investment – even if it is less than before,” notes Johansson.

    Getting hooked on AI

    hooked vegobitar
    Courtesy: Hooked Foods

    Founded in 2019, Hooked Foods rose to fame for its seafood analogues, including salmon and tuna. It announced its expansion into chicken last year, rolling out chicken bites and chicken filets in addition to tuna and salmon bites at ICA Grupen and Coop Sverige in October.

    “Our products are currently available in approximately 500 retail locations across Sweden,” says Johansson. “We’re also expanding our presence in food service, partnering with several popular restaurants and fast-food chains such as 7-Eleven and Swedish kebab restaurant chains.”

    Among the new clean-label analogues is a vegan chicken kebab with 21g of protein per 100g, 7g of fibre, and bioavailable iron. “These products are competitively priced to match traditional protein products, making sustainable choices accessible for everyone. The price is at €14/kg and about €4.5 per pack (400g),” he notes.

    To turbocharge its progress, the company is investing in artificial intelligence, which will help optimise logistics, production, sales and marketing.

    “Specifically, we’re using AI-driven analytics to forecast demand, optimise supply chains, reduce waste, and improve customer communications at high capacity. These steps are critical in enhancing efficiency and profitability as we scale,” says Johansson.

    Hooked Foods teases big year after a challenging 2024

    vegan seafood
    Courtesy: Hooked Foods

    Like much of the alternative protein industry, where investment fell by 27%, 2024 was a challenging year for Hooked Foods. Johansson ascribes this to “a declining market and a production partner that went bankrupt”.

    “Main focus has been to prepare and launch our new portfolio of plant-based chicken and kebab as well as establish a new stable production with good margins and highest quality product and packaging,” Johansson says. “Despite a challenging market environment, we maintained steady monthly revenue, despite one-third of the year without a production. We see indicators of accelerating growth moving forward with our new product portfolio.”

    This is reflective of the larger picture for plant-based meat and seafood, which have suffered from a loss of faith from consumers amid the pushback against ultra-processed foods. Several startups have been forced to shut or come close to it.

    Meanwhile, analysis by the Good Food Institute in 2023 found that alternative seafood takes up just 1% of the overall seafood share in the US. Its 2024 research doesn’t have separate figures for seafood, but suggested that within the plant-based space, vegan seafood only accounts for 1% of the market.

    “Vegan seafood is relatively new compared to plant-based meat alternatives, with consumer awareness still building,” argues Johansson. “Now, when the total plant-based meat market is not growing as strongly, it takes a large amount of resources to grow the vegan seafood market – resources we do not have at the moment.”

    He adds: “At Hooked Foods, we’re skilled at creating healthy plant-based products with our technology and are now refocusing our strengths on product categories that already has a big established consumer base to create a stable profitable revenue base. We will still be offering plant-based seafood products as part of our portfolio as we see these products have a big long-term potential, but it is limited right now.”

    Looking ahead, he teases 2025 as a big year for the company: “We’ll expand our product offerings [and] increase our distribution footprint across Sweden. Our core focus will remain on building a strong case in Sweden with our products, we will keep developing innovative, healthy, and delicious products, backed by enhanced AI-driven efficiencies in our operations.”

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  • What Does Cultivated Meat Actually Taste Like? We Asked People Who’ve Tried the Real Thing

    mission barns fda approval
    7 Mins Read

    With a number of cultivated meat startups hosting public tastings of their products, three taste-testers take us behind the scenes of what it’s like to bite into the future.

    It was a typically humid day in Singapore, with some scattered rain bringing respite from the heat. Danai Georgiadou hopped on Grab – aka Uber for the city-state – in search of a comforting Sunday lunch.

    Navigating through the options, she landed on Two Men Bagel House, one of several restaurants that have partnered with Vow, the Australian startup behind cultured quail and foie gras.

    She opted for the Foie King, an S$25.20 ($19) bagel featuring the Forged Gras – as it is branded – combined with sous-vide beef skirt steak, jalapeño relish, smokey honey mustard, and double Cheddar.

    vow lab grown meat
    Courtesy: Danai Georgiadou

    Georgiadou is – as you might have guessed – a meat-eater, but as a stem cell scientist and member of Cellular Agriculture Greece, she is at the heart of the future food movement. She’s also part of a small but growing group of people who have tasted cultivated meat.

