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Category: Future Foods

  • Pizza Chefs Line Up for New Culture’s Animal-Free Mozzarella with ‘Overwhelming’ Demand

    new culture mozzarella
    6 Mins Read

    New Culture, which makes mozzarella from precision-fermented casein, has secured signed interest worth over $5M from pizza restaurants across the US ahead of its launch.

    As it prepares to launch its animal-free mozzarella in the US, Californian food tech startup New Culture has received “overwhelming” interest from pizza chefs and restaurants nationwide, securing more than $5M in early demand.

    The pre-launch interest establishes what the company calls “a robust commercial foundation”, working with members of the World Pizza Champions team, Pizza Industry Excellence award winners, and those mentioned in the 50Top Pizza list and the Michelin Guide.

    “We have had discussions with dozens of pizza chefs and restaurant operators across the country as well as internationally. This includes hosting tastings at New Culture headquarters, bringing cheese samples to chefs to experiment with in their pizza ovens, conversations with pizzeria owners about operational details, and receiving input on product priorities,” says co-founder and CEO Matt Gibson.

    “For many of those chefs and operators, they’ve become sufficiently interested in New Culture cheese that they’ve proactively confirmed and registered (and signed) that interest with us. They’re now simply waiting for our supply readiness in order to shift into the cheese purchasing lane,” he tells Green Queen, explaining that in the foodservice sector, it’s “extremely rare to make a purchase before the product is actually available for sale”.

    The company, which earned self-determined Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) status for its precision-fermented casein last year, is currently awaiting clearance for its product label and registration from the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA).

    “We continue to work through the steps needed to launch, including waiting to hear from the CDFA. We’re checking in on their process regularly and hope to clear this step soon,” says Gibson.

    The ingredients in New Culture’s animal-free mozzarella

    animal free casein
    Courtesy: New Culture

    The base for New Culture’s cow-free mozzarella is a recombinant version of casein, the main protein found in dairy. It is responsible for emulsification, stabilisation and gelation, among other features, helping cheese melt, stretch, bubble and brown.

    Being a dairy protein, it’s a resource-intensive ingredient, prompting the startup to use precision fermentation instead. The technology – used to make animal-free items like insulin or rennet for conventional cheese – combines traditional fermentation with the latest biotechnology advances to efficiently produce a compound of interest (in this case, a protein). It allows New Culture to cut its mozzarella’s emissions by over 85% and water and land use by more than 95%.

    To make the cheese, the animal-free casein is mixed with water, sunflower and coconut oils, salt, sugar, starch, and minerals. The gluten-, soy- and nut-free mozzarella contains 5g of protein and 2g of carbs, and needs less than half as much casein (28%) as its conventional counterpart, helping lower costs to an otherwise expensive technology.

    A survey by New Culture found that early adopters are happy to pay $4 more per pizza with the company’s cheese. The startup is working to match the price of dairy over the next couple of years, a feat being supported by partnerships with food industry giants CJ CheilJedang (an investor in New Culture) and ADM. The casein-as-an-ingredient market is worth $2.7 billion.

    “We are deep into the process of scaling up our supply with manufacturing partners. It’s not only to meet this $5M in early demand but also demand from thousands more pizzerias and restaurants,” says Gibson.

    “The robustness of our technical capabilities has enabled us to reach fermentation manufacturing volumes and continue to bring costs down on our path to parity with conventional dairy. The plan is to begin supplying these early operators with our cheese this year while enabling flexible volumes over time.”

    Pizzeria Mozza creates two pizzas for New Culture launch

    pizzeria mozza new culture cheese
    Courtesy: New Culture

    According to the company, the initial demand comes from a variety of industry players, from independent eateries to national pizza chains, spanning pizzas of all kinds, from Californian, New York or Detroit-style to classic Neopolitan and grandma pies. Chefs have found it to perform consistently in wood-fired, gas, and electric ovens at temperatures ranging from 550-900°F (285-530*C).

    While New Culture is keeping the names of these restaurants under wraps, its first partner has been known for a while. As part of a pilot in 2023, the startup showcased its mozzarella at Nancy Silveron’s Pizzeria Mozza in Los Angeles – and this is where it will debut the cheese too.

    To prepare for the launch, Silverton and her team have created two new pizzas for the animal-free mozzarella. The rollout was initially expected by the end of last year, but introducing “a first-of-its-kind product has presented some unexpected twists and turns”, according to New Culture.

    “We’re launching an entirely new product and an entirely new category. The foodservice industry – pizzerias in particular – have been craving an animal-free mozzarella that actually delivers for their customer,” explains Gibson.

    “In preparation, we’ve had to work through naming and labelling details, reconciling brand, consumer appeal and education, and regulatory guidance. We’ve also had to ensure operators’ needs are met when it comes to product handling since pizza chefs prepare and bake their pizzas in different ways.”

    An alternative to ‘gloopy’ vegan cheese amid the UPF backlash

    new culture cheese
    Courtesy: New Culture

    While 25,000 pizzerias already serve plant-based cheese in the US, these products make up just 1% of the overall cheese market. Meanwhile, the number of people buying vegan cheese more than once has dropped in recent years, with consumers dissatisfied with what New Culture describes as “gloopy, pasty texture and artificial flavours”.

    The pushback against ultra-processed foods – heightened by Robert F Kennedy Jr’s appointment as health secretary – has further complicated things for alternative protein producers. “Cheese is a processed food like milk, bread, or canned vegetables, not an ultra-processed food,” notes Gibson. “And it’s a food that consumers can’t get enough of. It is the only dairy product that has had steadily increasing demand for decades and, at nearly $40B in annual sales, now claims half of the US dairy market.”

    He adds: “We make our mozzarella through an industry-standard cheesemaking process, the same way conventional cheese is made. Our product label is very clean and includes only common food ingredients. We hear from consumers and restaurant operators regularly about how beloved cheese is, and have a hard time imagining a future in which cheese significantly recedes from the global food system.”

    New Culture, which has raised $28.5M in venture capital and is currently fundraising, is among a number of startups working on precision-fermented casein, including Standing Ovation, Those Vegan Cowboys, Change Foods, Zero Cow Factory, and Fermify, though it has the advantage of being one of only two companies (alongside Fermify) to be cleared to sell the protein in the US.

    “We hear from pizza chefs and operators every day how eager they are to put New Culture cheese on the menu,” says Gibson. “This first $5M in demand is just the beginning as we scale up to bring delicious, animal-free cheese to pizza lovers everywhere.”

    The post Pizza Chefs Line Up for New Culture’s Animal-Free Mozzarella with ‘Overwhelming’ Demand appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • RFK Jr Moves to End ‘Self-Affirmed’ GRAS Rule, Threatening Food Tech Innovation

    rfk jr self affirmed gras
    6 Mins Read

    US health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr has directed the country’s food regulator to close a ‘loophole’ that allows companies to self-affirm their ingredients as safe. What does it mean for future protein firms?

    In the latest blow to the alternative protein ecosystem, a new directive from the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) could make it harder for companies to bring new ingredients to market.

    HHS secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr has instructed the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to explore “potential rulemaking” to revise and eventually eliminate the self-affirmed Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) provision.

    The rule currently allows companies to self-determine their ingredients as safe to use based on scientific evaluation, thus paving the way for market entry. But Kennedy argued that this is a “loophole” that needs to be closed to provide greater transparency to Americans.

    The move could have major repercussions for producers of novel food ingredients, particularly those using non-traditional fermentation or cell cultivation technologies, who have used this pathway to commercialise. It has made the US a more attractive proposition for many startups, but that may be about to change.

    What is self-affirmed GRAS, and why do companies use it?

    fda gras
    Courtesy: Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images

    Self-affirmed GRAS status doesn’t legally require FDA review – instead, companies only need to conduct a safety assessment by a scientific panel, which can include both internal and external experts.

    For example, Finnish firm Solar Foods conducted large-scale scientific research and published food-safety-related results in peer-reviewed journals to self-affirm its gas-derived Solein protein as GRAS. A qualified panel of experts additionally compiled a statement on Solein’s safety and intended use based on the determined food categories and ingredient concentrations.

    Since producers choosing this pathway don’t need to notify the FDA or disclose the information publicly, it allows them to maintain confidentiality around proprietary information and trade secrets. It’s also a cheaper, easier, and faster way to get to market – the FDA only evaluates around 75 GRAS notices a year, and each can take between six to 12 months to be approved.

    But this does mean companies make their own safety assessments independently of the FDA (while complying with its requirements). So, many also prefer to go through the GRAS notification process, which is much more rigorous and requires the submission of a host of comments, including both positive and negative reviews and studies of a company’s ingredients.

    If approved, the FDA sends a ‘no questions’ letter, deeming the ingredient safe for sale – this is seen as a more transparent process with publicly available data and breeds both market and consumer confidence.

    Why does RFK Jr want to scrap the self-affirmed GRAS rule?

    make america healthy again
    Courtesy: MAHA

    It’s part of his Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) drive, which has seen him attack ultra-processed foods, GMO ingredients, cultivated meat, and plant-based foods.

    Alternative protein executives have maintained an air of cautious optimism around his appointment, praising his intention to make the food system cleaner and more nutritious, but criticising him and President Donald Trump’s administration for ignoring climate science.

    “For far too long, ingredient manufacturers and sponsors have exploited a loophole that has allowed new ingredients and chemicals, often with unknown safety data, to be introduced into the US food supply without notification to the FDA or the public,” he said of the self-affirmed GRAS rule.

    “Eliminating this loophole will provide transparency to consumers, help get our nation’s food supply back on track by ensuring that ingredients being introduced into foods are safe, and ultimately Make America Healthy Again.”

    The FDA itself is undergoing an overhaul, having reorganised its structure last year. It recently also proposed draft labelling guidance for plant-based meat, suggesting that companies highlight the source ingredients of products on-pack. And before a month before Trump returned to the White House, it updated the labelling criteria for companies to market their foods as ‘healthy’.

    Sara Brenner, the acting FDA commissioner, said: “The FDA is committed to further safeguarding the food supply by ensuring the appropriate review of ingredients and substances that come into contact with food. The FDA will continue to follow our authorities and leverage our resources to protect the health of consumers to ensure that food is a vehicle for wellness.”

    According to Politico, RFK Jr is set to meet the bosses of major US food companies next week, but one person familiar with the matter suggested that there’s a “major concern” that they’re “going to agree, as major industry players, to things that eliminate science from the FDA”.

    Where does this leave alternative protein companies?

    precision fermentation gras
    Courtesy: Onego Bio

    In the US, cultivated meat is jointly regulated by the FDA and the US Department of Agriculture – companies need approvals from both agencies before they can sell the product on the market. So the elimination of the self-affirmed GRAS rule likely wouldn’t affect these firms too much.

    Those that will keenly feel the impact are startups using fermentation to bring novel ingredients to market. If this rule existed 10 years ago, it likely would have impeded the launch of the Impossible Burger, whose flagship ‘heme’ ingredient is made via precision fermentation.

    There are several precision-fermented protein companies that either have self-affirmed GRAS status, or have received the FDA’s ‘no questions’ letter. This includes early adopters like Perfect Day, Remilk (both for whey protein), and The Every Company (egg proteins), as well as the wave of notices in the last couple of years, involving Imagindairy, TurtleTree, New Culture, Vivici, 21st.Bio, Bon Vivant, All G, Fermify (all making recombinant dairy proteins), Onego Bio (egg proteins), and more.

    It’s not just precision fermentation startups that have benefitted though. Solar Foods’s Solein protein is produced via gas fermentation, while The Better Meat Co – which received a ‘no questions’ letter last year too – uses biomass fermentation to make mycoprotein. Aqua Cultured Foods also employs the latter tech to make its cell-cultured seafood analogues, and obtained self-affirmed GRAS status last summer.

    HHS said that eliminating the self-affirmation process would require companies to introduce new ingredients only after publicly notifying the FDA of their intended use and underlying safety data. It added that it will work with Congress to “explore ways legislation can completely close the GRAS loophole”.

    But it’s unclear what it would mean for companies that have already self-affirmed their ingredients as GRAS, and have been actively selling their products after doing so. Green Queen has contacted HHS and the FDA for clarification.

    It’s worth noting that many companies – especially those in Europe – look to the US as a point of market entry since the regulatory framework is more welcoming, compared to the likes of, say, the European Food Safety Authority. This has strengthened the US’s position as a future food leader, but without the self-affirmation rule, this could be challenged.

    Rivals like the UK are already ramping up their regulatory support for novel foods, while Singapore has spearheaded this movement for years. Thailand, South Korea, Japan, and China are also making moves – Republicans have already expressed concerns about the latter overtaking the US as a biotech leader. Could RFK Jr’s latest move be a step towards realising those fears?

    The post RFK Jr Moves to End ‘Self-Affirmed’ GRAS Rule, Threatening Food Tech Innovation appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • UK Govt Opens First-of-A-Kind ‘Sandbox’ to Fast-Track Cultivated Meat Approval

    lab grown meat uk
    7 Mins Read

    The UK’s Food Standards Agency has launched a regulatory ‘sandbox’ to accelerate the regulatory approval pathway for cultivated meat, with eight startups participating in the two-year programme.

    Weeks after cultivated meat hit pet food shelves in the UK, the government has launched a first-of-its-kind regulatory programme to help cultivated meat producers get to market faster – and for cheaper.

    The Food Standards Agency (FSA) – which oversees food safety and novel food regulation in the UK – has picked eight cultivated meat startups to participate in the regulatory ‘sandbox’, where they will work with scientists, regulatory experts, and academic bodies to overhaul the regulatory framework around these products.

    It comes months after the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology awarded £1.6M to the FSA to create the Cell-Cultivated Products Regulatory Sandbox, as part of the first round of its Engineering Biology Sandbox Fund.

    Sandboxes comprise controlled environments for situations where scientific and technological innovation has outpaced existing regulation – many companies are currently making cultivated meat, but the UK’s authorisation process (modelled on the EU’s) is slow and congested. These sandboxes run for a limited period to help startups, researchers and regulators work together to develop new rules, standards and guidance.

    lab grown meat regulatory approval
    Courtesy: Hoxton Farms

    The two-year programme includes startups from across the world: Hoxton Farms, Roslin Technologies, Uncommon Bio (all UK), BlueNalu (US), Vow (Australia), Mosa Meat (The Netherlands), Gourmey (France), and Vital Meat (France) – the latter two, along with British startup Ivy Farm Technologies and Israel’s Aleph Farms – are already waiting on approval for cultivated meat in the UK. London-based Meatly is the only one to have received the green light, though this is for pet food.

    “By participating in the sandbox, we aim to accelerate our regulatory timeline for the UK market, reducing potential delays and strengthening our submission,” said Mosa Meat. Its founder and CSO, Dr Mark Post, added: “These are exactly the kind of public-private partnerships we envisioned when we debuted the world’s first cultivated burger right here in London in 2013.”

    Prof Robin May, chief scientific advisor at the FSA, noted: “Safe innovation is at the heart of this programme. By prioritising consumer safety and making sure new foods, like cell-cultivated products are safe, we can support growth in innovative sectors. Our aim is to ultimately provide consumers with a wider choice of new food, while maintaining the highest safety standards.”

    How the regulatory sandbox will help cultivated meat startups

    fsa lab grown meat
    Courtesy: Food Standards Agency

    For years, food safety regulation in the UK was stuck in the pre-Brexit novel food regulations, which are slow and expensive for companies. Currently, regulatory filings cost between £350,000-£500,000 per product, and can take more than two-and-a-half years to be approved.

    Over the last year, the government has made concerted efforts to put the UK at the front of the protein transition race. The FSA first announced plans to create a sandbox in February 2024, after a report it commissioned revealed that speeding up novel food regulation could help it meet national climate plans.

    Regulatory sandboxes allow companies to test new concepts with real customers under the supervision of a regulator, as designed by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority. The Cell-Cultivated Products Regulatory Sandbox will be jointly run by the FSA and Food Standards Scotland (FSS), and provide application guidance to startups, expand the safety and nutritional knowledge of novel foods, and reduce approval timelines.

    The FSA will gather “rigorous scientific evidence” about the technology behind cell-cultured food products to better understand and regulate these products. They will address important questions – including about labelling – and apply up-to-date insights when clearing novel foods for sale.

    The regulator has previously said it expects at least 15 more applications in the next two years, and predicts that many more cultivated protein startups could crop up thanks to the development.

    “By supporting the safe development of cell-cultivated products, we’re giving businesses the confidence to innovate and accelerating the UK’s position as a global leader in sustainable food production,” said science minister Sir Patrick Vallance.

    UK steps up its protein transition efforts

    national alternative protein innovation centre
    Courtesy: National Alternative Protein Innovation Centre

    The regulatory sandbox is among a number of developments that signal the UK’s intention to spearhead sustainable protein innovation. It has invested £75M for the development of these foods, an important outlay considering it is behind its net-zero target, and meeting this would require Brits to cut 35% of their meat consumption by 2050, according to the national Climate Change Committee (CCC).

    Since 2023, four major research centres have cropped up – the Cellular Agriculture Manufacturing Hub (CARMA), the National Alternative Protein Innovation Centre (or NAPIC, helped by a £15M injection from the government), the Microbial Food Hub, and Bezos Earth Fund‘s Centre for Sustainable Protein.

    The FSA is working with CARMA, NAPIC and the Centre for Sustainable Protein as part of the sandbox, with non-profit the Good Food Institute (GFI) Europe and trade body the Alternative Proteins Association also involved.

    Additionally, the regulator will set up a system of international cooperation, which would see the UK greenlight cultivated meat products approved in other countries. And it’s creating a new public register to replace the existing system of requiring a statutory instrument (which adds up to six months to the assessment process), and removing the need for renewals of approvals every 10 years.

    fsa novel foods
    Courtesy: Ivy Farm Technologies

    Further, cultivated meat is on the radar of the newly opened Regulatory Innovation Office, whose engineering biology focus involves reducing red tape and helping regulators bring these products to market faster.

    “We are very pleased that the UK is moving forward with this two-year programme and are excited about the prospect of a full safety assessment of two cultivated meat applications within that time,” Valentina Gallani, health and nutrition manager at ProVeg International, told Green Queen.

    She added that this will allow the UK to catch up with other countries that have greenlit cultivated meat and ensure it’s ahead of the pack. “Cultivated meat can be a promising way to diversify protein consumption, boost the economy and increase food security towards a more sustainable food system. To do so, it is important to have a rigorous regulatory approval process to protect the consumer and support the industry.”

    Challenges remain, but sandbox a big step forward

    lab grown meat pet food
    Courtesy: Meatly

    Last month, Meatly and fellow London startup The Pack debuted dog treats featuring cultivated meat and plant-based ingredients at Pets At Home, marking the first time Brits could buy cell-cultured products, albeit for their pets.

    Cultivated meat has been cleared for sale in Singapore, the US, Israel and Hong Kong, while Regulators in the EU, Switzerland, Australia and Thailand are evaluating applications too. And just last week, the US issued its third approval, for cultivated pork producer Mission Barns.

    Several European countries – some bound by EU regulations – have already held public tastings for cultivated meat, a feat yet to be achieved in the UK. Plus, some citizens on a CCC panel said they’re uneasy about cultivated meat, though they added the government could still support these to ensure a larger range of products. The committee itself associated these proteins with “potential positive nutrition and health impacts”, while even farmers are open to the idea of cell-cultured meat.

    “While the sandbox is a welcome measure, other challenges still remain. The FSA has been under-resourced for a number of years – resulting in lengthy delays for product approvals – and the detailed guidelines for alternative protein startups first proposed in 2022 have yet to be published, meaning some companies lack the clarity needed when preparing dossiers,” Linus Pardoe, senior UK policy manager at GFI Europe, told Green Queen last month.

    uk food strategy
    Courtesy: GFI Europe

    “The UK has also not yet introduced a modern approach to holding safe, limited taste testing for novel foods, similar to the protocol introduced by the Netherlands – another area that could enable startups to demonstrate progress and engage with consumers as they develop their products.”

    “The sandbox will only be considered a success if the FSA also receives the support and funding to complete its assessments within faster timelines. Without this speed, it risks losing out on creating a competitive homegrown industry which can power low-carbon economic growth, boost food security, and ensure the UK becomes a leader in net-zero within the food industry,” said Jim Mellon, executive chairman of cellular agriculture investor Agronomics (a Meatly shareholder).

    Still, the launch of the sandbox and the collaboration with leading cultivated meat players – chosen to represent a “diverse, international range of technologies, processes, and ingredients” – is a major step in the right direction for the UK.

    “We’ve seen in a recent report that the UK is falling behind in terms of agritech funding, yet houses leading companies in this industry,” added Mellon. “We’re certain that with a modern and efficient regulatory framework, we could easily match if not surpass rival markets and the reward will be increased food security from a sustainable and durable source.”

    The post UK Govt Opens First-of-A-Kind ‘Sandbox’ to Fast-Track Cultivated Meat Approval appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Mission Barns Gets FDA Approval to Sell Cultivated Pork in US Supermarkets & Restaurants

    lab grown meat approved
    6 Mins Read

    Californian food tech startup Mission Barns has become the third cultivated meat firm to receive regulatory approval in the US, with a planned rollout at Sprouts and Bay Area restaurant group Fiorella.

    Mission Barns has earned US regulatory approval to sell its cultivated pork fat in the US, after securing a ‘no questions’ letter from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Friday.

    It is the third company to have received the green light to sell cultivated meat in the US – after fellow Californian firms Upside Foods and Eat Just in 2022 and 2023, respectively – and the first to be cleared to sell cultivated pork anywhere in the world.