    “What stood out to me was that it was genuinely delicious,” she says of Vow’s foie gras. The bagel delivered to her doorstep wasn’t the first time she had tasted it. Georgiadou has previously enjoyed the company’s cultivated meat at Tipping Club, Ryan Clift’s pioneering gastro-cocktail establishment, before it closed in 2024.

    She paid S$250 ($187) for a set dinner menu, and S$150 ($112) for a lunch menu, both featuring Vow. “I’ve tried Forged Gras in many forms/dishes by Ryan Clift. Croquettes, covered in solid duck butter, fluffy texture like whipped cream. In the bagel I got as takeout, it was grilled,” she says.

    “The chefs managed to create some amazing dishes with it. I’ll admit, I’m a bit biased since I work in the field and advocate for cultivated meat, but I really enjoyed it. I’d say Forged Gras has a very versatile texture, which gives you the flexibility to cook it in many different ways.”

    Can you separate the cultivated from the meat?

    wildtype cultivated salmon
    Courtesy: Brian Cooley

    On the other side of the world, Brian Cooley was in Marin County, California, attending a pop-up event at Loveski Deli. It was hosted by Wildtype, a San Francisco-based startup working to commercialise cultivated seafood.

    “I learned about the pop-up by being on a Wildtype waitlist to try their product,” says Cooley, a technology expert who spent nearly three decades as CNET’s tech editor. “A stream of people like me arrived and ordered Wildtype lox on a bagel from a special one-day menu, and we all paid for our orders (about $24 for a bagel with lox as I recall).”

    So, the million-dollar question: did it live up to the ‘real thing’? “You would have to tell someone that the Wildtype lox wasn’t conventional for them to suspect it was anything different,” says Cooley. “That’s the crucial bar to clear for any alt-protein.”

    He adds: “I think it’s actually better than conventional lox because it doesn’t have the occasional gristle or silverskin you find in conventional products.”

    mission barns lab grown meat
    Courtesy: Gustaf Brandberg

    Gustaf Brandberg, founding partner at Swedish VC firm Gullspång Invest, is an investor in Mission Barns. The cultivated pork fat maker recently earned a ‘no questions’ letter from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) – the first for a cultivated meat company since 2023 – and aims to launch its products into restaurants and supermarkets later this year.

    “I have tried Mission Barns’s products for several years, and one of the main reasons we invested in the company is the quality of the products,” says Brandberg. “The bacon tastes just like bacon should, and the meatballs and salami could trick just anyone into thinking that they are made of meat, not a hybrid product with pork fat in an otherwise plant-based product.”

    Fat, he says, is the key element: “A lot of the taste is carried through the fat, so what stands out compared to other plant-based alternatives is how closely it mimics meat.”

    Where can cultivated meat improve?

    vow cultured meat
    Courtesy: Danai Georgiadou

    Okay, so cultivated meat has the same – or even – better sensory qualities than the products it’s aiming to replace. Where is it lacking?

    Brandberg, understandably, passed on that question. For Georgiadou’s palate, however, the cultured foie gras was a touch salty. “But that’s just personal preference,” she says.

    “The fact that Forged Gras contains 51% cultivated quail is already incredible, especially considering how expensive it is to produce any cultivated meat product. If there’s one area for improvement – and I’m confident it will get there – it would be increasing the cultivated meat content.”

    As Cooley attested to, the texture of the Wildtype salmon was ideal for him. “But some other tasters mentioned that it was slightly ‘softer’ than conventional lox,” he recalls.

    “It also didn’t smell ‘fishy’, which some people might miss,” he adds. “But when you understand why conventional seafood smells fishy, you don’t miss that ever again.”

    Cultivated meat is like most tech products

    cultivated meat review
    Courtesy: Brian Cooley

    So if cultivated meat tastes so good, what’s stopping it from appearing on our plates? Well, policymakers, for starters – one country and two US states have banned cultivated meat from being sold, with others on the horizon.

    Investors are stepping away from the sector, with funding falling by 75% in 2023, followed by another 40% drop in 2024, reaching just $137M. “I’m not surprised that investors and consumers, for different reasons, are going through phases of the Gartner Hype Cycle with regards to alt-proteins,” says Cooley.

    “But alt protein isn’t one sector: We have a solid sector of plant-based meats, the imminent launch of cultivated meats – Wildtype being one example – and the development of interesting new fermented products, especially in the alt-dairy category.”

    These three product groups have room to grow and take repeated “bites at the apple” of consumer acceptance, just like most tech products whose path was rocky before they became ubiquitous. “I’m also reminded of Rosabeth Moss-Kanter’s maxim that many big ideas seem like a failure in the middle, and Roy Amara’s observation that we tend to overestimate a technology’s impact early and underestimate its impact later,” he says.

    “Yes, food is very different from VR or AI, but both must work from the playbook of getting people to accept unfamiliar manners and methods of doing things to live better tomorrow than today.”

    The ‘right players’ have survived, and things will ‘only go up’

    lab grown meat taste test
    Courtesy: Danai Georgiadou

    For Georgiadou, the shift in the cultivated meat landscape was much needed. “When I joined the research front of cultivated meat in Singapore in 2022, funding was flowing, driven by overpromises, unfeasible milestones, and dream-like deliverables pitched to investors. There were many founders who just wanted to join in the hype without actually having a solid scientific foundation or proper planning,” she suggests.

    “As a researcher in the public sector, I experienced that firsthand – I was contacted by many of them for scientific advice. So, as we all saw, there was a big drop in the years that followed. Companies went bankrupt or got acquired, simply because they couldn’t meet those unrealistic promises. This not only led to a loss of investor trust, but also hurt the cultivated meat field overall.

    “But, because of that drop, I can now see that the right players survived, and anyone stepping in now knows they need to be ready for a fight. Expectations have also been reset. Cultivated meat isn’t just another alternative protein – it’s a novel food, a new technology. So the investors coming in now are better prepared, with more realistic expectations.”

    lab grown meat review
    Courtesy: Gustaf Brandberg

    Brandberg explains that the FDA approval for Mission Barns took much longer than he believed when his firm invested. “It’s good that the FDA is diligent when approving new food production methods, but we hope they can speed up their processes. After all, the end product is normal pork fat, produced in a bioreactor and not in a living creature,” he says.

    “The slow approval processes have hampered the whole industry, and cultivated companies still need to prove that they can produce ingredients at scale cost-efficiently. This is where we think cultivated fat has an advantage over cultivated meat; you only need a few percentages of fat in the end product, dramatically reducing the cost of ingredients.”

    Georgiadou is “pretty confident” that things will now “only go up” for cultivated meat. “And when it comes to political challenges – anything new always causes waves in the beginning. IVF (in vitro fertilisation) faced huge political and ethical resistance when it first emerged, but today it’s one of the most common reproductive assistance procedures,” she says.

    “Why wouldn’t the same happen with cultivated meat? History always repeats itself.”

    The post What Does Cultivated Meat Actually Taste Like? We Asked People Who’ve Tried the Real Thing appeared first on Green Queen.

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  • Unilever to Sell Plant-Based Meat Brand The Vegetarian Butcher to JBS-Owned Vivera

    the vegetarian butcher
    6 Mins Read

    Unilever has agreed to sell The Vegetarian Butcher to fellow plant-based meat business Vivera, with the deal expected to be completed by Q3 2025.

    Four months after it first emerged that Unilever was planning to offload The Vegetarian Butcher as part of its portfolio shakeup, it has accepted a non-binding offer to sell the business to fellow Dutch meat-free company Vivera.

    The latter – itself owned by the world’s largest meat company, JBS – submitted a binding offer for an undisclosed sum to acquire The Vegetarian Butcher. The deal is subject to the usual closing conditions, regulatory requirements, and consultation processes, and expected to be completed by Q3 this year.

    Unilever, which bought The Vegetarian Butcher in 2018, said the brand no longer aligned with the requirements of its wider portfolio, and the divergence made a sale the best option. It enlisted Piper Sandler to handle the transaction.

    The wider picture, though, is that this is part of the CPG giant’s Growth Action Plan 2030 (GAP2030). It intends to clear out brands collectively worth around £1B in annual sales, sharpening its focus on its 30 ‘power brands’ – like Hellmann’s, Dove, Knorr, and Surf – which represent over three-quarters of its turnover.

    “I believe that The Vegetarian Butcher is poised for even greater success in the next phase of its journey under new ownership that is dedicated to plant-based meat replacements,” said Unilever Foods president Heiko Schipper. “This focused expertise will support the brand in its ambitious goal to become the ‘Biggest Butcher of the World’.”

    Unique supply chain and tech needs necessitated sale

    the vegetarian butcher unilever
    Courtesy: The Vegetarian Butcher

    One of the world’s leading plant-based meat makers, The Vegetarian Butcher was established in 2007 by Jaap Korteweg – a ninth-generation livestock farmer – and politician Niko Koffeman. In 2016, it co-produced a line of vegetarian meatballs with Unilever under the Unox soup brand, and was purchased by the CPG behemoth two years later as it looked to capitalise on the boom in meat-free eating.