    The cell-cultured fat will be mixed with plant-based ingredients in Italian-style meatballs and applewood-smoked bacon, which will be debuted at San Francisco restaurant group Fiorella and Sprouts Farmers Market – marking the first time cultivated meat will be sold in a US supermarket.

    lab grown meat sprouts
    Mission Barns’s hybrid meat products will feature a mix of its cultivated pork fat with plant proteins | Courtesy: Mission Barns

    According to its letter, the FDA “did not identify a basis” to conclude that Mission Barns’s process would result in substances or microorganisms that would adulterate the food.

    “We have no questions at this time regarding Mission Barns’ conclusion that foods comprised of or containing cultured pork cell material resulting from the production process […] are as safe as comparable foods produced by other methods,” the agency wrote, concluding a consultation process that began in May 2022 and underwent 18 amendments.

    Before it is officially launched, Mission Barns would require approval from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) for its pilot plant and product labelling, in addition to the FDA letter.

    The FDA approval comes during a period of turbulence for the cultivated meat industry, which has faced both financial and political challenges in the US – over 20 states have attempted to ban or restrict these proteins, and two of them have been successful. And with Robert F Kennedy as health secretary, there have been suggestions that the regulatory pathway for cultivated meat is now harder to chart.

    New bioreactors a precursor to large-scale facility

    mission barns
    Courtesy: Mission Barns

    Founded in 2018 by CEO Eitan Fischer, previously the cultivated meat head at Eat Just, Mission Barns uses belly fat cells from domestic Yorkshire pigs and grows them in bioreactors to make cultivated pork fat for hybrid meats like bacon, meatballs, pepperoni and chorizo.

    It has a pilot plant in the Bay Area that can “produce enough product to supply a handful of restaurants and retailers”, according to Bianca Lê, head of special projects and external affairs at Mission Barns.

    She had hinted about the startup’s approval and market entry plans in an interview with Green Queen in October, revealing: “We have a number of exciting partnerships confirmed with major US grocery stores, restaurants and food distributors who we have partnered with to sell our products.”

    The company had developed a novel bioreactor that makes a departure from the single-cell suspension tanks of the biopharma sector, making cultivated meat production more efficient, easier to scale, and cheaper. Its appliance recreates the same adherent growth conditions inside an animal’s body, and can cultivate both muscle and fat cells, or tissue, from any species.

    It is now looking to build a commercial-scale manufacturing facility. “Our current plan involves having bioreactors with working volumes in the tens of thousands of litres at commercial scale, when we’ll be outputting tens of millions of pounds of final product per year,” explained Lê.

    mission barns fat
    Courtesy: Mission Barns

    Mission Barns is among a number of companies taking the cultivated fat route, which is seen as a more viable way to commercialise cell-cultured meat in the medium term. This includes Hoxton Farms, Steakholder Foods, Genuine Taste, and Mosa Meat (which has applied for approval in the EU).

    “Consumers won’t eat food that isn’t absolutely delicious, which is why we chose to pursue a fat-first approach,” explained Fischer. “Not only is fat the main driver of flavour and juiciness, but it is also less costly and faster to produce than lean meat.”

    He added: “We believe in giving consumers more choice – people looking for delicious, healthy, and responsibly produced meat are excited to try our products. By advancing cultivated meat production, we are helping to create a more resilient and reliable food system and reinforcing American leadership in food innovation.”

    A win for cultivated meat amid political upheaval

    mission barns fda approval
    Courtesy: Mission Barns

    According to a scientific memo published by the FDA, Mission Barns’s ingredient has similar unsaturated and saturated fatty acid content to conventional pork fat, and no trans fats. The agency said it will conduct another inspection after the company begins commercial production to “help ensure that potential risks are being managed and that the food is safe and not adulterated”.

    Only a handful of firms have been able to climb the regulatory ladder to be cleared to sell cultivated meat globally – Mission Barns is only the sixth. Aside from Upside Foods and Eat Just, the list comprises Aleph Farms (in Israel), Vow (in Singapore and Hong Kong), and Meatly (in the UK). Regulators in the EU, Switzerland, Australia and Thailand are evaluating applications too, and judging from its inventory, the US FDA seems to have received at least five others.

    Cultivated meat is undergoing a trough of disillusionment. After VCs pumped $1.3B into the category in 2021, investment has dipped dramatically. In 2023, funding fell by 75%, followed by another 40% drop in 2024, reaching just $137M, according to Net Zero Insights data obtained by the Good Food Institute. It has forced some cultivated meat startups to shut down, and others to make cutbacks.

    cultivated meat investment
    Graphic by Green Queen

    At the same time, a host of legislative efforts to ban or restrict cultivated meat in the US and Europe are ongoing. Italy decided to ban these proteins in 2023 (before other EU attempts were thwarted), while Florida and Alabama followed suit last year. Several states have floated similar bills in the current legislative session, though some have hit a snag, mirroring the fate of bills introduced in a number of other states over the last two years.

    “Unlike other meat production, cultivated meat has federal regulatory oversight by both the FDA and USDA,” the Association for Meat, Poultry, and Seafood Innovation, a cellular agriculture trade group, said in a statement.

    “As more companies progress through this rigorous regulatory pathway, the United States has an opportunity to be a global leader in the emerging industry. American-made cultivated meat and seafood will create high-skilled jobs throughout the value chain, enhance US food security, and expand consumer choice [by] filling gaps in supply shortages,” it added.

    Fiorella co-founder Brandon Gillis also touched upon the “vulnerability of our global food supply chain”, which has impacted the restaurant’s ability to source ingredients and increased menu prices: “I’ve been keeping tabs on the cultivated meat industry as a potential solution, and after meeting with Mission Barns and tasting its products, I wanted to make sure we created a partnership for this historic moment.”

    The post Mission Barns Gets FDA Approval to Sell Cultivated Pork in US Supermarkets & Restaurants appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Why Israel Must Swap Meat for Animal-Free Proteins to Battle Hunger & Climate Change

    israel alternative protein
    5 Mins Read

    Meat and dairy should only account for a maximum of 40% of Israel’s protein supply by 2050 to ensure food security amid the climate crisis, according to a new study.

    One of the world’s largest meat consumers, where food security is threatened due to high import levels and the changing climate, Israel needs to accelerate the shift away from animal proteins to safeguard its food supply.

    A new report by the Samuel Neaman Institute for National Policy Research suggests that by 2050, between 60% and 80% of the country’s protein supply must come from alternatives like plant-based, cell-cultivated or fermentation-derived products. This would boost local production, lower greenhouse gas emissions, and strengthen long-term food security.

    “In general, Israel is a net importer – meaning it imports most of its food and feed,” Prof Eyal Shimoni, the report’s lead author, tells Green Queen.

    “Therefore, to increase food security, we need to produce much more locally, which is challenging due to our geography (many arid lands, climate change, etc.). Replacing animal-derived protein with plant/alternative sources will significantly reduce the reliance on animal feed imports.”

    Israel’s dietary guidelines need an overhaul

    israel dietary guidelines

    The research notes that there are immediate risks to the supply of foods like nuts, legumes, cereals, seeds, and fish in Israel. And by 2050, population growth estimates suggest that the demand for food will increase by up to 89%.

    “Israel’s meat consumption is among the highest per capita globally, ranking second in poultry consumption and fifth in beef,” says Shiri Heffer, sustainability and food security senior manager at the Good Food Institute (GFI) Israel, an alternative protein think tank that supported the report.

    The government’s current dietary guidelines, presented in the form of a “nutritional rainbow”, emphasise a Mediterranean diet rich in plant proteins, with a lower amount of red meat (up to 300g a week). The recommendations are based on the level of processing, rather than the ingredients themselves.

    But since animal proteins are highly resource-intensive, and with numerous studies proving the health benefits of a plant-rich diet, the “dietary guidelines should advise the public” to move even further towards alternative proteins, says Shimoni.

    israel protein diversification
    Courtesy: Samuel Neeman Institute

    Previous research by the Samuel Neaman Institute shows that as things stand, animal protein will account for 52% of protein intake in Israel by 2050. But this report outlines that the appropriate target “is a reliance of no more than 40%” of meat and dairy.

    It also looks at scenarios that would limit animal protein intake to 30% or even 20%. Between the three options, meat consumption would need to be slashed by 23-61%. Shimoni explains that the three ratios don’t differ in their principles. “We proposed that they provide perspectives on different depths of change. The level of uncertainty is extremely high,” he says.

    “We do, however, believe that certainly, with the right effort, the reduction to 40% is attainable,” he adds. “It should be a combined effort in several fronts: supporting the construction of manufacturing facilities for alternative protein, investment in agricultural solutions to produce more legumes, and an education system that affects the next generation to adopt this diet and these solutions,” he explains.

    How Israel can accelerate the protein transition

    lab grown meat israel
    Courtesy: Aleph Farms

    Israel is already home to several leading alternative protein firms, including cultivated meat players Aleph Farms and SuperMeat, precision fermentation players Remilk and Imagindairy, and plant-based pioneer Redefine Meat. In 2023, the country attracted 10% of all VC funding in the sector, which could create 10,000 more jobs and contribute $2.5B to the national economy by 2030.

    “Consumer interest in alternative proteins is strong,” says Heffer. “Currently, Israelis consume approximately 9% of their protein from plant-based sources like tofu and meat alternatives. About 5% of the population identifies as vegan, while there’s a growing segment of flexitarians, particularly in certain demographic groups with higher awareness about meat reduction.”

    A majority of Gen Z and millennial consumers say they’re willing to pay more for plant-based meat and dairy. “As these generations come into their buying power, meeting their needs will be a critical part of any CPG, retail, or foodservice strategy. Product development and enhancement opportunities remain, including to improve taste and lower prices in the still-developing plant-based meat category,” she says.

    Shimoni calls on the government to support R&D in both alternative protein and agriculture, implement education programmes for the next generation, and back first-of-a-kind (FOAK) manufacturing facilities and agricultural trials.

    food security israel
    Courtesy: Samuel Neeman Institute

    The report recommends allocating at least $2B for manufacturing infrastructure for animal-free proteins, and $100-200M every year for pilot production and public-private partnerships. Additionally, the government should provide financial incentives, invest in breeding programmes for local legumes tailored to Israel’s climate, and develop a national strategy for protein diversification.

    Shimoni warns that failure to do so would see Israel “fall short of the required self-sufficiency ratio, leaving it vulnerable to unstable global supply chains, extreme weather events, and other external disruptions”.

    “As food security becomes an increasingly urgent challenge worldwide, the role of alternative proteins in diversifying and stabilising national food systems is gaining attention,” says Alla Voldman-Rantzer, VP of strategy and policy at GFI Israel. “This report offers valuable insights for other nations looking to enhance food resilience, reduce reliance on imports, and leverage innovation and agriculture to secure sustainable protein sources for the future.”

    The post Why Israel Must Swap Meat for Animal-Free Proteins to Battle Hunger & Climate Change appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • IWD 2025: Why Are Food Tech’s Women Leaders Still Ignored by VC Investors?

    female founders vc
    6 Mins Read

    As we celebrate International Women’s Day, one big question lingers for food tech: why do female leaders continue to get sidelined by investors?

    As we reflect on the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women across the world on International Women’s Day, we’re left with some uncomfortable truths that hinder female leaders in the business world.

    There are many incredible female-founded and -led startups in the food and climate tech ecosystem, but the path to success for these companies is – unfortunately and alarmingly – much harder than for those led by men.

    “The reality is that women have always struggled to raise capital. This isn’t new,” Heather K Terry, founder and CEO of healthy snack brand GoodSam Foods, told Green Queen this week.

    “Investors still have unconscious biases and often don’t understand how female-driven companies operate or that they consistently outperform in terms of financial management, sustainability, and realistic growth projections.”

    These five stats show how women continue to be undervalued by investors, and why this needs to change as soon as possible.

    Note: There is a dearth of data on this topic, yet another clue as to how underrepresented this issue is. Most of the below stats are from PitchBook, one of the few sources with any information at all.

    Women are underrepresented at VC level

    women vc funds
    Courtesy: PitchBook

    PitchBook data shows that in 2024, only 17-20% of VC decision-makers in the US were women. Moreover, in nearly 90% of VC firms with more than $50M in assets, the majority of decision-makers were male. Things are slightly better at smaller firms, nearly 30% of which have a majority of women calling the shots.

    In Europe, 12-15% of VC decision-makers were women last year, while only 8-14% of VC firms had more female leaders than male. This is a big problem – for women-led startups to gain access to more capital, there needs to be a much larger share of female investors.

    “Increasing the representation of women in check-writing roles can create more opportunities for female founders, as female check writers can identify and support teams and ideas that may otherwise be overlooked,” explained PitchBook.

    “It takes many years to reach the top rungs of the firm ladder, and the path to a decision-maker role often involves detours through positions as operators or even founders,” it added.

    “For this reason, female representation among GPs will likely take many years to reflect material changes and will trail progress in VC deal flow.”

    A lack of funding for women-founded startups is nothing new

    pitchbook female founders
    Courtesy: PitchBook

    As Terry explained, this issue is not new at all. According to PitchBook’s US female founders dashboard, startups founded solely by women only receive around 2% of all venture capital – and this has been a constant trend since 2008 (when the share was 1.7%). And while we’re only in the first quarter of 2025, so far, female-founded startups make up only 1% of VC dollars this year.

    In contrast, firms with both male and female co-founders perform much better, rising from a 7% share in 2008 to 21% in 2024. But this represented a decline from the 24% funding share these startups enjoyed in 2023.

    Further punctuating the problems of underrepresentation of both venture capitalists and founders, a Harvard Business Review study from 2023 exposed how women-owned companies whose first round of funding came exclusively from female VCs were only half as likely to raise a second round than those whose first round included a male partner.

    “No matter the size of the initial funding round, the industry, the geographic location, or the prestige of the investor, female founders were consistently less likely to close a second round if their first round only included women,” the 2,000-startup study suggested.

    It’s not just the US

    pitchbook female founders dashboard
    Courtesy: PitchBook

    Looking at PitchBook’s female founder dashboard for Europe, it’s clear that this is a global issue. While exclusively women-founded startups performed marginally better here than their American counterparts in 2008 – with a still-dismal 2.9% funding share – the US is now slightly better-performing.

    In 2024, European female-owned startups received just 1.5% of VC funding, and so far this year, things are even more dire at 0.5%. Companies with mixed-gender owners, meanwhile, gained 18% of investment dollars in 2024, a share that has risen to 21% thus far in 2025.

    Women-led firms aren’t just getting less money – they’re also getting fewer deals compared to male-founded companies. In 2024, startups founded exclusively by women have received 6.5% and 5% of all VC deals in the US and Europe, respectively, a number that has remained relatively steady for years.

    Here aswell companies with both male and female founders perform better. In the US, they account for 19% of the deals, and in Europe, this rises to 20% (when rounded up).

    In Asia, too, DealStreetAsia found that startups with at least one female founder made up 18% of the total private capital secured in 2023, chiming with their counterparts in the west.

    Climate and food tech trends are disappointing too

    women food entrepreneurs
    Courtesy: PitchBook

    These investment trends extend to the climate and food tech sectors too. Analysis of Pitchbook data by Trellis showed that women-founded firms received just 0.4% ($136M) of the $33.5B invested in US climate tech startups in the first nine months of 2024, compared to $2.45B secured by mixed-gender-led startups.

    Similarly, in 2023, agtech startups founded only by women made up 0.7% of VC investments in the sector globally, versus 16.5% for firms with both female and male founders, according to a separate report by PitchBook.

    Women-led startups perform better – so why the disparity?

    female founders vc funding
    Courtesy: PitchBook

    In the business world, it’s quite well-known that startups founded by women give investors better and faster returns. A 2018 study from the Boston Consulting Group revealed that women-founded startups generate 78 cents in revenue per invested dollar, more than twice as high as the 31 cents offered by male-founded businesses.

    Female-founded firms also reach unicorn status faster, according to PitchBook. Its latest report, released this week, suggests that these companies take 4.2 years to cross the $1B valuation in the US, versus the national average of 4.5 years.

    Likewise, women-founded startups also secure an exit faster (7.4 years versus 7.6 overall) – this has been the case for over a decade, although the gap in time has never been as small. This rings true in Europe too, where female-led companies have consistently outperformed the regional average time from founding to exit (7.9 years versus 8.5% for all startups).

    vc female founders
    Courtesy: PitchBook

    That being said, the share of female-founded companies that secured an exit grew in both the US and Europe last year, it’s still low at 24% and 22%, respectively.

    “The data is there. We know that women-led companies make more money, are better managed, and are more realistic in their growth projections. So the question isn’t: ‘Why should investors fund women-led companies?’ It’s: ‘Why aren’t they doing it when the numbers are so clear?’” Terry told Green Queen.

    “At the end of the day, it’s easier to default to the existing systems. Hiring operators and middlemen who already fit into current structures is easier. It’s easier for investors to back founders who reflect the status quo than those who are building something different.

    “But building something new – something more equitable, something more sustainable – requires a different mindset and approach. It’s a challenge worth taking on.”

    The post IWD 2025: Why Are Food Tech’s Women Leaders Still Ignored by VC Investors? appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Amid Mounting Prices, Lindt Backs Swiss Startup to Bring Cell-Based Chocolate to the US

    cell based chocolate
    5 Mins Read

    Swiss food tech startup Food Brewer is targeting US regulatory approval for its cell-based chocolate this year, having just raised $5.6M from industry giants Lindt and Puratos.

    Zurich-based Food Brewer has attracted investment from two of Europe’s largest confectionery companies to bring cell-based chocolate to the US market as cocoa prices reach record highs.

    The Swiss firm has secured CHF 5 million ($5.6M) from Lindt & Sprüngli, Sparkalis (the VC arm of bakery and confectionery group Puratos), and existing investors in a seed extension round, which takes its total raised to CHF 10 million ($11.2M).

    Lindt and Sparkalis have joined on as both strategic investors and collaborators, according to Food Brewer, although the company declined to comment on any plans to co-create products as part of the deal.

    “Having players like Lindt and Sparkalis backing us demonstrates the real need the market has for our products,” Food Brewer co-founder and CEO Christian Schaub told Green Queen. “For us, it is incredibly valuable to benefit from their chocolate-making know-how, their industry expertise and networks.”

    He added: “The close relationship with Lindt and Sparkalis is key for the development of our products, which address the requirements and expectations of both the producers and the customers.”

    How Food Brewer makes its cocoa-free chocolate

    food brewer
    Courtesy: Food Brewer

    Founded in 2021 by Schaub, Yannick Senn, Géraldine Senn, Corinne John, Stefan Bingisser, and Klaus Kienle, Food Brewer is part of a growing crop of startups using plant cell culture to grow commodities like cocoa, whose climate threats are becoming increasingly evident.

    To make its chocolate, the startup takes cells from a cocoa bean and places them in a nutrient gel, where they regenerate and form a callus. After two weeks, it chooses the right cells to put in a bioreactor with a nutrient-rich solution of sugars, vitamins, minerals and other substances – a process enhanced by microsocopic analyses and artificial intelligence (AI).

    It only takes a few weeks to establish a new plant cell culture on average. Once the cells reach the desired biomass quantity, they’re harvested, dried and roasted.

    “Once we established the production in tanks (similar to beer-brewing tanks), we run it semi-continuously. We grow the biomass and harvest a part of it every few days to process it to our cocoa powder, letting the remaining biomass in the tank grow again. This allows for an efficient production,” explained CFO Mathilde Dupin.

    Using AI and brewing industry equipment to lower costs

    lindt lab grown chocolate
    Courtesy: Food Brewer

    “We currently operate out of our pilot plant close by Zürich, Switzerland, which is equipped with bioreactors ranging to up to 700 litres, and with an output that allows us to run prototyping runs at our client’s facilities,” said Schaub. “Our production will, however, move to external sites within the next year to allow for larger scales.”

    Food Brewer has established several partnerships to improve and acclerate its process. It has teamed up with Fruitful AI to utilise advanced algorithms to track plant cell growth under controlled images. Further, the company is integrating the brewing technology from Steinecker (the brewing division of German manufacturing giant Krones) into its bioreactor platform, sidestepping the biopharma industry to lower production costs.

    “Bringing our products to a competitive price level is the motivation behind all our activities, be it optimising the price of our media components or ensuring access to affordable production facilities. For that reason, since the beginning, we have focused on partnering with established industrial players who share the vision of reliable yet affordable food production,” said Schaub.

    “Such partners include Krones,” he added. “Jointly, we advance the adaptation of existing fermentation infrastructure towards being suitable for plant cell cultivation at reasonable costs. This approach will allow us to reach a competitive pricing.”

    Food Brewer eyes US approval as giants invest in alt-chocolate

    food brewer funding
    Courtesy: Food Brewer

    Speaking of prices, Food Brewer’s fundraise comes at a time when, thanks to climate-change-induced shortages, cocoa prices are soaring – and have been for many months.

    While dark chocolate production itself generates more emissions than all other foods bar beef, a bar of chocolate requires 1,700 litres of water on average. Plus, rising demand for land has meant that the industry is responsible for 94% and 80% of deforestation in Ghana and Ivory Coast.

    Meanwhile, climate change is wiping out cocoa crops, with global cocoa stocks falling to their lowest levels in a decade. If things remain the way they are, a third of the world’s cocoa trees might die out by 2050.

    As a result, cocoa prices shot up by three- to fourfold in 2024, reaching all-time highs – in New York, cocoa futures reached an all-time high of $12,565 per tonne in mid-December. In fact, cocoa was the fastest-gaining commodity in the value chain last year, and prices are likely to stay high this year.

    All this has had an impact on the bottom lines of large chocolate companies too. For example, Hershey’s profit forecast for 2025 is below analysts’ expectations. This has prompted industry giants to infuse cash in low-carbon solutions like cell-based and cocoa-free chocolate.

    In Israel, Celleste Bio has attracted investment from Mondelēz International, which also included fellow cell-based cocoa player Kokomodo in its second CoLab Tech programme. Puratos’s Sparkalis, meanwhile, has invested in California Cultured too, which is co-developing products with Japanese chocolate giant Meiji.

    Alongside the support of Sparkalis and Lindt, Food Brewer also counts Swiss chocolate maker Felchlin as an investor, which is testing its cell-based cocoa powder in chocolates.

    Food Brewer is first targeting the US market, with plans to secure self-determined Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) status and concurrently notify the Food and Drug Administration to obtain a ‘no questions’ letter. “[We] anticipate the first products made of our cell-cultivated cocoa to hit the market shortly after obtaining the approval,” said Schaub.

    The post Amid Mounting Prices, Lindt Backs Swiss Startup to Bring Cell-Based Chocolate to the US appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Global Agrifood Tech Funding Rebounds After Two-Year Slump

    food tech funding 2024
    5 Mins Read

    Global agrifood tech investment reached $16B in 2024, a mere 4% drop from 2023, with the US and India scoring big wins amid Europe’s continued decline.

    The alarming declines in venture capital flows to agrifood tech innovators are finally being stemmed, according to a new report by AgFunder.

    In 2022, the amount of capital invested in the sector fell by 39% compared to the record highs of 2021. This was followed by a 51% year-on-year decline in 2023. In 2024, however, this trend appeared to slow down, with agrifood tech only down by 4%, reaching $16B.

    While that is a seven-year low, many investors believe the market is bottoming out, and increased investment in markets like the US and India “hint at better days to come”.

    agrifoodtech funding
    Courtesy: AgFunder

    “The sector has been in free fall for the last few years, pulled down by macroeconomic trends and venture capital investor disenchantment, not to mention a pullback across venture capital more broadly,” the report reads. “All of that still exists, now compounded by geopolitical tensions, trade wars, and the ever-present threat of climate change. But in 2025, there are some signs of recovery.”

    Investors surveyed by AgFunder suggest that following a year of market corrections and recalibration, 2025 could be fraught with “chaos”, “uncertainty”, and “short-term decision-making”, while the volatility of US President Donald Trump’s tariffs could breed further unpredictability.

    “Protectionism combined with investors seeking a faster cash return will lead to short-term decision making, while higher tariffs will likely push [interest] rates back up if markets are impacted,” says Mark Durno, agrifood managing partner at Scottish VC firm Rockstart. “And continued political instability will put pressure on commodity markets.”

    US and India among 2024’s winners

    agfunder agrifoodtech investment report
    Courtesy: AgFunder

    The US once again retained its top spot, attracting $6.6B in funding – more than two-fifths of the global total. It represented a 14% increase from 2023, making it one of the only countries to attract more investment from the previous year.

    Meanwhile, India leapt up two places to the second spot in 2024, thanks in large part to its eGrocery sector. The world’s most populous country witnessed a 215% hike in investment to close the year at $2.5B – of this, $1.4B was raised in several rounds by rapid grocery startup Zepto. This propelled South Asia to the top of the heap as the only developing market to post growth (202%) last year.

    One of the countries India overtook was China, where funding fell by 51% to reach $848M. The UK, meanwhile, recorded a similar 45% decrease, totalling $616M in dollar investment.

    However, the Netherlands was among the nations that enjoyed a fruitful 2024, with investment up by 118% at $614M. Fellow European country Finland was home to the biggest hike among the top 10 (403%), attracting $389M. And in Asia, Japanese agrifood tech startups secured $290M from VCs, a 76% improvement on the previous year.

    Though investment is showing signs of recovery, deal count still plunged by 24% to fall below 2017 levels, “signalling the bottom of the dramatic drop in funding to the sector and the rest of venture capital more broadly”. “While it’s hard to be upbeat about the quantity of deals closing,” the report notes, “the quality of many of the companies raising decent-sized rounds is promising.”

    Meanwhile, upstream companies (which operate on the farm or in primary production) continued to dominate, taking up 51% of the funding share with over 1,265 deals – this is despite a 22% drop in year-on-year funding. Investment in downstream startups (involving technologies removed from the primary sector) was up by 20%, albeit with much fewer deals, signalling larger rounds.

    agrifoodtech investment
    Courtesy: AgFunder

    Alternative proteins see 20% decline, and Trump could cause further chaos

    According to the report, the Innovative Food category – which involves alternative proteins and novel foods – was the third-largest upstream vertical in terms of investment, and the fifth-largest overall, with startups in the space raising $1.4B over 227 deals in 2024.

    This, however, was 20% less than the year before, reflecting the bleak investment landscape for companies making plant-based food, cultivated meat, or precision-fermented proteins. This is similar to the 27% decline for alternative protein startups identified by Net Zero Insights and the Good Food Institute in 2024.

    And while Innovative Food dominated seed-stage funding in the upstream category (totalling $191M), “the numbers are not all that they seem, with several startups delaying their Series A with convertible bridge rounds, no doubt putting off an inevitable valuation reset”, AgFunder points out.

    That said, while Europe saw funding decline by 32% (including Israel), Innovative Food – in fact, mostly alternative protein – startups raised $608M, accounting for 47% of the total developed market investment in the category. In the UK too, this category accounted for a fifth of the deals, the highest in the agrifood tech sector.

    alternative protein funding
    Courtesy: AgFunder

    In the US, though, Innovative Food continued its decline from a high of over $3B in 2023, attracting just $574M in 2024, while accounting for 12% of all deals. These startups are set to face further uncertainty under the Trump administration, especially with the anti-ultra-processed-food movement helmed by health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr.

    Gil Horsky, founding partner at Flora Ventures, believes that the White House could create “chaos” at the Food and Drug Administration and “further complicate regulatory frameworks and approvals for new bio-based food ingredients”.

    Across all industries, VC funding reversed a three-year decline in 2024, increasing by 3% to reach nearly $314B. Agrifood tech companies, however, make up just around 5% of global investments, which is disproportionate to the industry’s contribution to the global economy and climate crisis.

    The food industry is responsible for at least 15% of the world’s GDP, employs more than half of its workforce, and generates at least a third of all greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, a new analysis suggests that agriculture is the leading cause of climate change – putting a sharp spotlight on where investors’ priorities should be in the coming year.

    The post Global Agrifood Tech Funding Rebounds After Two-Year Slump appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Global Agrifood Tech Funding Rebounds After Two-Year Slump

    food tech funding 2024
    5 Mins Read

    Global agrifood tech investment reached $16B in 2024, a mere 4% drop from 2023, with the US and India scoring big wins amid Europe’s continued decline.

    The alarming declines in venture capital flows to agrifood tech innovators are finally being stemmed, according to a new report by AgFunder.

    In 2022, the amount of capital invested in the sector fell by 39% compared to the record highs of 2021. This was followed by a 51% year-on-year decline in 2023. In 2024, however, this trend appeared to slow down, with agrifood tech only down by 4%, reaching $16B.

    While that is a seven-year low, many investors believe the market is bottoming out, and increased investment in markets like the US and India “hint at better days to come”.

    agrifoodtech funding
    Courtesy: AgFunder

    “The sector has been in free fall for the last few years, pulled down by macroeconomic trends and venture capital investor disenchantment, not to mention a pullback across venture capital more broadly,” the report reads. “All of that still exists, now compounded by geopolitical tensions, trade wars, and the ever-present threat of climate change. But in 2025, there are some signs of recovery.”

    Investors surveyed by AgFunder suggest that following a year of market corrections and recalibration, 2025 could be fraught with “chaos”, “uncertainty”, and “short-term decision-making”, while the volatility of US President Donald Trump’s tariffs could breed further unpredictability.

    “Protectionism combined with investors seeking a faster cash return will lead to short-term decision making, while higher tariffs will likely push [interest] rates back up if markets are impacted,” says Mark Durno, agrifood managing partner at Scottish VC firm Rockstart. “And continued political instability will put pressure on commodity markets.”

    US and India among 2024’s winners

    agfunder agrifoodtech investment report
    Courtesy: AgFunder

    The US once again retained its top spot, attracting $6.6B in funding – more than two-fifths of the global total. It represented a 14% increase from 2023, making it one of the only countries to attract more investment from the previous year.

    Meanwhile, India leapt up two places to the second spot in 2024, thanks in large part to its eGrocery sector. The world’s most populous country witnessed a 215% hike in investment to close the year at $2.5B – of this, $1.4B was raised in several rounds by rapid grocery startup Zepto. This propelled South Asia to the top of the heap as the only developing market to post growth (202%) last year.

    One of the countries India overtook was China, where funding fell by 51% to reach $848M. The UK, meanwhile, recorded a similar 45% decrease, totalling $616M in dollar investment.

    However, the Netherlands was among the nations that enjoyed a fruitful 2024, with investment up by 118% at $614M. Fellow European country Finland was home to the biggest hike among the top 10 (403%), attracting $389M. And in Asia, Japanese agrifood tech startups secured $290M from VCs, a 76% improvement on the previous year.

    Though investment is showing signs of recovery, deal count still plunged by 24% to fall below 2017 levels, “signalling the bottom of the dramatic drop in funding to the sector and the rest of venture capital more broadly”. “While it’s hard to be upbeat about the quantity of deals closing,” the report notes, “the quality of many of the companies raising decent-sized rounds is promising.”

    Meanwhile, upstream companies (which operate on the farm or in primary production) continued to dominate, taking up 51% of the funding share with over 1,265 deals – this is despite a 22% drop in year-on-year funding. Investment in downstream startups (involving technologies removed from the primary sector) was up by 20%, albeit with much fewer deals, signalling larger rounds.

    agrifoodtech investment
    Courtesy: AgFunder

    Alternative proteins see 20% decline, and Trump could cause further chaos

    According to the report, the Innovative Food category – which involves alternative proteins and novel foods – was the third-largest upstream vertical in terms of investment, and the fifth-largest overall, with startups in the space raising $1.4B over 227 deals in 2024.

    This, however, was 20% less than the year before, reflecting the bleak investment landscape for companies making plant-based food, cultivated meat, or precision-fermented proteins. This is similar to the 27% decline for alternative protein startups identified by Net Zero Insights and the Good Food Institute in 2024.

    And while Innovative Food dominated seed-stage funding in the upstream category (totalling $191M), “the numbers are not all that they seem, with several startups delaying their Series A with convertible bridge rounds, no doubt putting off an inevitable valuation reset”, AgFunder points out.

    That said, while Europe saw funding decline by 32% (including Israel), Innovative Food – in fact, mostly alternative protein – startups raised $608M, accounting for 47% of the total developed market investment in the category. In the UK too, this category accounted for a fifth of the deals, the highest in the agrifood tech sector.

    alternative protein funding
    Courtesy: AgFunder

    In the US, though, Innovative Food continued its decline from a high of over $3B in 2023, attracting just $574M in 2024, while accounting for 12% of all deals. These startups are set to face further uncertainty under the Trump administration, especially with the anti-ultra-processed-food movement helmed by health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr.

    Gil Horsky, founding partner at Flora Ventures, believes that the White House could create “chaos” at the Food and Drug Administration and “further complicate regulatory frameworks and approvals for new bio-based food ingredients”.

    Across all industries, VC funding reversed a three-year decline in 2024, increasing by 3% to reach nearly $314B. Agrifood tech companies, however, make up just around 5% of global investments, which is disproportionate to the industry’s contribution to the global economy and climate crisis.

    The food industry is responsible for at least 15% of the world’s GDP, employs more than half of its workforce, and generates at least a third of all greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, a new analysis suggests that agriculture is the leading cause of climate change – putting a sharp spotlight on where investors’ priorities should be in the coming year.

    The post Global Agrifood Tech Funding Rebounds After Two-Year Slump appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • 5 Minutes with A Future Food VC: Solvable Syndicate’s Daniel Skavén Ruben

    daniel skaven ruben
    4 Mins Read

    In our new 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.

    Daniel Skavén Ruben is the Founding Partner at Solvable Syndicate.

    What future food technologies/solutions most excite you?

    Our modern food system was built to deliver high yields and cheap calories, and it has been highly successful at that; we now need to transition to a nourishing, environmentally sustainable food system. Any technology or solution that can get us closer to that goal – in a big way – is exciting to me.

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

    Regenerative agriculture, supply chain data/digitisation, and sustainable alternatives to agrochemicals.

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

    Frankly, I think the sector to some degree has overpromised and underdelivered both in terms of financial returns for investors, but also in terms of the real world impact these new technologies have had so far. So from this perspective, perhaps the greatest achievement is that we haven’t given up on the sector, and the potential it holds.

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

    Make it truly craveable and irresistible on all key aspects; taste, texture, convenience, and nutrition. 

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

    I’m not sure it can be distilled to a single trait. It seems to me that top entrepreneurs are obsessed with solving real problems for real customers, and generating revenue and eventually profit throughout that process.

    They are often great storytellers, and can successfully sell the company vision to customers, employees, investors, and other key stakeholders. They don’t let perfect stand in the way of good; they act, they execute, they get things done. They are curious and humble, and can push through the sea of rejection and uncertainty that comes with being a founder. They are honest and transparent; they deliver on their promises.

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

    Have you heard the story of the Zen master and the little boy? Just a few years ago, some food tech companies and verticals raised billions, leading many people to think they’d take over the world; today, many of these companies are gone.

    Sometimes, we have FOMO for missing out on investing in companies that eventually turn out to be nothing-burgers; sometimes we invest in things that we later regret. So, as the Zen master says: We’ll see.

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

    From a ROI or MOIC perspective, there are a couple of companies that look great so far – on paper. But it’s all air guitar until there’s an exit event. I’d like to hope it’s possible to balance profitability with purpose, and we only invest in purpose-driven startups.

    One example is Nilus, which brings affordable groceries to low-income people in Latin America while cutting food waste in the process. Last year, the company served 250,000+ people and helped them save 21% on average on their daily grocery expenses. This allows people in these vulnerable communities to spend more of their precious money on essential resources like medical care or educational supplies for their children.

    If that’s not a successful investment, I don’t know what is.

    What has been your most disappointing investment so far?

    Most startups fail, for various reasons. It’s tuition money for the future. It’s disappointing whenever a startup fails, and I haven’t learned enough around why that startup failed. Then I risk making the same mistake twice.

    What do people misunderstand/get wrong most about VC?

    VCs don’t necessarily look for good businesses; they want to find scalable businesses tackling big markets where there can be outsized financial returns. You can have a great company that is growing profitably, but it may not be a fit for the VC model. And that’s okay!

    Another important thing to remember is that raising VC money is not the same thing as achieving success. I’ve seen companies raise huge amounts of VC money and eventually fail because they focused on growth at all costs. They would likely have been better off not raising money from VCs.

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

    The plant-based whole cut loin from Juicy Marbles!

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

    I was once lucky and privileged to be part of a small group that was served some fantastic, sustainable dishes prepared by Chef Dan Barber of Blue Hill at Stone Barns in Pocantico Hills, New York. We also got to experience the farm and tour the Stone Barns Center, a world-leading hub for food innovation, research, and sustainability. It was truly special.

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

    The food system has a massive impact and is tightly linked to some of the greatest challenges facing humanity (e.g. climate change, environmental degradation, pandemics, diet-linked disease). We can and must solve these challenges in our lifetime; technology and innovation are part of the answer, and it feels incredibly meaningful to get to support the entrepreneurs and scientists that are building the future we want to see.

    The post 5 Minutes with A Future Food VC: Solvable Syndicate’s Daniel Skavén Ruben appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Solar Foods: Finland Govt Pumps $10.6M in Startup to Build Giant Gas Protein Factory

    solar foods
    6 Mins Read

    Finnish gas fermentation firm Solar Foods has received €10M ($10.6M) in funding from Business Finland to help build Factory 02, which would produce 12,000 tons of Solein protein annually.

    To accelerate the development of its industrial-scale facility for gas protein, Solar Foods has secured €10M ($10.6M) from Business Finland, an arm of the Finnish economic affairs ministry.

    In addition to ramping up its plans for ‘Factory 02’, the funds will support R&D projects for its Solein protein, advance regulatory applications in various markets, and speed up its path to market.

    It’s part of the company’s €600M financing programme under the EU Commission’s hydrogen-based Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI). This covered Business Finland’s initial €33.6M ($35.6M) investment to support the construction of its demo plant, Factory 01, in late 2022.

    Located near Helsinki, that facility opened in April and can produce 160 tons of its fermentation-derived protein per year (set to rise to 230 tons by 2026). This first tranche of funding was also intended to support the start of the pre-engineering phase for Factory 02, which began last month.

    solein
    Courtesy: Solar Foods

    Based on the updated cost estimate of the project, Business Finland decided to increase that first grant by €10M, and extended the deadline by a year (until the end of 2026). The maximum state aid available for the project amounts to €110M ($117.5M), with grants eligible until 2035.

    The government agency has set aside €76M ($81M) to help with the construction of Factory 02, if built on European soil. This facility is expected to be able to produce 12,800 tons of protein at a cost of €4.30-5.20 ($4.60-5.50) per kg, and generate net sales of €80-200M ($85.5M-214M).

    “We are extremely pleased to receive this additional funding for research, product development and the pre-engineering phase of Factory 02,” said Solar Foods co-founder Pasi Vainikka, who will step down as CEO in April and “continue in an important role” until the end of the year. “When realised, Factory 02 [will be] a unique project in terms of science, technology and climate impact.”

    Solar Foods lays out its US plan for Solein

    solar foods funding
    Courtesy: Solar Foods

    Solar Foods was spun out from the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland and LUT University in 2017 to commercialise Solein, a protein produced by feeding microbes on carbon dioxide, hydrogen and oxygen instead of sugar. Doing so eschews the need for the agricultural land to grow sugarcane, alongside any irrigation, fertilisers and pesticides.

    The ingredient is not dependent on water or weather either, allowing it to be produced in climates like the desert, the Arctic and even outer space (it’s working with the European Space Agency to find a way to produce food on Mars).

    The microbes are grown in a liquid form, and later dried into an orange-yellow powder that is flavourless and has 78% protein, 6% fat, and 10% dietary fibre. Its macronutrient profile is said to be akin to dried soy or algae, and it contains iron and B vitamins.

    Solar Foods calls Solein the “most sustainable protein” on Earth. The main raw materials for production are carbon dioxide and renewable energy, resulting in emissions equal to just 1% of those generated by conventional meat, and 20% of plant proteins.

    The ingredient received novel food approval in Singapore in 2022, debuting as part of a vegan chocolate gelato at Italian eatery Fico. In addition, it was the base of a Taste the Future chocolate snack bar released by Fazer (a majority shareholder of Solar Foods) in the city-state, and a line of mooncakes and ice cream sandwiches rolled out by Japanese food giant Ajinomoto.

    Moreover, the company achieved self-determined Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) status in the US last year, and registered Factory 01 with the Food and Drug Administration to import Solein protein stateside. Here, its commercialisation strategy centres on the health and performance nutrition market.

    “In this segment, we are focusing on ready-to-mix powders, ready-to-drink beverages and protein bars. We are also moving from offering powder prototypes to a conceptual sales model where we will introduce finished products containing Solein,” Vainikka told investors in Solar Foods’s 2024 earnings call.

    This week, it announced Solein Protein Bites – Nut Mix Edition as a concept product to showcase Solein’s capabilities. It is being exhibited at Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim, California (March 5-7).

    solein protein
    Courtesy: Solar Foods

    Seeking further investment ahead of 2026 EU approval

    To date, Solar Foods has raised over €43M ($47M) in equity funding, as well as €30M ($32M) in debt financing. But the company, which has been listed on the Nasdaq First North Growth Market since September, said it would require further equity and loan funding to cover the costs of Factory 02, estimated to be between €150-420M (around $160-450M).

    This is because the IPCEI grants can only cover a maximum of 81% of the investment. Solar Foods is applying for further investment through the scheme too.

    The company’s operating income grew by 57% in 2024, reaching €8.1M. Its net loss stood at €11M, ending the year with €13.4M in cash and cash equivalents. The firm is focused on growth and doesn’t expect to distribute a dividend in the short to medium term.

    “The company plans to transition to a concept-based sales model, introduce higher-priced products, and expand the design capacity of Factory 01,” said Vainikka, adding that its phased investment plan for Factory 02 is geared towards achieving positive EBITDA – revenue excluding all non-operational expenses – during the 2025-30 period.

    He will be replaced by Rami Jokela as CEO next month. “The company’s groundbreaking technology has the potential to make a significant impact globally, and therefore I look forward to working with the team accelerating Solar Foods’s growth and bringing its innovative solutions to the world,” Jokela said in January.

    solar foods solein
    Courtesy: Solar Foods

    Solar Foods has applied for novel food approval with the European Food Safety Authority, and addressed inquiries regarding the scientific opinion on Solein’s safety. It expects to get the greenlight in 2026. Last month, it gave the region a taste of Solein through a partnership with Italy’s KelpEat, which showcased a high-protein snack with the ingredient at the Pitti Taste food fair in Florence.

    “Our mission is ambitious: bring Solein to market globally, revolutionise sustainable food production and continue to deliver value to our shareholders, stakeholders and the planet, and we are now ready to enter the next phase on this journey,” said Vainikka. “The dedication of our team and our successful listing on the Nasdaq First North Growth Market Finland have created a solid foundation for this global growth journey.”