    The Vegetarian Butcher’s products are available in 55 countries and over 40,000 retail locations, as well as restaurants and chains like Burger King and Subway. According to Unilever – which spent over £8M on a marketing push for the brand in 2019 – the plant-based meat maker has delivered “strong double-digit growth on average” since the acquisition, although Reuters reported that it only records around €50M in annual sales and is loss-making.

    The Vegetarian Butcher’s chilled and frozen products require a “distinct supply chain and sourcing model”, which made it “less scalable” within Unilever’s broader portfolio, the group said. It added that the plant-based business’s innovations were driven by a “unique set of technological and R&D capabilities” that differed significantly from the needs of its broader product range.

    “We are very excited for The Vegetarian Butcher to be joining forces with Vivera, as it will bring the opportunity to combine our strengths and deliver even greater value to our partners and our consumers,” said The Vegetarian Butcher CEO Rutger Rozendaal.

    the vegetarian butcher vivera
    Courtesy: Vivera

    Vivera is one of Europe’s oldest and largest vegan meat producers, having been around since 1990. It was initially part of the Enkco Foodgroup, whose flagship brand was a namesake meat maker. But the group sold the Enkco business to focus solely on the plant-based enterprise in 2017, paving the way for strong growth. This led JBS to acquire Vivera in 2021.

    Today, Vivera’s products are available in over 27,000 supermarket stores across 25 European countries. Its retail and private-label portfolio and in-house technologies are “complementary” to The Vegetarian Butcher, the firm said.

    “We join forces to create a great purpose-driven company with many talented and highly motivated people. Acceleration of the protein transition is more important than ever and we look forward to inspiring more people to eat more plant-based,” said Vivera CEO Willem van Weede.

    The Vegetarian Butcher eyes success as Unilever shakeup continues

    the vegetarian butcher unilever
    Courtesy: The Vegetarian Butcher

    Change has been fast afoot at Unilever in recent months. The group has also begun demerging its ice cream units in India and Indonesia, and will list global brands like Magnum and Ben & Jerry’s on public markets this year. The latter is in a spat with its parent company over the ouster of CEO David Stever last month, with Unilever accused of removing the executive over his political activism.

    The CPG company is also looking to sell a number of its Dutch food brands, including Unox and Conimex. And speculation about the future of brands like Colman’s, Marmite, and Pot Noodle has been rampant since the departure of CEO Hein Schumacher, who only took over in July 2023 and masterminded the GAP2030 strategy focused on “doing fewer things, better and with greater impact”.

    Schumacher, who has been replaced by CFO Fernando Fernandez, said the board was keen to “step up the pace of our strategy execution and realise swift value creation underscored by a change in leadership”.

    Unilever has additionally scaled back a number of its key climate goals, a break from its reputation as one of the world’s ESG leaders. The company recorded a 1.9% hike in turnover in 2024, reaching €60.8B. Its power brands led the way with sales growth of 5.3%. Meanwhile, the group’s food business made up 22% of its 2024 revenue. At €13.4B, this was second only to the personal care segment.

    “Market growth, which slowed throughout 2024, is expected to remain soft in the first half of 2025,” Schumacher said last month. “The steps we have taken in 2024, including the launch of our refreshed GAP2030 strategy, further reinvestment in our brands and strong innovation pipelines leave us better positioned to deliver on our ambitions in the years ahead.”

    unilever plant based
    Courtesy: The Vegetarian Butcher

    There had been scepticism about Unilever’s ability to find buyers for The Vegetarian Butcher at the right price, and some had (correctly) suggested it could appeal to trade buyers like meat producers looking to diversify into plant-based alternatives.

    “This marks a significant step towards becoming one of the largest and most influential companies in the plant-based industry, making us uniquely positioned towards further accelerating the global shift to tasty and healthy plant-based solutions,” said Rozendaal.

    The deal comes amid a downturn in investment in plant-based food (by 75% in 2024) and faltering sales, resulting in a number of mergers and acquisitions in the past year, including Ahimsa Companies’s takeover of Wicked Kitchen, Simulate, and Blackbird Foods, the separate deals for ready meal brand Allplants by Deliciously Ella’s founders and Grubby, and Misha’s Inc’s purchase of vegan cheese producer Vertage, among others.

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