    The post Solar Foods: Finland Govt Pumps $10.6M in Startup to Build Giant Gas Protein Factory appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Healthy Snack Startup GoodSam Foods CEO on $9M Funding: RFK Jr Fails to Grasp Regenerative Farming

    goodsam foods
    8 Mins Read

    A recognition of its regenerative agriculture and farmer-centric model, US food startup GoodSam Foods has raised $9M in Series A funding to expand its range of healthy snacks.

    Regenerative agriculture may be in the spotlight thanks to the appointment of Robert F Kennedy Jr as US health secretary, but for one farmer-centric food brand, this government doesn’t fully get it.

    “I don’t think this administration understands the cost of regenerative farming or how much investment is needed to make it successful at a federal level,” says Heather K Terry, CEO and founder of GoodSam Foods. And while Terry says she is “cautiously optimistic” about RFK Jr’s involvement in the Trump government, echoing the thoughts of many fellow food leaders, the future is not without its challenges: “I see this as a huge mountain to climb, and I don’t think they’re prepared to spend what it takes to make it happen.”

    Terry is speaking to Green Queen after her company closed a $9M Series A round for its range of healthy snacks, built on a business model that champions smallholders and regenerative farming, and cuts out the middleman.

    The round was led by Alive Ventures and Desert Bloom, with additional participation from LATAM Impact Fund, Promotora Social Mexico, One Small Planet, and Connecticut Innovations. It takes GoodSam Foods’s total raised to $10.5M since its establishment in 2019, reflecting investors’ faith in “patient capital models that prioritise long-term impact over short-term gains”, according to the firm.

    regenerative farming brands
    Courtesy: GoodSam Foods

    The company – which sells nuts, fruit chips, chocolate and coffee – plans to use the capital to expand its product offerings, build its team, and continue direct trade support for smallholder and Indigenous farmers in nine countries, including Colombia, Mexico and Kenya.

    Back in GoodSam Foods’s own country, Terry isn’t “super excited” about what the Trump administration is going to do about agriculture, or how it will do it.

    “This administration hasn’t prioritised climate action or research that could help farmers adapt to climate change. They’ve cut key resources that farmers rely on – information that tells them when to plant, how to adjust, and how to work within shifting conditions. That was vital for farming communities, and now it’s gone,” she points out.

    VC farm buyouts and farmer age gap are immediate threats

    “I’ve seen some of what America’s most innovative, regenerative farmers are doing today. They can literally green deserts. They rebuild depleted soils, wells that have been dry for 30 years start flowing again.” These are RFK Jr’s words, part of his long-held belief that regenerative agriculture is key to fixing America’s food system.

    The problem? He doesn’t “fully understand the costs”, according to Terry. “I watched his confirmation hearing, and it’s clear that neither Congress nor the Senate grasps what it takes to bring a regenerative product to market,” she says.

    Regenerative farming isn’t just an abstract concept, rather it is “essential for our survival,” she explains. “Indigenous farmers and smallholder communities have been practising regenerative methods for generations, particularly in remote regions. But this model is breaking, and the climate crisis is accelerating that breakdown.”

    rfk food policy
    Courtesy: Ben Curtis/AP

    “This isn’t just a threat – it’s happening now. Farmers, especially in the Global South, already feel the effects of climate change firsthand. Unpredictable weather, soil degradation, and economic instability are pushing many to the brink. And yet, there’s still no systemic commitment to supporting them at scale.”

    Plus, the median age of a farmer is 65, and younger generations – especially in the Global South – don’t see the profession as a viable future. “The current system is already breaking, and if we don’t build bridges, create fair opportunities, and ensure equity in the food supply chain, we risk creating an unstable food system,” she says.

    “We’re also seeing a troubling trend of large VC and private equity firms buying up farmland, pushing small farmers further into debt and displacement,” she adds. “No one wants this. If farmland consolidates into the hands of a few, food security becomes fragile. The future of food depends on fair, transparent models that empower farmers – not exploit them.”

    This is where GoodSam Foods’s direct trade model comes in. “It’s easier to rely on middlemen and aggregators – they scour for the lowest price, resulting in a cheaper product. But that model comes at a cost. It drives down wages, weakens local farming economies, and prioritizes short-term gains over long-term sustainability,” explains Terry.

    “This approach requires a dedicated team willing to build long-term relationships, invest in local communities, and ensure farmers are paid fairly,” she adds. “GoodSam is committed to this work. It’s not the easiest model, but it’s the right one.”

    goodsam foods funding
    Courtesy: GoodSam Foods

    Investors have ‘unconscious biases’ against women-led businesses

    GoodSam Foods has been successful in raising funds at a time when VC interest in climate tech, and food tech more specifically, is on the decline, with investment dropping by 38% last year. Terry ascribes part of this trend to “investor skittishness”.

    “In 2022, a lot of capital was lost due to inflated valuations that weren’t sustainable. Many companies simply didn’t have the fundamentals to justify their high valuations. When those valuations collapsed, VCs and private equity firms had to shift their focus to stabilising their existing portfolios,” she argues.

    “This created a ripple effect. Capital that would have gone to new businesses dried up. Food tech, in particular, is a capital-intensive sector that often requires longer timelines for profitability, which makes it even harder for startups in this space to secure funding. We’re still seeing the aftershocks of that reset today. Investors are more risk-averse, looking for proven models rather than innovative ones.”

    rfk jr regenerative farming
    Courtesy: GoodSam Foods

    Nevertheless, food innovation is crucial, says Terry, and necessitates investors to take a long-term outlook. In addition, VCs must ramp up investment in startups founded and led by women, which commanded just 0.4% of US climate tech funding in the first nine months of 2024. And Pitchbook data from 2022 revealed that only 16% of VC decision-makers are women, while 96% of VC firms have a majority male population of decision-makers.

    This is despite women-founded startups offering investors a much better return – 78 cents for every dollar, compared to 31 cents for male-founded businesses – and securing an exit faster (7.2 years versus 8.1 years for the overall average).

    “The reality is that women have always struggled to raise capital. This isn’t new. We’ve been talking about it for over 15 years in the natural products industry, and yet nothing has changed,” says Terry.

    “Investors still have unconscious biases and often don’t understand how female-driven companies operate or that they consistently outperform in terms of financial management, sustainability, and realistic growth projections.

    “At the end of the day, it’s easier to default to the existing systems. Hiring operators and middlemen who already fit into current structures is easier. It’s easier for investors to back founders who reflect the status quo than those who are building something different. But building something new – something more equitable, something more sustainable – requires a different mindset and approach. It’s a challenge worth taking on.”

    Amid chocolate and coffee volatility, US government needs to step up

    rfk jr regenerative agriculture
    Courtesy: GoodSam Foods

    The new funding will help GoodSam Foods build on what was a strong 2024, with the business now expecting to double its revenue this year. This growth will be propelled by new product offerings, including vegetable chips and more nuts, with a focus on local producers.

    In addition, GoodSam Foods will launch a New Day Coffee SKU at Whole Foods Market in July, a result of a project that prioritises the next generation of coffee growers. And it’s rolling out a new range of chocolate products with reduced cacao content, like chocolate-covered macadamias.

    Cocoa and coffee have felt the full force of the climate crisis over the last few years, with prices breaking all-time records in recent months, after becoming the two fastest-growing commodities of 2024.

    Terry calls it a “Wild West scenario” right now. “These commodities are not scalable in the US. They come from other places. The communities that produce them are working in tough conditions to ensure their crops remain healthy and productive. We don’t prioritise that enough,” she explains.

    goodsam foods coffee
    Courtesy: GoodSam Foods

    “Climate change is hitting these crops hard – too much rain, not enough rain, extreme heat – all of it impacts supply. But people don’t think about it until it becomes a crisis and prices spike,” she adds. “Unless we raise prices in a way that reflects the real cost of production, we’ll see even steeper price increases down the line.”

    She urges the US government to prioritise these issues to create a sustainable future, though is yet to see that level of government. Again, while she remains cautiously optimistic, the financial and policy structures on hand do not yet support that optimism.

    “Regenerative farming works. It’s not about perfection – it’s about taking steps, at any scale, toward restoring soil, improving ecosystems, and ensuring food security for future generations. If we don’t act now, we risk pushing farming communities past the point of no return,” Terry says.

    “The transition to regenerative agriculture must be a priority, not an afterthought. Governments, investors, and industry leaders need to step up with real financial commitments, policy alignment, and investment in the farmers on this crisis’s front lines.”

    The post Healthy Snack Startup GoodSam Foods CEO on $9M Funding: RFK Jr Fails to Grasp Regenerative Farming appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Future Food Quick Bites: Expo West, Tom Brady & Lidl Vegan Meat

    tom brady vegan
    5 Mins Read

    Our weekly column rounds up the latest sustainable food innovation news. This week, Future Food Quick Bites covers a range of product showcases at Expo West, Valsoia’s new gelato lines, and Lidl’s upgraded meat alternatives.

    New products and launches

    The world’s largest tofu maker, Pulmuone, is debuting new Korean-inspired plant-based products at Natural Products Expo West (March 5-7) in California, including cilantro-garlic potstickers, pineapple-teriyaki glazed tofu, black garlic cream noodles, and bulgogi-style rice balls.

    expo west vegan
    Courtesy: Pulmuone

    More from Expo West, Before the Butcher will showcase its just-launched The Original Butcher Sticks, a range of meat snacks in pepperoni and beef variants.

    Vegan free-from brand Whoa Dough has announced its newest product, Brownie Batter Ready-to-Bake, which it will exhibit at Expo West and launch into retail this week.

    Whole-cut meat producer Chunk Foods is debuting the latest additions to its US retail lineup at the show, rolling out four new flavours of its pulled steak: barbacoa, Texas BBQ, Korean BBQ, and teriyaki.

    chunk foods
    Courtesy: Chunk Foods

    South Korean-American vegan cheese company Armored Fresh has announced truffle as the third flavour of its oat-milk-based Zero-Dairy parmesan, set to be launched in May in the US.

    Speaking of plant-based cheese, Stockeld Dreamery has launched Spring Scallion and Midsummer Strawberry as its two new cultured cream cheese flavours, after moving its manufacturing to North America. They can be found at Essa Bagel, Zaro’s, Kismet, and Bergen Bagels, with more than 50 other shops to join the list soon.

    NFL legend Tom Brady has launched a new vegan sweets brand called Goat Gummies, as part of the former quarterback’s multi-year partnership with Gopuff. The gummies are available at the online grocer’s platform in Sweet Rush, Sour Burst, and Tropic Fusion flavours.

    goat gummies
    Courtesy: Goat Gummies

    Italian plant-based dairy Valsoia has announced two gelato lines to its portfolio: a no-added-sugar version with a rice and coconut base, and an oat milk range in lemon cake, stracciatella, and pistachio flavours. They’ll soon be available in Spain, the Netherlands, Sweden, the Baltics, Czechia and other markets.

    And British clean-label alt-milk brand Plenish has introduced Enriched Oat milk, which contains three ingredients and is fortified with calcium, vitamin D, iodine, riboflavin, vitamin B12, and fibre. It’s available at Tesco for £2.25 per litre.

    Company and finance developments

    US startup Jord BioScience has secured $7M in a Series B round to commercialise microbial technologies to enhance crop inputs and advance sustainable and regenerative farming practices.

    jord bioscience
    Courtesy: Jord BioScience

    Israeli alternative protein innovator Steakholder Foods has entered an agreement with Alumni Capital to receive a $1.25M private placement, as well as an $8M equity line of credit.

    Mushroom jerky maker Madarch Cymru (Mushroom Garden) has become one of nine recipients of British national agency Innovate UK‘s £400,000 New Innovators fund.

    Japanese cellular agriculture company IntegriCulture has secured ¥200M ($1.3M) in a non-dilutive bank loan, which will be used to invest in an upcoming deal and accelerate R&D.

    Vegetal Food, a distributor of vegan products for foodservice professionals in France, has raised €1.2M ($1.26M) in investment from the FPCI Food Invest II fund, in partnership with food consultancy FoodXpert.

    Indian plant-based supplements brand Earthful landed a $570,000 investment from Srinivasan Namala and Ritesh Agarwal on Shark Tank India.

    Spanish firm Allbiotech has completed the first production run of its Genesys V1 bioreactor, which is a lower-cost solution for early-stage precision fermentation research.

    According to a life-cycle assessment, Finland-based Enifer‘s Pekilo mycoprotein for pet food produces 86% fewer emissions than soy protein concentrate, and five times fewer than lamb meat.

    beyond meat lawsuit
    Courtesy: Beyond Meat

    Plant-based leader Beyond Meat has been handed a legal victory by the US District Court for the Central District of Florida, which has thrown out a class-action lawsuit brought by some of its investors.

    Policy and regulation

    The University of North Texas has committed to making 60% of its campus menus plant-based by 2027, building on its 50% target by the end of this year. It comes after the institution ranked second on the Protein Sustainability Scorecard by Humane World for Animals (formerly the Humane Society of the United States).

    university sustainability rankings
    Courtesy: UNT Dining Services

    Aussie agrifood company Wide Open Agriculture has received General Administration approval to export its lupin protein isolate to the Chinese market, where it will be initially sold as an ingredient in protein powders, dairy alternatives, and a lupin bean tofu.

    In the US, the Plant-Based Foods Association and its sister Plant-Based Foods Institute have unveiled a six-pillar strategy for 2025-27, spanning membership, marketplace, policy, research and education, consumer engagement, and agriculture.

    To promote vegan-friendly products in sub-Saharan Africa, certification body V-Label has partnered with food awareness organisation ProVeg Nigeria.

    lidl plant based meat
    Courtesy: Lidl Nederland

    Discount retailer Lidl is continuing its plant-based progress by improving the taste, texture and nutritional value of its own-label meat analogues in the Netherlands, with two-thirds of the products now meeting the Dutch dietary guidelines.

    In state legislature, the Colorado House has passed a bipartisan bill to reduce food waste in schools, businesses, universities, and local government institutions. Measures of the legislation include a switch to ‘best if used or frozen by’ instead of ‘sell by’ dates.

    Finally, Vegan Events UK has announced the first Swansea Vegan Festival, which will take place at LC Swansea on May 31.

    Check out last week’s Future Food Quick Bites.

    The post Future Food Quick Bites: Expo West, Tom Brady & Lidl Vegan Meat appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • The Cost of Climate Change: 6 Foods You Love Are About to Get More Expensive

    climate change food prices
    7 Mins Read

    Climate change is already disrupting food supplies across the world, causing shortages and raising prices for consumers – here are six staples under threat.

    For those who find it sexy, your morning mocha could be in trouble. Or if, like Elon Musk, you like to eat steak and eggs, but don’t have the wallet to match, your breakfast is also in jeopardy.

    People like Musk have been trying to disassociate climate change from the food system, despite the latter accounting for a third of all global emissions – in fact, one recent study suggests it’s the leading cause of global warming.

    You only have to look at the price of eggs, chocolate or coffee to know that food production adversely affects the planet, and climate change in turn is ravaging our food supply.

    As inflation continues to hit consumers, making affordability a bigger concern than even health for many, food prices are set to continue rising in the near term. And if we don’t address factory farming and climate-harming agriculture, things are going to get progressively worse.

    Here are six charts that illustrate as much.

    Eggs

    egg prices
    Consumer price index for eggs | Courtesy: Bureau of Labor Statistics

    Egg prices are at an all-time high in the US – consumer price index (CPI) data by the Department of Labor shows that the average retail Grade A eggs cost $4.95 per dozen in January 2025, surpassing the previous high recorded in January 2023. In fact, in some places, Americans are paying more than a dollar per egg.

    With bird flu leading to the culling of over 160 million birds, the Trump administration has pledged an additional $1B to stem the outbreak, on top of the $2B already spent. Despite that effort, the USDA predicts the cost of eggs to increase by another 41% in 2025, meaning eggs could cost as much as $7 per dozen based on the consumer price index.

    This has necessitated the need for alternatives like plant-based liquid or powdered formats, or precision-fermented egg proteins. Think the vegan sunny-side-ups from Yo Egg, the recombinant EggWhite protein from The Every Company, or the pourable mung bean egg from Eat Just, whose sales grew five times faster this January than last.

    Cocoa

    cocoa prices
    Courtesy: Sylvie Husson/Sabrina Blachard/AFP

    Chocolate is sweet on the tastebuds but bitter on the planet, thanks to the industry’s high emissions (linked to deforestation) and water use. Climate change itself has also hurt cocoa crops, with global cocoa stocks dropping to their lowest levels in a decade.

    Last year, human-caused climate change added six weeks of days above 32°C in over 70% of cacao-producing areas across Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Cameroon, and Nigeria.

    As a result, cocoa prices shot up by three- to fourfold in 2024, reaching all-time highs. In New York, cocoa futures reached an all-time high of $12,565 per tonne in mid-December, following weather-induced low supplies for the fourth successive season in West Africa, which produces the majority of the world’s cocoa.

    These hikes meant cocoa surpassed the growth of every other commodity in the value chain in 2024 – and prices are likely to stay high this year. Low supplies and skyrocketing costs have had an impact on the bottom lines of chocolate giants like Hershey’s too, whose profit forecast for 2025 is below analysts’ expectations.

    It’s a good time to look at alternative chocolate companies like Voyage Foods, Planet A Foods, Food Brewer, and Foreverland, which are futureproofing the industry with cocoa-free and cell-based versions.

    Coffee

    coffee prices
    Courtesy: MacroTrends

    Coffee wasn’t far behind cocoa in its price hikes last year, becoming the second-largest gainer last year. With 60% of coffee species endangered and the area suitable for cultivating arabica shrinking, this should come as no surprise.

    Extreme-weather-induced crop failures and shortages pushed up arabica prices by 80% last year, with wholesale prices reaching a nearly 50-year high. In February, coffee futures in New York hit an all-time high of $4.34 per pound – already this year, prices are up by 35%.

    The severe drought in Brazil – the largest coffee producer – in 2024 is a major factor behind this rise, and this year too, the upcoming harvest is set to be 4.4% smaller, according to food supply agency Confab.

    This is why several companies – from Atomo and Minus Coffee in the US to Prefer in Singapore – are making beanless coffee, positioned as a supplementary product to reduce the strain on conventional beans.

    Beef

    beef prices
    Consumer price index for beef | Courtesy: Bureau of Labor Statistics

    It is the most polluting food on the planet, and yet we eat too much of it. Governments across the world are advising citizens to eat less beef for the good of both the climate and their own health – but that argument can now be extended to their wallets too.

    The cost of beef, both in retail and wholesale, already broke records in 2024, and it’s coming close to breaching those highs again. CPI data in the US shows that sirloin steak prices reached $12.01 per lb in November, and were at $11.97 in January. Likewise, ground beef cost $5.55 per lb in January, down from $5.67 in September.

    According to the USDA, beef and veal prices rose by 5.5% in January compared to 12 months prior, and they’re expected to grow by another 3.2% in 2025. Prices of wholesale beef, meanwhile, jumped by 14.8%, and are set to rise by a further 4.6% this year.

    Beef is more expensive now because of historically low levels of cattle inventories in the US, as well as a temporary import ban on cattle from Mexico (due to concerns over parasites). While the debate over ultra-processed food continues to make headlines, it marks a key opportunity for alternative beef makers like Impossible Foods, Beyond Meat, Meati, Chunk Foods, and more.

    Dairy

    milk prices
    Courtesy: Federal Reserve Economic Data

    Dairy is another major food group that’s harmful to the planet and is being harmed itself by climate change. Prices of milk in the US reached a record-high of $4.22 per gallon in November 2022, and while they have decreased slightly since then, they were still at $4.05 in January this year, a 10% year-on-year increase.

    Lower production levels in the US (a result of the bird flu) and New Zealand – the largest milk exporter – have also caused a hike in the cost of dairy products like butter. In the EU, butter was 19% more expensive in October 2024 than 12 months prior. Similarly, in the UK, government data shows that the price for a 250g tub of butter was 18% higher this January than at the start of 2024.

    Back in the US, the Department of Agriculture predicts dairy prices to “remain nearly unchanged” this year, and noted that “rising prices for cheese and whey may have reflected falling stocks and increased global competition, as well as lower-than-expected milk production in the second half of [2024]”.

    Class III milk, which is used to make cheese in the US, is expected to become slightly more expensive in 2025, and cheese prices are forecast to increase by 1%. The cost of whey, meanwhile, is set to approach the record labels seen in 2022 after a 36% hike last year.

    It highlights the need for further investment and government support (via promotion and subsidies) for non-dairy milk producers, whether it’s companies like Oatly or Silk making oat, almond or soy milk, vegan cheese players like Violife and Stockeld Dreamery, or even whey proteins and products from fermentation startups like Perfect Day and Nature’s Fynd.

    Fish

    seafood prices
    Courtesy: EU Commission

    An industry marred by overfishing, microplastic pollution, and disease outbreaks, seafood hasn’t been spared by inflation either.

    In the UK, an order of fish and chips cost £9.88 in July 2024, a 58% increase from July 2019. In Norway, fresh fish is 42% costlier than it was five years ago too. And fresh seafood prices rose by 2.2% in the US this January, driven by a hike of 5.1% in shellfish.

    Meanwhile, Europeans are decreasing the amount of fish they put on their plates due to high prices. It’s perhaps best illustrated by data from the EU Commission: despite households spending 6% more on seafood in 2023, at-home fish consumption decreased in Europe that year, a trend it directly attributed to the “current economic and geopolitical climate”, and the ensuing inflation.

    This has continued too, with the latest Eurobarometer survey – published last week – revealing that the number of Europeans who eat seafood at home at least once a month declined by six percentage points between spring 2021 and autumn 2024. There’s also a four-point decrease in the number of people who never eat fish (totalling 15%).

    But it isn’t environmental or ethical concerns that drive these behaviours – it’s the markup. More than half (55%) of Europeans are deterred by the high prices of seafood. Again, this leaves a gap that can be filled by fish-free seafood startups like Revo Foods and Oshi, which are less polluting, don’t contribute to declining fish stocks, and can offer a stable supply – as long as policymakers support them with the investment they need.

    The post The Cost of Climate Change: 6 Foods You Love Are About to Get More Expensive appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • The Cost of Climate Change: 6 Foods You Love Are About to Get More Expensive

    climate change food prices
    7 Mins Read

    Climate change is already disrupting food supplies across the world, causing shortages and raising prices for consumers – here are six staples under threat.

    For those who find it sexy, your morning mocha could be in trouble. Or if, like Elon Musk, you like to eat steak and eggs, but don’t have the wallet to match, your breakfast is also in jeopardy.

    People like Musk have been trying to disassociate climate change from the food system, despite the latter accounting for a third of all global emissions – in fact, one recent study suggests it’s the leading cause of global warming.

    You only have to look at the price of eggs, chocolate or coffee to know that food production adversely affects the planet, and climate change in turn is ravaging our food supply.

    As inflation continues to hit consumers, making affordability a bigger concern than even health for many, food prices are set to continue rising in the near term. And if we don’t address factory farming and climate-harming agriculture, things are going to get progressively worse.

    Here are six charts that illustrate as much.

    Eggs

    egg prices
    Consumer price index for eggs | Courtesy: Bureau of Labor Statistics

    Egg prices are at an all-time high in the US – consumer price index (CPI) data by the Department of Labor shows that the average retail Grade A eggs cost $4.95 per dozen in January 2025, surpassing the previous high recorded in January 2023. In fact, in some places, Americans are paying more than a dollar per egg.

    With bird flu leading to the culling of over 160 million birds, the Trump administration has pledged an additional $1B to stem the outbreak, on top of the $2B already spent. Despite that effort, the USDA predicts the cost of eggs to increase by another 41% in 2025, meaning eggs could cost as much as $7 per dozen based on the consumer price index.

    This has necessitated the need for alternatives like plant-based liquid or powdered formats, or precision-fermented egg proteins. Think the vegan sunny-side-ups from Yo Egg, the recombinant EggWhite protein from The Every Company, or the pourable mung bean egg from Eat Just, whose sales grew five times faster this January than last.

    Cocoa

    cocoa prices
    Courtesy: Sylvie Husson/Sabrina Blachard/AFP

    Chocolate is sweet on the tastebuds but bitter on the planet, thanks to the industry’s high emissions (linked to deforestation) and water use. Climate change itself has also hurt cocoa crops, with global cocoa stocks dropping to their lowest levels in a decade.

    Last year, human-caused climate change added six weeks of days above 32°C in over 70% of cacao-producing areas across Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Cameroon, and Nigeria.

    As a result, cocoa prices shot up by three- to fourfold in 2024, reaching all-time highs. In New York, cocoa futures reached an all-time high of $12,565 per tonne in mid-December, following weather-induced low supplies for the fourth successive season in West Africa, which produces the majority of the world’s cocoa.

    These hikes meant cocoa surpassed the growth of every other commodity in the value chain in 2024 – and prices are likely to stay high this year. Low supplies and skyrocketing costs have had an impact on the bottom lines of chocolate giants like Hershey’s too, whose profit forecast for 2025 is below analysts’ expectations.

    It’s a good time to look at alternative chocolate companies like Voyage Foods, Planet A Foods, Food Brewer, and Foreverland, which are futureproofing the industry with cocoa-free and cell-based versions.

    Coffee

    coffee prices
    Courtesy: MacroTrends

    Coffee wasn’t far behind cocoa in its price hikes last year, becoming the second-largest gainer last year. With 60% of coffee species endangered and the area suitable for cultivating arabica shrinking, this should come as no surprise.

    Extreme-weather-induced crop failures and shortages pushed up arabica prices by 80% last year, with wholesale prices reaching a nearly 50-year high. In February, coffee futures in New York hit an all-time high of $4.34 per pound – already this year, prices are up by 35%.

    The severe drought in Brazil – the largest coffee producer – in 2024 is a major factor behind this rise, and this year too, the upcoming harvest is set to be 4.4% smaller, according to food supply agency Confab.

    This is why several companies – from Atomo and Minus Coffee in the US to Prefer in Singapore – are making beanless coffee, positioned as a supplementary product to reduce the strain on conventional beans.

    Beef

    beef prices
    Consumer price index for beef | Courtesy: Bureau of Labor Statistics

    It is the most polluting food on the planet, and yet we eat too much of it. Governments across the world are advising citizens to eat less beef for the good of both the climate and their own health – but that argument can now be extended to their wallets too.

    The cost of beef, both in retail and wholesale, already broke records in 2024, and it’s coming close to breaching those highs again. CPI data in the US shows that sirloin steak prices reached $12.01 per lb in November, and were at $11.97 in January. Likewise, ground beef cost $5.55 per lb in January, down from $5.67 in September.

    According to the USDA, beef and veal prices rose by 5.5% in January compared to 12 months prior, and they’re expected to grow by another 3.2% in 2025. Prices of wholesale beef, meanwhile, jumped by 14.8%, and are set to rise by a further 4.6% this year.

    Beef is more expensive now because of historically low levels of cattle inventories in the US, as well as a temporary import ban on cattle from Mexico (due to concerns over parasites). While the debate over ultra-processed food continues to make headlines, it marks a key opportunity for alternative beef makers like Impossible Foods, Beyond Meat, Meati, Chunk Foods, and more.

    Dairy

    milk prices
    Courtesy: Federal Reserve Economic Data

    Dairy is another major food group that’s harmful to the planet and is being harmed itself by climate change. Prices of milk in the US reached a record-high of $4.22 per gallon in November 2022, and while they have decreased slightly since then, they were still at $4.05 in January this year, a 10% year-on-year increase.

    Lower production levels in the US (a result of the bird flu) and New Zealand – the largest milk exporter – have also caused a hike in the cost of dairy products like butter. In the EU, butter was 19% more expensive in October 2024 than 12 months prior. Similarly, in the UK, government data shows that the price for a 250g tub of butter was 18% higher this January than at the start of 2024.

    Back in the US, the Department of Agriculture predicts dairy prices to “remain nearly unchanged” this year, and noted that “rising prices for cheese and whey may have reflected falling stocks and increased global competition, as well as lower-than-expected milk production in the second half of [2024]”.

    Class III milk, which is used to make cheese in the US, is expected to become slightly more expensive in 2025, and cheese prices are forecast to increase by 1%. The cost of whey, meanwhile, is set to approach the record labels seen in 2022 after a 36% hike last year.

    It highlights the need for further investment and government support (via promotion and subsidies) for non-dairy milk producers, whether it’s companies like Oatly or Silk making oat, almond or soy milk, vegan cheese players like Violife and Stockeld Dreamery, or even whey proteins and products from fermentation startups like Perfect Day and Nature’s Fynd.

    Fish

    seafood prices
    Courtesy: EU Commission

    An industry marred by overfishing, microplastic pollution, and disease outbreaks, seafood hasn’t been spared by inflation either.

    In the UK, an order of fish and chips cost £9.88 in July 2024, a 58% increase from July 2019. In Norway, fresh fish is 42% costlier than it was five years ago too. And fresh seafood prices rose by 2.2% in the US this January, driven by a hike of 5.1% in shellfish.

    Meanwhile, Europeans are decreasing the amount of fish they put on their plates due to high prices. It’s perhaps best illustrated by data from the EU Commission: despite households spending 6% more on seafood in 2023, at-home fish consumption decreased in Europe that year, a trend it directly attributed to the “current economic and geopolitical climate”, and the ensuing inflation.

    This has continued too, with the latest Eurobarometer survey – published last week – revealing that the number of Europeans who eat seafood at home at least once a month declined by six percentage points between spring 2021 and autumn 2024. There’s also a four-point decrease in the number of people who never eat fish (totalling 15%).

    But it isn’t environmental or ethical concerns that drive these behaviours – it’s the markup. More than half (55%) of Europeans are deterred by the high prices of seafood. Again, this leaves a gap that can be filled by fish-free seafood startups like Revo Foods and Oshi, which are less polluting, don’t contribute to declining fish stocks, and can offer a stable supply – as long as policymakers support them with the investment they need.

    The post The Cost of Climate Change: 6 Foods You Love Are About to Get More Expensive appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Dog Food Made from Fermented Gas Protein Lands on European Shelves

    calysta marsapet
    4 Mins Read

    German pet food maker Marsapet has rolled out a kibble product for dogs using Calysta’s fermentation-derived FeedKind protein.

    Would you feed your dog carbon and microbes?

    If you’re in Europe, you now can, thanks to a partnership between Californian sustainable protein producer Calysta and German pet food company Marsapet.

    The latter has launched MicroBell, a dry kibble made from Calysta’s FeedKind protein, under the Marsavet line. The protein is derived from a gas fermentation process where methane is used as a carbon and energy source for microbes.

    The grain-free dog food product combines the fermented protein with sweet potatoes, peas, and potatoes, and is well-suited to canines with allergies or sensitive stomachs.

    “This project is a labour of love, and we have poured our hearts into bringing this groundbreaking product to market,” said Marsapet CEO Marcel Hoffmann. “With MicroBell, we are setting new standards in sustainable, high-quality pet food, offering pet owners a nutritious, innovative alternative without compromising on quality or taste.”

    FeedKind offers nutritional and environmental benefits

    calysta feedkind
    Courtesy: Calysta

    Unlike most pet food proteins, Calysta’s FeedKind doesn’t use any animal- or plant-based ingredients. To make the single-cell protein, it combines oxygen, nitrogen, carbon and energy into a proprietary fermentation tank, which are then consumed by naturally occurring microorganisms.

    Once the microbes convert the gases into protein, it is separated from the liquid, and the water and nutrients are returned to the fermenter. The protein is then dried and packaged in various formats, based on the application and customer specifications – it can be used as fish or livestock feed, or in dog and cat food.

    As a fermented protein, FeedKind has been proven to promote a healthy gut in animals, facilitating better nutrient absorption and improved feed conversion and growth rates. The non-GMO ingredient is highly nutrient-dense, with up to 71% crude protein, 9% crude fat, and a balanced amino acid profile. It can be used in both wet or dry food, and has been certified vegan by V-Label.

    Beyond this, FeedKind presents several sustainability advantages. Calysta’s patented process uses no agricultural land and “almost no water”, as the company describes it. This makes it an ideal alternative to fishmeal and soy protein, which are the primary protein sources in feed products today.

    One FeedKind plant can produce up to 100,000 tonnes of protein per year on just 10 hectares of developed land – in comparison, the same amount of soy protein would require 250 million hectares of arable land. Likewise, FeedKind would save nearly nine million cubic metres of water – equivalent to 3,600 Olympic-sized swimming pools – if used in place of soy protein.

    The company is also building a circular production system. During the fermentation process, the microbes exhale CO2. By capturing that, it uses renewable energy to power a methanation process that converts the waste back into usable carbon and energy.

    US pet food market in sight for Calysta

    calysta
    Courtesy: Calysta

    Calysta’s first facility is located in Chongqing, China, which produces 20,000 tonnes of FeedKind Aqua per year. It’s operated under Calysseo, the company’s joint venture with animal nutrition player Adisseo. In addition, it has an R&D lab in Teesside, UK, and a warehouse in Poland.

    The company, which has raised around $221M to date, is currently working on a large financing round to fund a second facility dedicated to its FeedKind Pet ingredient. To prove the market’s viability, it shipped some of its pet protein to Europe last summer, months after debuting the ingredient at trade fair Interzoo, as part of German startup Dr. Clauder’s air-dried Trainee dog treats.

    The MicroBell launch in collaboration with Marsapet will be “the first of many pet foods launched to feature FeedKind Pet protein”, according to Herman Sloot, VP of global sales at Calysta.

    “Calysta and its partners have the largest production capacity of any alternative protein in the world, and it’s here now,” he said. “Most importantly, we are producing an ingredient with industry-leading nutrition, palatability, and postbiotic benefits – and all without using arable land. It’s a game-changer for the pet food sector.”

    Calysta has already received regulatory approval in the EU, UK, Canada and other countries for its pet food ingredient, and it’s now gunning for the US, hoping to achieve self-determined Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) status for FeedKind Pet later this year.

    It isn’t the only company working on fermented proteins for pet food – fellow German startups VegDog and MicroHarvest released a microbial protein treat for dogs last year, while American player Bond Pet Food is making pet food via precision fermentation.

    The overall alternative pet food sector is heating up as owners become more climate-conscious with their furry friend’s diets – just last month, London-based Meatly and The Pack launched the world’s first dog food with cultivated meat for sale, in a limited-edition run at UK retailer Pets At Home.

    The post Dog Food Made from Fermented Gas Protein Lands on European Shelves appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Italian AI Startup Brews $10M to Turn Microbes Into Affordable Animal-Free Proteins

    4 Mins Read

    Italian startup Arsenale Bioyards has raised €9.5M ($9.8M) to scale up its AI-led precision fermentation process and lower biomanufacturing costs by 90%.

    Arsenale Bioyards, an industrial biotech firm based in Milan, has closed a €9.5M ($9.8M) seed funding round to scale up its biomanufacturing process and make sustainable food and cosmetics significantly more affordable.

    The investment was led by Planet A Ventures and byFounders, with additional participation from CDP Ventures, Acequia Capital, Plug N Play, Grey Silo Ventures, and industrial family offices.

    The firm combines artificial intelligence (AI) with advanced hardware to form an end-to-end precision fermentation platform for biomanufacturing, from lab scale to industrial production. The tech can accelerate commercialisation, reduce risks, and bring down costs by up to 90%, solving some of the industry’s biggest bottlenecks.

    “We saw Arsenale’s potential early on,” said Christoph Gras, co-founder and general partner of Planet A Ventures. “This is a fundamental rethink of how biomanufacturing scales. By making production cost-competitive and standardised, Arsenale turns biomanufacturing into an investable asset class while enabling industries to move away from animal- and petrochemical-derived products at scale.”

    precision fermentation cost
    Courtesy: Arsenale Bio

    How Arsenale is revolutionising biomanufacturing

    Arsenale was founded in 2023 by a five-strong team chock full of industry experience, comprising Matteo Zanotto, Gordana Djordjevic, Massimo Portincaso, Niels Agerbaek, and Arnaud Legris. They have worked in deep tech, AI, and pharma sectors, including with companies like Novo Nordisk, Xellia, Perfect Day, and Boston Consulting Group.

    The company’s tech is centred on precision fermentation, which combines traditional fermentation with the latest biotechnology advances to efficiently produce a compound of interest, like a protein, flavour molecule, vitamin, pigment, or fat.

    This has been used by the pharma industry for decades – it’s how insulin and many vitamin supplements are made – but its use in food and cosmetics has been hindered by high costs. To address that, Arsenale uses a “neo-industrial” approach to biomanufacturing.

    It operates a pilot facility called ⍺-Yard in the Pordenone province, which has a 1,000-litre fermentation capacity, courtesy of four bioreactors of varying scales. The Piccolo suite comprises two micro-bioreactors to design processes and organisms on a benchtop scale, while the two Magnum bioreactors have a 500-litre capacity and offer advanced sensing capabilities.

    ai biomanufacturing
    Courtesy: Arsenale Bio

    Then there are the Bioyards, which house a six-strong suite of modular industrial bioreactors with a capacity of over 50,000 litres each to enable cost-effective “scaling out”, as opposed to “scaling up”. These, combined with the Design@Scale AI model, drastically reduce both capital and operating expenditures.

    “Arsenale is not only imagining the bio-economy of the future – we are building it today, with operational facilities and proprietary technology,” said Portincaso, who is the startup’s CEO.

    The startup, which also has an office in California, will use the capital to expand its infrastructure and speed up its commercialisation roadmap for food and cosmetics. “This funding reinforces our ability to drive measurable change and underscores our aspiration to build a new generative, biology-driven industrial paradigm,” he added.

    A Bessemer Moment for precision fermentation?

    Arsenale has highlighted the four fundamental precision fermentation challenges it hopes to solve. First, it’s dominated by biopharma, a highly regulated industry that creates expensive cost structures unsuited to industrial applications. Secondly, value creation here is lab-centric and academia-driven – this makes it “almost impossible” to predict microbes’ behaviours and yield on an industrial scale.

    Meanwhile, fragmentation across design, scale-up and manufacturing causes friction and inefficient processes. And finally, the industry faces data bottlenecks, with inconsistent and limited data hindering learning through the use of AI and machine learning.

    precision fermentation bioreactor
    Courtesy: Arsenale Bio

    Arsenale argues that it’s time for precision fermentation’s Bessemer Moment, a reference to Henry Bessemer’s breakthrough in reducing steel costs by 85% via process and engineering innovation.

    Its process integrates industrial conditions into the lab, allowing companies to design at scale from day one and cutting costs significantly versus contract manufacturing approaches. Plus, the AI-driven process optimisation and software-led approach can help producers move from lab to commercial scale in a “fraction of the time”.

    The $10M investment is a sign of confidence from investors who have cooled on the climate tech sector, where funding dipped by 38% last year. This was partly a result of a shift in interest towards AI, which attracted over three times as much venture capital. Within the food tech sector, where plant-based and cultivated protein companies witnessed alarming declines, fermentation stood out with a 43% hike in investment.

    By combining two highly prized sectors in the eyes of investors – AI and precision fermentation – Arsenale has the ingredients to engineer food’s Bessemer Moment.

    The post Italian AI Startup Brews $10M to Turn Microbes Into Affordable Animal-Free Proteins appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • FoodTech World Cup 2025: Nestlé & Givaudan Back Global Accelerator for Future Nutrition Startups

    foodtech world cup
    5 Mins Read

    Food tech community FoodHack is back with the second edition of the FoodTech World Cup, launched in collaboration with Nestlé and Givaudan, with a special focus on nutrition.

    Whether it’s brands targeting gut health amid the GLP-1 wave, apps like Zoe supporting glucose management, or Bryan Johnson’s quest for longevity, nutrition and wellness have never felt more critical to consumers’ food choices.

    In the US, for example, the most common New Year’s resolution for 2025 was to eat healthier, a five-point increase from last year. This is also top of mind for Europeans, over half of whom want their diets to be more health-forward. And in Asia-Pacific, 45% of consumers want to improve their sleep this year, and the main way they plan to do that is through dietary change.

    To supercharge nutrition-minded startups in the food tech economy, the world’s largest food company, Nestlé, and one of the largest ingredient and flavour houses, Ingredion, have teamed up with food tech community FoodHack for the FoodTech World Cup 2025.

    The second edition of the tournament convenes 20 jurists, who will work with FoodHack and the two industry giants to uncover startups disrupting the future nutrition space with innovative and impactful technologies.

    While Givaudan is a returning partner, Nestlé is joining the accelerator for the first time. “We are eager to create synergies with startups that are developing innovative compounds, technologies, or combinations beyond consumer-facing solutions,” Eugenia Barcos, startup programme lead at the Swiss company, tells Green Queen.

    “Our goal is to accelerate the creation of differentiating nutritious solutions that have a positive impact on consumers, the planet, and society.”

    Gut health, weight-loss focus chimes with Nestlé’s GLP-1 push

    nestle r&d
    Eugenia Barcos – Courtesy: Nestlé

    The tournament’s organisers are looking for startups developing deep tech solutions over six categories. The longevity vertical focuses on healthier ageing and wellbeing through nutrition, while immunity involves boosting the body’s natural defences, and energy centres around sustaining both physical and mental energy.

    There’s also a focus on glucose management (with solutions supporting stable and balanced blood sugar levels), weight (to help people achieve healthy weight goals), and gut wellness (targeting the connection between the gut microbiome and overall health).

    “We all recognise the significant role nutrition plays in weight management, and providing effective solutions – particularly in response to the GLP-1 trend – is a crucial focus for us,” says Barcos.

    Drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro have taken over our food and health conversations, with one in eight Americans having tried these weight-loss medications, and the number of regular users could reach anywhere between 10 to 70 million by 2028.

    Nestlé itself responded to the shift with a new Vital Pursuit brand targeting GLP-1 users with affordable frozen foods and a GLP-1Nutrition website under its Health Science unit to provide nutritional support for people on weight-loss programmes.

    “The R&D Accelerator at Nestlé Research in Lausanne is dedicated to translating our advanced science and technology into valuable business propositions across all our sectors,” says Barcos. “In the case of the GLP-1 platform, we are actively collaborating with our scientists to develop scientifically robust and differentiated solutions that can support individuals on their weight management journey.”

    nestle glp 1
    Courtesy: Nestlé

    Internal innovation and external collaboration equally important

    A total of 40 startups will be chosen from across the world to present to a panel of investors and corporate leaders over six virtual demo days. These judges include figures from VC firms Mudcake, Big Idea Ventures, Better Bite Ventures, and Catalyst Fund, among others*.

    They’ll be looking to answer three main questions: how big and impactful the idea can be at its largest scale, why it’s the right team to take the idea to its largest form, and how well the tech can be scaled up. There will also be a focus on the uniqueness of the solutions, early traction and path to scale, and the founders’ understanding of the market opportunity.

    The two most promising startups from each region (totalling 10) will be selected to pitch live at the finals, an official side event of the HackSummit – FoodHack’s partner climate conference in Lausanne, Switzerland – on May 15.

    “We highly value working with startups because they have the ability to accelerate the development of unique solutions in strategic areas for us, such as longevity or regenerative agriculture, which can have a positive impact on consumers, society and the planet,” says Barcos.

    For Nestlé, both internal innovation and external collaborations are vital for success. “Internal innovation allows us to leverage our extensive resources and expertise, while external innovation, particularly from startups, brings cutting-edge technologies that complement our own efforts,” she explains. “By combining the strengths of internal and external innovation, we adopt a dynamic and effective approach to address the challenges and opportunities in our industry.”

    hacksummit
    Courtesy: HackSummit

    The winner of last year’s inaugural FoodTech World Cup was Italian cocoa-free chocolate maker Foreverland. “Partnerships with companies like Givaudan are essential for an early-stage startup like us as they can provide unique insights on the food industry and support our growth,” its co-founder and CTO, Riccardo Bottiroli, outlines.

    “By teaming up with startups, we can spark new, creative approaches, and create faster, more agile, innovation pathways,” says Alexandre Bastos, head of front-end innovation at Givaudan. “We look forward to supporting more startups on their scale-up journey and to collaborating with them for a healthier, more sustainable future for all.”

    Disclaimer: Green Queen founding editor Sonalie Figueiras is a jurist at the 2025 FoodTech World Cup.

    The post FoodTech World Cup 2025: Nestlé & Givaudan Back Global Accelerator for Future Nutrition Startups appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Glass Bottles, Tomato Skins & Desert Crops: How Boca Became the Middle East’s Most Sustainable Restaurant

    boca dubai
    10 Mins Read

    In a decade, Omar Shihab and his team at Boca have pioneered how restaurants approach sustainability, championing local produce from a historically barren region.

    “In a way, we’re living the future today,” says Omar Shihab.

    He is the owner of Boca, a Spanish restaurant in Dubai’s financial district, which was last month named the most sustainable eatery as part of the Middle East and North Africa’s 50 Best Restaurants list.

    Shihab opened Boca in 2014 in a country that relies heavily on food imports to meet 90% of its population’s needs. The establishment’s ethos is rooted in local sourcing, waste management, and rigorous emissions reporting.

    “We are a restaurant that exists in a very tough part of the world when it comes to resources,” he notes. “We practically live in the desert, where less than 2% of the country’s lands are arable, [where] there is water scarcity… [an] extreme climate.”

    He argues that the trajectory of climate change will make other regions in 50 years what the UAE is today. “So if we’re able to showcase what sourcing could look like in such an arid climate like the UAE… [we can] create a blueprint with what we have today for the future,” he says. “This is my perspective on the future of food.”

    Greenwashing isn’t on the menu

    50 best mena
    Courtesy: Boca

    Boca’s 31-page Sustainability Manifesto lays out its five key pillars: local sourcing, waste management, renewable energy, emissions reporting, and community.

    These, Shihab says, are key to avoiding greenwashing. “We’ve gone all the way because this is a fairly newer… concept in the region. And I was extremely adamant about providing full transparency [and] data-backed information.”

    It was important to publish “everything we’re doing” and share best practices with the industry. “We never say that we are perfect. We are at one part of the journey,” he states. Nevertheless, such information – from energy consumption to the percentage of food wasted – can be a good baseline to build upon.

    Boca partnered with a carbon management consultancy to audit its production and operation life cycles and calculate its carbon emissions. “We have put our model to the test because it was extremely important for us to avoid any form of greenwashing or to simply seek advice from the experts within the sustainability field,” says Shihab.

    Shihab acknowledges that audits are “extremely expensive and time-consuming”, and only a handful of restaurants can spend the time and money required. That shouldn’t stop businesses from doing something, though. “I think AI can come in really handy here – if through very minimal inputs from the restaurant, you’re able to upload the information and get the rough impact of your restaurant, it’s a great place to start.”

    If a restaurant can communicate clearly and in a transparent manner what it is doing to be more responsible – whether it’s sourcing from a specific farm or applying certain techniques in the kitchen – it can go a long way. “That’s really how you can start and avoid greenwashing when it comes to food,” he says.

    It’s why Boca’s menu highlights the restaurant’s sustainability initiatives – its used oil goes towards biofuels, its organic waste is composted, and it runs on 100% renewable energy – as well as the carbon footprint of the dining experience (15.01kg per person).

    Planet-friendly doesn’t have to cost the Earth

    sustainable restaurants dubai
    Courtesy: Boca

    Shihab believes there are many “low-hanging fruits” that foodservice businesses can start with when it comes to sustainability – something as simple as switching off the lights at the end of the day, or installing smart taps.

    He recalls how, when the plastic straw debate reached fever-pitch, Boca decided to measure which waste categories were the most critical. “You cannot change what you can’t measure,” he says.

    The restaurant appointed one of its staff members as the waste officer, with a small cash incentive each month, and their role was to segregate six types of waste from the entire operation. Instead of appointing auditors and high-end tools, the low-tech approach involved placing a scale at the back-of-house exit where each item of waste was measured by weight before it left the premises. The data was consolidated on a spreadsheet, allowing Boca to make data-guided decisions.

    Plastic was near the bottom of the list – the heaviest amount of waste came from glass. This prompted Shihab to overhaul Boca’s glass usage, installing water filters and working with its beverage suppliers to initiate a pickup programme for glass. “It’s just rethinking and organising and prioritising, rather than spending money,” he outlines.

    The hard part, he believes, is getting buy-in from the restaurant’s stakeholders, whether it’s the owners or staff. “Convincing and getting people on board to understand and speak the same language – that is where time and effort needs to be implemented.”

    At the end of the day, profitability is one of the three Ps in the sustainability world, alongside people and the planet. And the planet-friendly practices Shihab is advocating for can be an enabler for businesses, bringing in major cost savings that can go back into the bottom line – even a 1% reduction in costs is “huge for the restaurant industry”.

    “If you’re replacing sourcing your ingredients from conventional farms, for example, with ones that have higher environmental credentials, you’re immediately offering a more premium ingredient that you’re able perhaps – depending on your business – demand slightly higher margin,” says Shihab. “There are considerable savings or contributions to an improved revenue split overall.”

    Culinary techniques to reuse waste

    patricia roig
    Boca executive chef Patricia Roig | Courtesy: Boca

    So how does Boca’s sustainability push come to fruition on the menu? The team created a one-page sourcing policy stating that it will always look for ingredients grown locally with high environmental credentials and at the right price.

    “We understand that we can’t use 100% of local produce, especially in the challenging environment that we live in here in the UAE,” Shihab points out. In that case, Boca will look regionally or globally – though here too, it will prioritise foods that come with climate certifications.

    The other priority for Boca – which has a Michelin Green star – is waste reduction. “Most professional chefs are trained by craft to maximise the utilisation of everything that comes to them,” he says. “But the idea is to go beyond that.”

    This means using vegetable peels and ends to make stocks as well as working out how to integrate these byproducts back onto the menu. Some of the culinary techniques that come in handy here are dehydration, fermentation, and pickling.

    As a showcase of these practices, Boca has previously menued a dish called Yesterday’s Bread. It comprised coarsely crushed stale bread seasoned with olive oil and balsamic, forming a base for a salad that also included powdered tomato skins from paella-making and ricotta from milk that’s about to go past its best-before date.

    “There’s so much umami in that, and it goes into the seasoning of certain dishes,” Shihab says of the tomato skin powder. Boca’s chefs usually focus on the flesh of the tomatoes, so apart from the skins, they separate the tomato water, which is used by the bar to create beverages.

    Meat alternatives and climate-resilient crops

    50 best restaurants
    A camel cheese dish with crispy shiitake mushrooms | Courtesy: Boca

    As a restaurant, Boca has never been meat-free and doesn’t intend to be either. “We don’t think we are ready to become 100% vegetarian or vegan. We never said we’re going to remove red meat or fish from our menus completely,” says Shihab.

    “Our business model is not ready for that, and there is an aspect of balancing the commercial things. Our guests are not ready for this experience, and the business model of the entire restaurant doesn’t allow us to have a smaller base of customers,” he explains. “What we’re going to do is serve less meat, but better meat.”

    In addition to that, Boca is aiming to increase the share of meatless dishes versus those with animal protein. However, meat analogues – still in their infancy in the UAE – have no place on its menu, “because our promise to our guests is that all of our recipes are going to be based on natural ingredients that are found on farms or in the wild”.

    “We’re going to rely on recipes that we create ourselves. We’re going to buy raw ingredients and transform them into delicious dishes in our kitchen,” he says, outlining that meat alternatives go through “a lot of processing”, a debate that has turned the alternative protein world on its head.

    It’s why you’ll find plants and traditional proteins like tofu on Boca’s innovative menu, its chefs impressing guests with dishes like a carnaroli rice risotto with salicornia and tofu, a desert plant salad with strawberries, coconut skin, and tomato powder, as well as a date sorbet with puffed rice noodles. “If it’s a raw ingredient found in nature, then that’s definitely something we integrate into our menus,” says Shihab.

    middle east 50 best restaurants
    A salad with desert plants | Courtesy: Boca

    Climate-resilient crops are an equally important part of sourcing for Boca, which works with organic farms, vertical farming companies, as well as foraged ingredients. It’s also seeking advice from scientists at the International Center for Biosaline Agriculture, who are tasked with finding plant species without cross-genetic modifications, which can grow in harsh conditions and feed on highly saline water.

    Think crops like quinoa, millets, amaranth and date – “the original climate-resilient crop”. Shihab notes that these scientists have found halophytes native to the UAE, such as salicornia and arthrocaulon, which can potentially be superfoods high in antioxidants and amino acids. “We’re behind an advocacy program to explore the utilisation of these ingredients into the food industry,” he says.

    Highlighting its commitment, Boca hosted a Taste of Tomorrow dinner at the Dubai Future Forum in November, in partnership with the University of Arizona’s Prof Jonathon Keats. The event was built on the climate analogue mapping model to highlight how many places in the Gulf have the future climate of regions in southern Spain, with dishes like a paella made from quinoa and seaweed and oyster mushroom kebabs (instead of the pork-based pinchos morunos).

    Hospitality and sustainability need to go hand-in-hand

    dubai michelin guide
    Courtesy: Boca

    These practices are what earned the top three-star rating from the Sustainable Restaurant Association’s Food Made Good certification, and the award from The 50 Best. “It’s an extremely important recognition,” Shihab feels. “It’s a really, really important platform to showcase all the incredible work that a lot of people are doing.”

    Do its diners care about all this, though? “The majority of people are aware of the importance of certain practices within the food industry overall. I think people want to know the origin and the provenance of their food. They want to know that, to a certain degree, there is care and attention being applied, from the growing, the farming practices, down to logistics and finally ending with us in our kitchens. So there is curiosity for sure,” he says.

    “There is general awareness about how food waste is an extremely problematic area and a huge issue for our nation, whether it’s culturally or religiously or just generally being aware. After the pandemic, a lot of people have become more aware of how this is such a tough industry, so it’s so important to have certain practices that would take care of the community.”

    Whether that’s a guiding factor for people choosing to dine at Boca is yet to be seen, he says. Research shows that sustainability is an important factor for two-thirds of diners in the UAE, while an even higher share (73%) places emphasis on local and seasonal products.

    “We are, first and foremost, in the hospitality industry. Our job and our role is to create beautiful spaces, deliver food, and offer great service and hospitality,” says Shihab.

    “Now, the challenge is to do that while maintaining the best practices, in terms of sourcing, care for the environment, waste, [and] community management. That is the challenge that we are up against, and it’s something that we have to do sooner or later.”

    The post Glass Bottles, Tomato Skins & Desert Crops: How Boca Became the Middle East’s Most Sustainable Restaurant appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Study: Livestock Agriculture Named the Leading Cause of Climate Change

    fao livestock
    4 Mins Read

    Using updated greenhouse gas metrics, a new study suggests that animal agriculture is the leading cause of climate change.

    As the US Department of Agriculture is hit with lawsuits from farmers over its decision to remove references to climate change on its websites, a new study provides a key argument for the plaintiffs.

    For decades, environmental experts have placed fossil fuels at the top of the list of polluting industries; new analysis suggests that it’s actually agriculture that has caused the most global warming, and specifically livestock farming.

    In the study, Australian climate scientist Gerard Wedderburn-Bisshop, co-founder of the World Preservation Foundation, notes that the IPCC’s greenhouse gas accounting rules were developed three decades ago – while recent advances have improved our understanding of what causes climate change.

    According to his assessment, agriculture – the most extensive land user – caused 60% of global warming between 1750 and 2020, with meat and dairy farming alone responsible for 53% of the total. In contrast, fossil fuels contributed to 19% of warming in this period, less than a third of the food production sector.

    “Agriculture becomes the major disruptor of five planetary boundaries: biosphere integrity, land system change, freshwater change, biogeochemical flows, and now climate change,” writes Wedderburn-Bisshop. “This emphasises the need for policies to address this sector if we are to have a liveable future.”

    animal agriculture climate change
    Gerard Wedderburn-Bisshop, co-founder of the World Preservation Foundation

    Using novel emissions accounting measures

    Published in the peer-reviewed Environmental Research Letters journal, the research is based on three greenhouse gas accounting measures, which the author says are indicative of advancements in climate science.

    The first involves the gross accounting of both fossil carbon and land-clearing carbon. The IPCC’s land use category reports net emissions, while all other sectors are reported as gross emissions. The study found that the gross emissions of land use change are 2.8 times higher than its net emissions, surpassing the amount of carbon released by fossil fuels since 1750.

    “Presently, convention dictates that 100% of fossil carbon is counted but only a third of [land use change] carbon is counted (the part that remains in the atmosphere to cause warming). The inconsistency here is that carbon emissions from all sources have an equal proportion remaining in the atmosphere,” the researcher says.

    This form of emissions accounting significantly boosts the value of carbon emissions from deforestation, placing fossil fuels second to land use as a pollution source.

    The second measure is to use effective radiative forcing (ERF) to measure gases, which is presented as a superior alternative to the time-dependent global warming potential (GWP). “ERF is believed to produce more accurate estimates of climate impact for agriculture because conventional GWP use can distort mitigation effectiveness,” the study explains.

    Finally, there’s a focus on inclusive accounting – in other words, measuring all emissions, whether heating or cooling. Wedderburn-Bisshop writes that aerosols – whose cooling effect is masked by most CO2 warming – are co-emitted with carbon from fossil fuels, but are rarely reported.

    The other issue is the exclusive of past deforestation. Fossil fuel emissions overtook land use emissions in the 1960s – even though warming from deforestation before that still continues to affect the planet. Additionally, deforestation prevents future vegetation carbon storage capacity from materialising due to CO2 fertilisation.

    meat dairy emissions
    Courtesy: AI-Generated Image via Canva

    Meat and dairy farming the greatest polluter

    The study finds that agriculture has emitted an average surface temperature rise of 0.74°C since 1750, with 86% of this (or 0.64°C) caused by livestock farming.

    Fossil fuels have resulted in temperature shifts of 0.21°C due to strong cooling from sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide aerosols. The inclusive accounting model reveals that fossil fuel warming is 0.79°C, together with 0.59°C of cooling from co-emissions. On the flip side, agriculture has caused 0.86°C warming, and only 0.13°C cooling.

    The study shows that the impact of methane emissions has been seriously understated in GWP analyses, having caused 49% of warming since 1750 (and no cooling). “Animal agriculture is the greatest methane emitter, but it also offers the greatest carbon opportunity cost/drawdown potential,” it states. In addition, it provides “low-hanging fruit” opportunities for climate and biodiversity mitigation.

    Wedderburn-Bisshop further highlights that despite being short-lived aerosols have masked 75% of ERF from fossil fuel warming. Efforts to reduce aerosols due to their ill health effects are effective, and threaten additional warming in the decades to come. “The prospect of decreased aerosol cooling emphasises the urgency for quitting fossil fuels and drawing down legacy carbon,” he writes.

    There are several policy implications from the study’s findings. A shift away from fossil fuels is still an urgent priority, while normalising gross deforestation emissions accounting would support policies aimed at land clearing and forest preservation, since the destruction of forests of any age “could be seen in the same way as burning coal”.

    Restoring degraded forests is the most effective, lowest-cost natural mitigation notion here, and combined with the carbon deficit potential of livestock agriculture, it would substantially reduce CO2 atmospheric loading.

    The results will also force policymakers to look at “overwhelmingly harmful” farm subsidies – efforts to redirect these have been met with resistance. “Initiatives such as the EU Green Deal are susceptible to industry influence, and misinformed and uninformed debate has enabled harmful agricultural industries to obstruct understanding and policy,” says Wedderburn-Bisshop. “These accounting advances may usefully support policy reform.”

    The post Study: Livestock Agriculture Named the Leading Cause of Climate Change appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • 5 Minutes with A Future Food VC: PeakBridge’s Nadav Berger

    nadav berger
    5 Mins Read

    In our new 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.

    Nadav Berger is a Founding General Partner at PeakBridge.

    What future food technologies most excite you?

    AI applications in food tech, but not just for the reasons you might expect. The food industry has relatively low gross margins – it’s not even in the ballpark of software, pharma and biotech. Artificial intelligence applied right has potential to make all the highly complex (and sometimes archaic) processes in the food system far more efficient and accurate.

    That means a huge potential change, from a better topline, to better processes across the value chain to more precisely-tailored products. And bigger margins mean more money to put into innovation. Into food tech. Right now, that’s a hurdle. 

    Solid-state fermentation is another technology I’m excited about, already being used by MFL for example to create thousands of taste and aroma molecules from real food ingredients. SST requires less capex and production is more efficient, but does deal with complex ingredients so you need the knowhow to master the composition. 

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

    I’m excited about health & nutrition, specifically the intersection of health tech and food tech. That includes several directions, like AI for fully personalized nutrition and natural GLP-1 inducers. I’m also always looking at companies that address food security, because that’s a massive issue that nations around the world are grappling with and will only become more urgent – climate change, population growth, geopolitical tension and more are all at play. Scalable agri-food technologies are absolutely key in addressing that. 

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

    It might surprise you, but I’d say alternative proteins – no question. The alt-protein market was around $8B in 2016, and worth around $80B seven years later. And I think it’s not just here to stay, but will always grow, because there’s simply not enough water and land to sustain the animals we raise for our food. That’s without mentioning the ongoing shift in consumer preferences around health and our food.

    Think about just alternative dairy; plant-based milk is a $17B market that’s growing, and add to that fermentation and now cell-based technologies to replace real milk proteins. It’s not about if a particular company fails or succeeds. It’s about the greater shift in tech that’s undeniable, and critical given the reality we face. 

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

    Easy. I’d make it 20% cheaper than real meat. If it’s a really magic wand? 40% cheaper. Texture and flavour are the other keys, but that’s already well on its way. The technology is there. 

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

    I’d say the ability to raise money, because you simply can’t survive without it. What’s behind a founder who’s great at fundraising? At the core, it comes from selling something they wholeheartedly believe in, and are deeply invested in themselves. 

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

    InKind, an Austin-based company doing financing solutions for restaurants. Restaurants are ultimately small, risky businesses that struggle for backing – banks aren’t interested in that risk. They have an interesting model with a lot of potential. 

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

    Since you’re limiting me to one here, I’d say BE WTR. It’s a company with an exceptional, mission-driven founder (and two-time unicorn builder); a worthy mission of taking plastic bottles out of the equation along with global shipping of water; a killer application, IP, and beautiful design; JVs and partnerships all over the world, and a deep understanding of what the customer is looking for. PeakBridge was their first investor. 

    What has been your most disappointing investment so far?

    Prenexus Health, the only company in our portfolio that’s had to file for bankruptcy. They had a great team, great tech, and strong backers, but we failed to understand the magnitude of scale-up costs, especially capex. But of course, there’s a lesson in everything, and that one was valuable. We’ve since been far more cautious with capex-intensive investments because at the end of the day, you need to scale. 

    What do people misunderstand/get wrong most about VC?

    Founders often don’t understand a VC’s agenda and thinking: that there are specific multiples that need to be achieved, according to a specific timeline. Founders need to do due diligence on their investors just as much as investors do on them. 

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

    I got a chance to taste Forsea’s unagi, or cultivated eel, for the second time – and it did not disappoint. The taste of real (endangered) eel that you find in Japan is something chefs are really looking for, and they’ve done it. Incredible taste, a breakthrough technology behind it and soon at price parity. 

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

    The first that comes to mind is one of my favourite spots in general, Au Père Lapin just outside Paris. Au Père Lapin was one of the first restaurants to fully integrate Mediterranean Food Lab’s SHO stocks in all kinds of dishes – meat, fish, vegetables. Their stocks are super flavorful, those kinds of meaty flavours that stick with you – but are plant-based and made from real food without all the junk. 

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

    Where do I begin? Think about where we gather with the people we love most: around the table. Food is a fundamental language, and also one that’s brought me to meet the most inspiring people to whom I’ve become closest to.

    On a broader level, the food industry is the only one in the world that touches literally everyone on the planet, in one way or another. And there’s so much to improve. All of that combined gives me (so far!) endless energy to do what I do.

    The post 5 Minutes with A Future Food VC: PeakBridge’s Nadav Berger appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Future Food Quick Bites: Vegan Magnum, Airline Ramen & Dairy-Free Popcorn

    magnum vegan
    5 Mins Read

    Our weekly column rounds up the latest sustainable food innovation news. This week, Future Food Quick Bites covers Magnum’s revamped vegan recipe, Heura’s new Tex-Mex Chunks, and a cultivated seafood tasting in Japan.

    New products and launches

    Unilever has changed the recipe for its vegan Magnum ice cream range, replacing pea protein with soy. It has also refreshed its packaging to a more premium design, after sales of the dairy-free ice creams grew by more than 75% in the UK last year.

    vegan magnum
    Courtesy: Magnum

    Shortly after raising $4M from investors, California’s PlantBaby has gained a listing at Sprouts Farmers Market for Kiki Milk, its kid-friendly plant-based milk line. The 32oz packs are now available at all 440 locations nationwide for $6.99.

    Also in the US, Nepra Foods has developed a proprietary hemp protein initially targeted for the egg-free baking sector, with early production already underway. The technology, set to be patented, is shared with an unnamed industry expert.

    San Antonio-based Good Eat’n, owned by NBA star Chris Paul, has launched Dairy Free White Cheddar Popcorn. After debuting at Expo West in March, it will be available on its website and GoPuff for $4.99 per 4.40oz bag and $1.99 for 1oz bag.

    heura tex mex chunks
    Courtesy: Heura

    Spanish plant-based meat leader Heura has added a Tex-Mex flavour to its chicken chunks, which contain 27% of the daily recommended intake of protein.

    British meat-free brand Cock & Bull has secured a listing with wholesaler Cotswold Fayre, with six of its products – from a Traditional Porky Pie to a Saus-ish Roll – sold unbaked and frozen, alongside a packaged range for retail.

    Dutch retailer Jumbo has rolled out a range of dairy-free yoghurts made from whole soybeans, which help retain a greater amount of protein and fibre. Produced by De Nieuwe Melkboer, they’re marketed under the supermarket’s Direct van de Boerderij label, and come in natural, vanilla, and first fruit flavours.

    all nippon airways vegan
    Courtesy: All Nippon Airways

    Japan’s largest airline, All Nippon Airways, has introduced two vegan ANA Original Ramen options for First and Business Class flyers on international routes. Flights departing from Japan will serve the Negi Miso Ramen, and those coming from overseas will feature the Tonkotsu Style Ramen.

    Company and finance updates

    French firm SeaWeed Concept has received €2M from investors to develop its lacto-fermentation process, which would be able to produce 5,000 tonnes of algae per year.

    Scottish biotech startup uFraction8 has raised £3.4M in a financing round for its microfiltration technology, which optimises cell and biomass production and provides an energy-efficient alternative to conventional manufacturing methods for bio-based food products.

    Israeli startup Forsea Foods hosted a tasting for its cultivated unagi in Japan, the world’s largest market for freshwater eel, with support from the Israeli embassy in Japan and the Israel Export Institute.

    Fellow cultivated meat producer Simple Planet – based in South Korea – has successfully developed a serum-free culture medium that can potentially reduce costs by 99.8%. It is also working with the Halal Science Center at Thailand’s Chulalongkorn University to achieve halal certification for its cultured meat products.

    Germany’s Esencia Foods, which makes whole-cut seafood analogues from mycelium, has received €2M in funding as part of the European Innovation Council’s blended finance scheme. It comes months after it won a €50,000 grant at EIT Food’s Next Bite event.

    impossible burger eu
    Courtesy: Impossible Foods

    Plant-based meat giant Impossible Foods has appointed Meredith Madden as its new chief demand officer. She previously worked at Chobani with current Impossible Foods CEO Peter McGuinness.

    Its chief rival Beyond Meat is looking to borrow up to $250M from private credit lenders to shore up liquidity and tackle some of its $1.15B of convertable bonds due in 2027. It is the firm’s second such attempt in 12 months.

    Finnish gas protein pioneer Solar Foods has begun pre-engineering work on its Factory 02, which is set to be operational by 2028. Along with the Factory 01 opened last year, it will produce Solein protein on a commercial scale.

    i am nut ok
    Courtesy: I Am Nut OK

    British artisanal vegan cheesemaker I Am Nut OK has experienced a 24% hike in year-on-year sales in 2024, with a 39% uptick in January 2025 thanks to Veganuary.

    Plant-based ingredients supplier Nutraland USA has joined the National Animal Supplement Council as a Preferred Supplier, which recognises its dedication to ingredient quality, safety and efficacy for pet food.

    After being selected in Nestlé’s Unleashed by Purina 2025 accelerator programme, Singaporean firm Umami Bioworks has introduced a cultivated seafood protein platform to tackle supply chain instability, nutrition and sustainability challenges in the pet food sector.

    oatly fashion week
    Courtesy: Iggy Diez/LinkedIn

    Swedish oat milk giant Oatly has collaborated with Madrid’s East Crema Coffee to set up a coffee bar at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Madrid (February 20-23).

    Policy and research developments

    Austrian precision fermentation startup Fermify has submitted a regulatory dossier for its animal-free casein to the Singapore Food Agency. It comes months after it earned self-determined GRAS status in the US.

    fermify casein
    Courtesy: Fermify

    In Europe, the number of alternative protein patents has surged by 960% since 2015, surpassing 5,300 in total. In 2024 alone, 1,200 patents were published, according to analysis by the Good Food Institute Europe.

    British food producer Ark34‘s Tater Cheezz Nuggetz, made from Dutch supplier Aviko Rixona‘s potato-based cheese alternative, has won the Best Frozen Product award at Gulfood 2025.

    Meat-free diets are among the most affordable in the US, with the average vegan shopper saving $34.24 per month on groceries, according to research by CouponBirds.

    plant based diet expensive
    Courtesy: CouponBirds

    Scientists in Israel have developed a way to use aloe vera as a natural scaffold to grow bovine fat tissue for cultivated meat production, which could address cost and scalability issues.

    Check out last week’s Future Food Quick Bites.

    The post Future Food Quick Bites: Vegan Magnum, Airline Ramen & Dairy-Free Popcorn appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • With UPFs Under Fire, Investors Bet $7M on Actual Veggies After Revenues Double

    actual veggies
    5 Mins Read

    Can Actual Veggies be the antidote to ultra-processed foods? It’s what investors are hoping for, pumping $7M in funding for the New York startup.

    New York-based CPG firm Actual Veggies has gained $7M in a Series A funding round after annual revenues jumped by 125%, just as GLP-1 drugs and the fight against ultra-processed foods (UPFs) change the way Americans eat.

    The investment was led by Relentless Consumer Partners, with participation from New Fare Partners, Sovos Brands founder and Sauer Brands chairman Todd Lachman, and Ben Rawitz, the long-time manager of NFL legend Tom Brady.

    It takes the 2020-founded startup’s total financing to around $12M, and comes after it doubled its retail presence over the last year – its veg-led products are stocked at 6,500 stores, including major retailers like Albertsons, Kroger, Whole Foods Market, and Sprouts.

    The capital injection will allow Actual Veggies to build on the growing demand for clean-label, whole-food options in the anti-UPF, Ozempic era. “For the first time, consumers en masse aren’t just asking: ‘Is it plant-based?’ but: ‘What’s actually in it?’” says co-founder and co-CEO Jason Rosenbaum.

    “The first wave of plant-based was about replication at any cost. Now we’re entering a more sophisticated era where consumers demand both functionality and clean ingredients,” he tells Green Queen.

    ‘Our customers are excited about quinoa and beets’

    actual veggies burgers
    Courtesy: Actual Veggies

    Founded in 2020 by co-CEOs Hailey Swartz and Rosenbaum, Actual Veggies makes burgers and fries with vegetables, mushrooms, and legumes as the central ingredient.

    Its current lineup includes a Purple Roots burger with sweet potato, carrots and beets, an Actual Green burger with broccoli, spinach and kale, and the flagship Black Bean burger with red pepper and caramelised onion (which will launch into all 82 Costco locations across the Southeast next month). It also makes seed-oil-free veggie fries, from classic potatoes to orange and purple sweet potatoes.

    Each patty contains 7-9g of protein and 7-10g of fibre, giving Americans the two ingredients they want to consume the most. They’re packed with vegetables, spices, grains and legumes, catering to the four in five Americans who find clean ingredient lists an important purchase motivator.

    “We serve people who want to see and taste the vegetables in their burger. Our customers scrutinise ingredient labels, prioritise nutrition, and actually get excited about quinoa and beets,” says Rosenbaum.

    “We do not try to replicate meat but rather serve a customer that’s seeking vibrant, nutrient-dense meals made from ingredients they recognise. We’re building for the growing segment that wants their food minimally processed and their vegetables front and centre,” he adds.

    Sales of meat alternatives continued to fall in 2024, with the downtick steady at around 9% compared to the previous 12 months. And investors have been cautious with their cash here, as companies in the plant-based space saw funding fall by 64% last year. This has been ascribed to the backlash against UPFs, which studies have described as harmful to health, but experts have cautioned shouldn’t be directly linked with nutrition.

    “Look at the data: while sales of ultra-processed alternatives have plateaued, whole-food plant-based products are seeing sustained double-digit growth. This isn’t just a moment – it’s a lasting transformation in how people eat,” Rosenbaum notes.

    As RFK Jr takes reins, Actual Veggies backs food transparency

    actual veggies revenue
    Courtesy: Actual Veggies

    The discourse around UPFs went up a notch after Robert F Kennedy Jr’s nomination for health secretary in the US. He has been a vocal opponent of these foods, promising to ban them in schools. Even California Governor Gavin Newsom agrees with the stance, cracking down on UPFs in an executive order at the start of the year.

    Now that RFK Jr has been confirmed, it leaves the alternative protein industry in an uncertain position. But Rosenbaum wouldn’t be drawn on that front. “We focus on providing high-quality, whole-food plant-based products and staying true to our mission rather than engaging in political discourse,” he says.

    “That said, we support initiatives that promote public health, food transparency, and cleaner food options – values that align with what we offer at Actual Veggies.”

    Rosenbaum reiterates that consumers “deserve transparency and healthier alternatives” to UPFs: “Actual Veggies is committed to using whole, recognisable ingredients without fillers, isolates, or unnecessary additives. While food processing exists on a spectrum, we prioritise minimally processed, nutrient-dense options that align with our values and customer expectations.”

    These concerns are why the Non-GMO Project recently launched the Non-UPF Verified label for packaged foods. Would Actual Veggies be tempted to get that certification?

    “If the Non-UPF Verified label becomes a widely recognised and meaningful certification for consumers, we would absolutely consider it. Ultimately, we believe the most important thing is ingredient transparency – which we already provide by listing 100% whole, real food ingredients right on our packaging,” says Rosenbaum.

    Why Actual Veggies added cheese to the lineup

    actual veggies where to buy
    Courtesy: Actual Veggies

    Until recently, Actual Veggies was a fully plant-based brand, but it launched a line of veggie burgers filled with cheese in October. “We saw a warm reception for our new Actual Veggies burger varieties with cheese,” he says when asked if it felt like a brand positioning risk.

    “When we saw an opportunity to extend our quality standards in the creation of new products, we knew it was worth pursuing. Plant-based remains our foundation, but this expansion has actually reinforced our positioning as a brand that puts ingredient integrity first – regardless of source. Customers know we’ll never compromise on ingredients, whether they’re plant- or dairy-based.”

    In addition to its retail expansion, the company has now secured a contract with catering giant Compass Group, which will enable its burgers and fries to be served at schools, hospitals, and corporate cafeterias, including those at Amazon and Google.

    “We’re witnessing a fundamental shift in American eating habits, magnified by the projection that over 24 million Americans will be using GLP-1 medications in the next decade,” said Elly Truesdell, founder and managing partner of New Fare Partners. “This evolution presents a  massive opportunity for Actual Veggies to meet the growing demand for better meal options made without fillers, preservatives, or artificial ingredients.”

    John Burns, a founding partner of Relentless Consumer Partners, added: “We anticipate a surge in consumer interest for products like Actual Veggies, which is committed to staying ahead of the curve in sustainable ingredient sourcing, innovative product development, and meeting the evolving needs of health-conscious consumers in 2025 and beyond.”

    The post With UPFs Under Fire, Investors Bet $7M on Actual Veggies After Revenues Double appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Opinion: How Will the Ultra-Processed Fight Affect Synbio Foods?

    ultra processed foods synbio
    5 Mins Read

    Synbio must prove itself as a superior alternative and win consumer trust to succeed amid the battle against ultra-processed foods, writes our columnist Chiara Cecchini.

    By Chiara Cecchini

    Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are under fire, and as policymakers crack down, synthetic biology (synbio) foods risk being caught in the crossfire. In the rush to overhaul the American food system, are we discarding innovation along with industrial excess? As regulatory scrutiny tightens around artificial ingredients and processing techniques, synbio faces an urgent challenge.

    The reality is sad: over half of Americans’ caloric intake comes from UPFs, a cultural problem that cannot be ignored. The rise of UPFs was not accidental – it was an industrial response to feeding an ever-growing global population. UPFs enabled human expansion to over 8 billion people, a scale unimaginable even just 100 years ago. But this came at a global health cost. The challenge now is not just to reject UPFs but to find better alternatives that ensure precision, scalability, consistency, and efficiency – without sacrificing human health and planetary stability.

    The ultra-processed villain narrative

    The war on UPFs is intensifying. Major media outlets, including the Guardian and the Times, have reinforced the growing consensus that UPFs fuel chronic disease. Policymakers are responding aggressively.

    California Governor Gavin Newsom’s executive order calls for measures to restrict UPF purchases, possibly requiring warning labels. This move could set a national precedent, broadening regulatory scrutiny beyond junk food to include all processed foods – including synbio innovations.

    Robert F Kennedy Jr, now confirmed as Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, has made UPFs a central battleground. He has framed them as a root cause of modern health crises and is pushing for stricter controls, including labelling and ingredient bans. If his vision shapes future food policy, synbio companies have the opportunity to prove their products belong in a different category – one that delivers both undeniable health and sustainability benefits.

    plant based meat health
    Courtesy: Beyond Meat/Green Queen

    So, is synbio all ultra-processed food?

    One of the biggest risks to synbio’s future is its classification. As the crackdown on ultra-processed foods intensifies, many are questioning whether synbio belongs in the same category. While synbio foods undergo industrial processing, they do not necessarily share the problematic characteristics of traditional UPFs – namely, reliance on artificial additives, refined sugars, and hyper-palatable formulations designed for overconsumption. Instead, synbio represents a number of production approaches that enable the precise engineering of food ingredients, making it very distinct from traditional ultra-processing.

    It is fundamental that the industry actively defines its position before regulators do. If synbio is perceived as just another form of processed food, it risks being caught in the sweeping regulatory backlash against UPFs. However, by prioritizing rigorous nutritional research, transparency, and clear communication, synbio can establish itself as a separate category – one focused on health, precision, and sustainability rather than industrialised over-processing. This also represents an opportunity for leaders in the space to leave the sustainability cocoon and address the real question: how do synbio ingredients impact human health at scale? 

    The stress of broadening the message beyond sustainability is an important one. Besides clear positioning against UPF, sustainability alone doesn’t sell. The consumer reality is clear: taste, price and health drive food choices. Without a compelling safety and health-centric value proposition, synbio risks being dismissed as just another form of industrialised food.

    Preserving small, hyperlocal, diverse food systems is essential, and feeding a global population of 8 billion requires also scalable, climate-efficient solutions. Synbio now has the opportunity to provide that global reach, jointly with safety, nutritional value, and a distinct advantage over UPFs. And it will be a matter of communication.

    Earning consumer trust

    But yet, consumer scepticism towards synbio exists. While younger demographics, particularly Millennials and Gen Z, show greater openness to these innovations, many consumers remain wary. Multiple studies indicate that many consumers view cultured meat as unnatural, which negatively impacts their acceptance of these products. Meanwhile, research from the Good Food Institute confirms that while sustainability is valued, it is not the key driver of purchasing decisions.

    To overcome this, synbio companies must embrace transparency and third-party validation. Certifications such as the Non-GMO Project’s Non-UPF Verified label have helped distinguish minimally processed foods from industrially engineered ones. Synbio must take a similar approach – educating consumers and regulators, demonstrating its health benefits, and ensuring it is seen as an advancement, not just another iteration of processed food.

    Investing heavily in nutritional studies, safety research, and clear communication is a non-negotiable. Without robust, independent data proving health benefits and safety, synbio will struggle to gain consumer trust and regulatory approval. The companies that prioritise scientific rigour and transparency will define the next era of food systems.

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

    A defining moment

    The UPF backlash is forcing a cultural shift in American food policy, and synbio companies cannot afford to be passive. The term “natural” remains one of the most powerful marketing claims in the industry, driving billions in consumer spending, yet it has no regulatory definition. Synbio companies must proactively define their place within this evolving landscape – aligning with consumer trust, prioritizing clear health benefits, and ensuring their innovations do not get swept away in the fight against UPFs.

    The message is clear: the future of food systems will not be determined by sustainability claims alone. Synbio must prove itself as a superior alternative – not just to industrialised food, but to the very system that made UPFs dominant in the first place. If it fails to make this case, it risks being cast aside with the processed foods of the past. If it succeeds, it could become the defining food innovation of our era – a legitimate, forward-thinking solution for healthier humans and a thriving natural ecosystem.

    The post Opinion: How Will the Ultra-Processed Fight Affect Synbio Foods? appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Rice-Based Casein? This Japanese Startup Says It’s Cracked the Grain

    kinish
    4 Mins Read

    Tokyo-based food tech startup Kinish has raised ¥120M ($800,000) to grow “real deal” milk protein in rice grains through molecular farming.

    Japanese rice may be best known for its sushi, but one local startup wants to use the ingredient to grow another staple.

    Kinish, an alternative protein firm based in Tokyo, has secured ¥120M ($800,000) in seed funding to produce animal-free dairy proteins inside rice grains via molecular farming.

    The round was led by Genesia Ventures, Lifetime Ventures, Full Commit Partners, and Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, and will allow the startup to accelerate R&D for its rice-derived casein and expand into the US.

    Modern dairy farming is heavily dependent on limited resources such as large amounts of water and vast tracts of land, and we believe that it will be placed under increasingly severe conditions due to future environmental changes and the reevaluation of water resources due to advances in AI,” said Takashi Sogabe, associate at Genesia Ventures.

    At the same time, existing plant-based milks “have not shown sufficient improvement in taste and texture, and are one step away from being widely accepted by society”, he added.

    “Kinish has the elemental technology to provide a low-cost alternative milk that faithfully reproduces the functionality of milk, and we are confident that it will become a company that meets the great social needs for environmental and resource issues that will likely become apparent in the future.”

    How Kinish grows milk proteins in rice

    vegan casein
    Courtesy: Juan Moyano

    Established in early 2023 by CEO Hashizume Hiroya, Kinish blends plant molecular farming with vertical farming to make its next-generation casein.

    “In the face of pressing environmental issues, we fear that opportunities to enjoy the joy of food will decrease at an accelerating rate,” Hashizume said. “Kinish is working to develop an unprecedented dairy alternative product by maximising the potential of rice and our unique technology.”

    Molecular farming has been identified as a more viable and affordable way to replicate animal proteins than cell cultivation or precision fermentation. A market set to double in value by 2029, the technology genetically engineers plants to produce proteins, which can be harvested from leaves or other tissues. This eschews the need for expensive fermentation tanks, since plants themselves act as the bioreactors.

    Kinish applies the technology to dwarf rice plants, which are just 20cm tall and can be cultivated in large quantities in plant factories. By utilising vertical farming, it can grow the crops in stacked cultivation and harvest them in less than half the time required for traditional rice.

    The company will use the funds to speed up its R&D efforts, part of which is a research collaboration with Shizuoka University to design a plant factory specialising in dwarf rice.

    Dairy and rice are two of the largest contributors to the food system’s methane emissions, but the former’s carbon impact is more than twice as high as the latter’s. But by making use of vertical farms, Kinish can grow milk proteins in rice grains with a fraction of the land and water traditionally used in both industries.

    Climate change is wreaking havoc on Japan’s rice production. Consumption of the staple has more than halved since the 1960s and a crop shortage has forced the government to release 200,000 tonnes of emergency rice stockpile. Solutions like vertical farming can help safeguard crop security amid the climate crisis.

    Targeting Japan and the US for market entry

    molecular farming casein
    Courtesy: Sun Frontier

    In Japan, the number of dairy farmers is declining, while milk consumption has been shrinking since the 1990s. At the same time, 2.4% of Japanese consumers said they were vegan in 2023, up from 1% in 2017.

    Casein is the most common protein found in cow’s milk, making up 80% of its protein content. It’s a key emulsifier that prevents water and fat from separating, giving cheese its melty and stretchy properties and making ice creams creamier.

    The fresh capital will allow Kinish to develop a casein-containing rice variety that can be grown on a commercial scale. While its first product is a rice-based ice cream with no casein, it will allow the brand to commercialise in both Japan and the US and expand its marketing efforts.

    Eventually, it aims to create an ice cream combining the rice-derived casein with rice starch for sweetness, as well as a variety of cheese products with its milk protein.

    “Many food tech startups are trying to solve food problems, but Kinish is characterised by its unique technology and marketing-focused strategy, and is steadily preparing to bring its products to market as soon as possible,” stated Koichi Hatano, a general manager at Mitsubishi UFJ Capital.

    The company has won several awards, including the Startup Award at Japan Summit 2024, the Real Tech Fund Award at Food Tech Grand Prix 2024, and the ICJ Award at FoodxTech Mercato.

    It is among a host of companies using molecular farming to produce planet-friendly versions of animal proteins – Alpine Bio, Mozza, Miruku, Veloz Bio, and Finally Foods are all similarly working on casein. Others, such as Moolec and PoLoPo, are working on meat and egg proteins, respectively.

    Meanwhile, food tech innovators are also making recombinant casein via precision fermentation, including New Culture, Change Foods, Fermify, Zero Cow Factory, Standing Ovation, and Those Vegan Cowboys. And New York-based Pureture is making yeast-derived vegan casein via liquid fermentation.

    The post Rice-Based Casein? This Japanese Startup Says It’s Cracked the Grain appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Can Yeast Protein Solve The Egg Crisis? This Startup Is Betting On It

    revyve
    5 Mins Read

    Dutch food tech startup Revyve is tripling its capacity to keep up with growing demand for its upcycled yeast protein, which can replace eggs in various applications.

    As the food industry scrambles to find a solution to the egg crisis – particularly in the US – one startup is banking on beer waste.

    Based in the Netherlands, Revyve makes a range of ingredients by upcycling yeast, the latest being an egg replacer derived from brewer’s yeast, a byproduct of the beer industry.

    With egg prices at all-time highs, consumers, restaurants and food manufacturers have all been looking for more budget-friendly options. Many are turning to plant-based egg products like Just Egg, whose sales increased five times faster in January than in the past year.

    Revyve is experiencing a similar effect. “We are seeing a lot of extra demand the last couple of months, which might come from the fact that our customers are seeing egg value-chain disruptions as a serious business risk,” CEO Cedric Verstraeten tells Green Queen.

    It comes just two months after the startup signed an exclusive North American distribution deal with Lallemand Bio-Ingredients, paving the way for its yeast protein ingredients – including the egg replacer – to enter the US market.

    A clean-label replacer for eggs and plant-based alternatives

    revyve egg replacer
    Courtesy: Alessa Joseph

    In the US, average retail Grade A egg prices reached $4.95 per dozen last month, surpassing the previous high recorded in January 2023, according to consumer price index data released by the USDA. In some places, consumers and restaurants are paying up to $7 per egg, while wholesale prices of white-shell eggs now stand at $8 per dozen.

    The avian flu that has resulted in this crisis is now in its third year, and has led to the culling of 160 million birds. And this has opened up a major opportunity for egg alternatives.

    Revyve’s egg replacer isn’t a finished format that can be poured and scrambled in a pan (although its functionality can be a good fit within these products) – instead, it offers the same binding, foaming, gelling and emulsification properties that food manufacturers rely on chicken eggs for.

    The powdered ingredient is intended as a clean-label alternative to additives like methylcellulose for use in products like meat analogues, sauces, appetisers and baked goods. The yeast protein allows Revyve to offer this functionality via a single ingredient, as opposed to the mix of ingredients and additives found in plant-based egg replacers.

    Revyve to triple capacity in response to growing demand

    revyve yeast protein
    Courtesy: Alessa Joseph

    To make the protein, Revyve utilises what is virtually an endless supply of yeast (given the sheer amount of beer produced annually), which is washed and micro-milled to separate functional proteins and fibres.

    Upcycling a waste product allows the firm to lower the cost of its ingredient, which is critical if manufacturers are to embrace the yeast protein as an egg replacement.

    Illustrating its efficacy, Verstraeten says: “Revyve offers a cost reduction of 20-25% in a final sauce recipe versus traditional recipes with eggs. However, it offers cost parity versus the use of liquid eggs in a traditional muffin recipe.”

    The company is well-placed to capitalise on the egg crisis. “As our plant is operational, our ingredients can help formulate our egg ingredients in the short term, helping offset increasing prices,” he says. “Our ingredients cannot just substitute egg, they also bring other added values to brands such as clean-label, allergen-free claims and much lower CO2 impact.”

    With more people on the hunt for alternatives, Revyve is gearing up to expand its operations. “We expect to triple production capacity this year, to try to keep up with the demand that we are seeing. We also expect to enter new countries as we see that demand is picking up globally,” notes Verstraeten.

    New funding will fuel expansion amid egg crisis

    revyve yeast protein
    Courtesy: Alessa Joseph

    In October, Revyve struck a deal with Daymer Ingredients to bring its ingredients to the UK, where avian flu has also induced several shortages. One of its most famous pub chains, Wetherspoons, is replacing eggs with hash browns in several breakfast dishes.

    Across several other markets, from Europe and Russia to Japan, India and Brazil, egg prices have soared by 50-90% since 2019.

    Encouragingly for Revyve, Europeans are showcasing an appetite for its yeast protein. According to a survey recently conducted by the startup, consumers in the UK and Germany are worried about eggs’ impact on cholesterol when consumed in excess, while those in France expressed concerns about egg allergies and their implications for dietary restrictions.

    These consumers found yeast proteins to be a natural ingredient that’s rich in protein, vitamins, and minerals, and has various wellness benefits. That said, there was some scepticism about whether they’ll change the flavour of foods that traditionally use eggs, or if they can match or surpass the quality.

    Revyve, for its part, says it has formulated its egg replacer to address exactly these concerns. And it has impressed many manufacturers, as can be evidenced by its growing customer base. “In 2024, our plant was not yet fully operational, so revenue was limited,” says Verstraeten. “We are now in the market with multiple customers and have +100 active customers in our sales funnel pipeline.”

    The company has so far secured $20M from investors, but to fuel its capacity expansion and take on the chicken egg industry, it is currently finalising another fundraising round.

    With commercial partnerships in multiple geographies, can the startup Revyve the struggling egg industry?

    The post Can Yeast Protein Solve The Egg Crisis? This Startup Is Betting On It appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Explainer: ‘Death of Farm to Fork’ – What Does EU Agrifood Vision Meant For Plant-Based Proteins?

    eu plant protein strategy
    7 Mins Read

    The EU has published its much-anticipated food and farming vision, raising alarm bells among climate experts and ignoring calls for a shift to plant-based proteins.

    “A near-total failure.” “Very timid.” “Tunnel vision.” “The death of Farm to Fork.”

    These are just some of the reactions to the EU’s new vision for agriculture and food, unveiled yesterday by ag commissioner Christophe Hansen.

    The policy document is set to define how the future of food and farming is governed in the region and is centred on simplification, digitalisation, and research and innovation.

    What it doesn’t focus on is the climate, a marked departure from Commission president Ursula von der Leyen’s first-term flagship European Green Deal, which included the Farm to Fork strategy.

    While von der Leyen promised that the agrifood vision would be based on the conclusions of the Strategic Dialogue on the Future of EU Agriculture, in which stakeholders including farmer lobby groups and climate activists advised the Commission to shift towards a more sustainable agrifood sector and create an EU-wide action plan for plant-based foods.

    But the final vision ignores the outcome of the Strategic Dialogue, despite calls for the EU to stick to it by everyone from doctors, consumer groups, climate experts, and even some of the largest food companies.

    It leaves the EU’s protein diversification in limbo, and keeps out future food innovation (like alternative proteins), at the same time its member states are actively encouraging citizens to eat less meat and more plants, and implementing carbon taxes on livestock farming.

    What did the Strategic Dialogue recommend?

    eu vision for agriculture and food
    Graphic by Green Queen

    The 29 organisations behind the Strategic Dialogue had five broad recommendations to advance the EU’s food system: creating a more competitive future, advancing towards a sustainable agrifood sector, promoting climate resilience, building agricultural diversity, and broadening access to knowledge and innovation.

    The document acknowledged that meat consumption is too high in the EU, and called for a transition from animal proteins to plant-based options. “The sustainable choice needs to become the choice by default,” the report said, asking the Commission to develop a plant-based strategy to strengthen the agrifood chain “from farmers all the way to consumers”.

    It also namechecked other alternative protein technologies like precision fermentation and products such as cultivated meat, as part of a range of “concrete technological innovations” that stakeholders debate over – whether to call for faster approval or raise questions about their potential safety risks.

    The spotlight on sustainable diets didn’t set any targets for cutting back meat production, though the report advised policymakers to update food labelling regulations to let consumers make informed food choices around sustainability and animal welfare – the EU currently doesn’t allow food producers to use terms like ‘milk’ and ‘cheese’ on alt-dairy labels.

    These recommendations came in light of the fact that agriculture is responsible for 11% of the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions, and 84% of these come from livestock. That’s despite animal-based foods providing 35% of calories and 65% of proteins in the region.

    The meat and dairy sector is also heavily subsidised, receiving four times as much public money as plant-based farming, and around 82% of the subsidies under the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP).

    What does the agrifood vision include?

    eu common agriculture policy
    Courtesy: Getty Images | Composite by Green Queen

    Essentially, none of the above.

    Despite the Dialogue’s strong focus on plant-based proteins and diversification, these terms don’t appear in the agrifood vision at all. ‘Livestock’, however, appears 19 times.

    “Livestock is and will remain an essential part of EU agriculture, competitiveness and cohesion,” the Commission wrote, acknowledging that “sustainable livestock” is crucial to the bloc’s economy.

    The only reference to protein production and consumption imbalances reads: “We need to consider both the way protein is produced and consumed in the EU.” The Commission promised to deliver a “comprehensive plan” to address these challenges.

    The document noted that the European Food Safety Authority would need reinforcements to speed up safety assessments and clear regulatory bottlenecks – at the same time, there was a pointed dig at novel technologies like cultivated meat.

    “Keeping Europe’s innovation edge in such new technologies is paramount for the sector to remain competitive and for the EU to remain a world leader in food innovation,” the report stated. “At the same time, certain food innovation is sometimes seen as a threat to the traditions and culture across Europe.”

    It added: “This calls for an enhanced dialogue on this matter and better knowledge, to make sure that these innovations can be assessed in an inclusive way that also considers social, ethical, economic, environmental and cultural aspects of food innovation.”

    The EU will also hold a Food Dialogue every year with stakeholders across the value chain, as part of which it will launch a study on the consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) – this could have a knock-on effect on meat alternatives too, which have been misleadingly criticised by some as unhealthy because they’re UPFs.

    As for the much-criticised CAP, the EU promised to better reward farmers who “actively engage” in climate-friendly food production, an approach that would prioritise agricultural products essential to the EU’s strategic autonomy and resilience.

    “This could indicate increased support for plant protein production (whether just feed or also food is to be seen),” Rafael Pinto, senior policy manager at the European Vegetarian Union, tells Green Queen. “Overall, it mentions the need for a fairer distribution of subsidies, especially for small and medium farms – something that is needed but is mentioned in almost every CAP document since the beginning of the policy.”

    Why does the agrifood vision ignore the Strategic Dialogue?

    eu agriculture commissioner
    Courtesy: European Parliament

    If you’ve been following EU food policy for a while, this may not have come as a surprise to you. At his confirmation hearing, farm commissioner Hansen hinted at this outcome, calling the Strategic Dialogue “rather a vague formulation” and suggesting more detailed discourse was needed.

    He added that meat was “part of a balanced diet”. And though he noted that the EU was “massively underproducing” plant proteins, his focus was on producing more soybeans to feed animals, who would then be fed to humans.

    The EU also has a history of giving in to lobby pressure and flip-flopping on its own proposals, including several aspects of the Green Deal. Most recently, the Commission was set to unveil a sustainable food systems framework to support the protein transition at the end of its previous mandate and ended up abandoning the plan after backlash from interest groups.

    Something similar happened with the agrifood vision too. “Right after the end of the Strategic Dialogue, some of the biggest industry representatives decided to detach themselves from something they previously agreed on and cherry-pick only the policies that reflected their views – contrary to NGOs that would gladly accept the conclusions as a whole,” explained Pinto. “It seems like the Vision was highly and disproportionately influenced by some key economic interests.”

    He added that the release of the vision “officially marked the death of the Farm2Fork Strategy”, the EU’s plan for sustainable agriculture: “With this new approach, it seems like decarbonising agriculture and promoting healthier diets are not priorities for the Commission. The over-reliance (and naivety) on tech fixes for the livestock sector risk under-delivering and undermining our broader sustainability goals.”

    What happens now?

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

    Pinto suggests that the EU Commission isn’t necessarily against promoting the protein transition in itself. “[I’d] rather, maybe hopefully, believe that the Commission showed a neutral stance towards protein diversification,” he said.

    “Protein transition is required for sustainability, health, animal welfare and food security and this has been recognised several times by the Commission. However, the lack of policies to that effect shows that current political will is low and pressure from strong interest groups is high.”

    Both the European Council and Parliament will be reacting to the vision in the weeks to come, so there’s still time to address the shortcomings in the agrifood vision.

    “We hope the EU agriculture and food policies don’t limit themselves to this vision. There’s a lot of room for progress in other areas, and the vision leaves the door open to have a dialogue on innovation and alternatives. The vision is a framework that hopefully will expand over the mandate to better align with other policies and targets,” says Pinto.

    He adds: “Protein diversification is a key solution for the polycrisis. It can support environmental and climate goals, reduce disease burden, improve EU food security [and] competitiveness, diversify farmers’ portfolios, and ensure long-term farm sustainability. This is clear for most stakeholders, but we need more political will to address the issue.”

    The post Explainer: ‘Death of Farm to Fork’ – What Does EU Agrifood Vision Meant For Plant-Based Proteins? appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • 5 Minutes with A Future Food VC: Alwyn Capital’s Heather Courtney

    heather courtney
    4 Mins Read

    In our new 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.

    Heather Courtney is General Partner at Alwyn Capital.

    What future food technologies most excite you?

    Technologies that can be applied across multiple markets. Many early-stage companies in alternative protein have struggled to raise funding over the last 18 months, as investors have shifted from prioritizing growth at all costs to focusing on revenue.

    If companies have technology that can be applied to existing industries while keeping an eye on serving frontier industries as they scale, they can generate early revenue while capturing the upside of future innovations.

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

    1. Technologies that reduce COGS and improve quality in plant-based, fermentation, and cultivated products (e.g., media recycling in cultivated meat, continuous bioprocessing in fermentation).
    2. Advanced manufacturing machinery and techniques for alternative proteins.
    3. Precision fermentation—yes, this is probably a popular answer right now, but there’s a good reason. There is immense opportunity in strain engineering, cheaper feedstocks, more efficient bioreactors, and continuous bioprocessing to drive costs down and yields up. One of our portfolio companies, Sunflower TX, is developing precisely this kind of technology. Sunflower has created the first microbial perfusion fermentation system designed for continuous protein production, enabling more protein to be produced with less space and lower costs.

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

    Bringing truly “future food” products to market – Upside Foods’s cultivated chicken filet, Perfect Day’s precision fermentation whey, GOOD Meat’s cultivated chicken, and EVERY’s hen-less egg, to name a few. Yes, there is still much work to be done, and no, these products aren’t perfect yet. But let’s take a moment to appreciate them for what they are: significant milestones in food innovation.

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

    A serious magic wand? I’d abolish subsidies for animal agriculture so that plant-based meat could compete on a level playing field.

    Beyond that, plant-based meat has a messaging problem. We’ve spoken to Sonalie [Figueiras, Green Queen’s founder and editor-in-chief] about this at length, and I agree with her—our industry has forgotten that women, specifically moms, make the majority of household purchasing decisions. We need to focus on what moms care about: their family’s health, saving time, and making life easier. We need to fix our messaging.

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

    Tenacity. (There’s a lot more than one, but you only wanted one.)

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

    The one we missed knows who they are—we’re still in touch and tracking the company. We were deep in diligence when the lead investor decided they wanted the entire round.

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

    It’s too early to tell with most of our portfolio, but Cultured Decadence was acquired in 2020, so that was a clear win! We have other high-performing portfolio companies, but we’ll only know they’re real successes when they achieve an exit. Ultimately, true success will come when the industry takes off across all verticals, creating a win for people, the planet, and animals.

    What has been your most disappointing investment so far?

    We had a company shut down in 2022. It was one of our favourite products, and the founder had a great work ethic and the right team, but COVID wreaked havoc on them, and they couldn’t recover. Robert and I did everything we could to create a better outcome for the company, but in the end, they folded. That one still hurts.

    What do people misunderstand/get wrong most about VC?

    Not every business is a good fit for VC dollars, and that’s completely fine. We look for companies that, if everything goes to plan, could return the entire fund through that one investment—not every company is built for that kind of trajectory. You might have a solid business that could grow into a very large enterprise, but if it can’t do that within 10 years or less, VC funding might not be the right fit.

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

    It wasn’t this month, so maybe I’m cheating a little here, but a few months ago, Robert and I tasted the latest iteration of New School Foods‘ plant-based salmon filet. It was so spot-on that it was unsettling. I even heard a fish eater say they thought it was virtually indistinguishable from conventional salmon. Seafood has been notoriously difficult to replicate with plant proteins—until now. New School Foods has changed the game.

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

    There’s a great spot near my mum’s house in St. Petersburg, FL, called Good Intentions. They make a plant-based dish called Crab Fries—a pile of fries with shredded hearts of palm and jackfruit, Old Bay, garlic butter, parsley, shredded parmesan, and aioli. I didn’t know I needed Crab Fries in my life until I had them, and now I’m obsessed.

    It’s a tough time for restaurants right now, especially those sourcing local, sustainable ingredients. So many of my favorite plant-based restaurants in NYC and beyond have closed. If there’s a spot you love, please support them.

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

    My love for animals drives everything I do. I envision a future where they are no longer treated as expendable.  At Alwyn Capital, we are working to make that vision a reality—one that benefits animals, people, and the planet.

    I began my career as a pharmaceutical researcher—I loved working in a lab and learning how biological systems function. Now, I have the privilege of collaborating with founders operating at the frontiers of biotechnology to build a more sustainable future.

    The post 5 Minutes with A Future Food VC: Alwyn Capital’s Heather Courtney appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Bühler & Israeli Cultivated Meat Co Joins Forces To Solve Industry Bioreactor Problem

    buhler ever after foods
    4 Mins Read

    Israel’s Ever After Foods has partnered with Swiss manufacturing giant Bühler Group to produce cultivated meat at a mass scale with much smaller equipment.

    Extending its sustainable protein push, Bühler Group has teamed up with an Israeli food tech firm to help streamline cultivated meat production.

    Ever After Foods – a joint venture between cellular agriculture firm Pluri and the Tnuva Group (Israel’s largest food company) – will work with Bühler to bring to market a commercial-scale system that can produce cultivated meat using equipment at least 10 times smaller than the industry standard.

    “We are overcoming the bioreactor sizing conundrum,” Eyal Rosenthal, CEO of Ever After Foods, told Green Queen. “Where others need an absolutely enormous 20,000-litre bioreactor, our system produces the same volume with less than 2,000 litres, making it more efficient and viable.”

    He added that Bühler will “play a critical role in our mission to create the next, more sustainable, era of meat production”.

    Shifting away from the pharma world

    lab grown meat israel
    Courtesy: Ever After Foods

    Formerly named Plurinuva, Ever After Foods has exclusive licencing rights to use Pluri’s technology and intellectual property to commercialise cultivated meat.

    Its proprietary edible packed-bed (EPB) technology platform – which comprises a patented 3D cell expansion environment to mimic the cells’ natural environment – dramatically lowers production costs. And its bioreactors yield up to six times more protein and 700 times more lipids from each cell, offering better flavour and nutritional value.

    “Consumers will not compromise on taste and texture. Our production system is specifically designed for cultivated meat production, which is a complete step-change from traditional cultivated meat technologies. Another element that sets us apart is that our system does not compromise on the final product, delivering real meat rather than cell slurry, while achieving outstanding efficiency,” explained Rosenthal.

    Scalability is another key market barrier. According to consultancy giant McKinsey, to meet the industry’s growth demands, cultivated meat firms would need up to 22 times more fermentation capacity than currently exists in the global pharmaceutical sector.

    “Where traditional stirred-tank systems require 4,000 litres to produce 80kg of cultivated meat, our system uses only 200 litres without costly retention devices such as attenuated tangential flow or tangential flow filtration,” said Rosenthal. “This results in at least a 90% reduction in production costs and significantly lower capex, enabling cost parity with conventional meat.”

    The process is also much more climate-friendly than industrially raising livestock, resulting in 93% less air pollution, 95% less land use, and 94% less water consumption.

    Ever After Foods: working on several cell lines

    ever after foods
    Courtesy: Ever After Foods

    Ever After Foods says it’s working closely with cultivated meat makers and food industry leaders to speed up the development and global deployment of its EPB system – the partnership with Bühler is an extension of that effort.

    “Their support will help us scale up and ensure cultivated meat producers around the globe can access scalable, affordable food production systems. Having a respected player like Bühler supporting us is crucial for ensuring that our technology meets the highest standards in the food industry,” said Rosenthal.

    The company – which raised $10M in June – is one of several innovators pushing Israel’s food tech economy forward. The country was the third to approve the sale of cultivated meat, greenlighting local startup Aleph Farms‘s application in December 2023.

    Israel has additionally made food tech one of its top five priority R&D areas and attracted 10% of all VC funding ($1.2B) in the alternative protein sector between 2014 and 2023.

    “We are working with several leading cultivated meat and global food and meat companies across species like beef, chicken, duck, and fish,” said Rosenthal.

    Bühler advances future food focus as profits grow

    buhler alternative proteins
    Bühler Group CTO Ian Roberts | Courtesy: Bühler Group

    “Powering cultivated meat production at scale with a patented production system, Ever After Foods will help the food industry keep pace with the protein demands of a growing global population,” said Bühler CTO Ian Roberts.

    The collaboration is part of Bühler’s goal of enabling market-ready, healthy cell-based products that are friendly to the wallet and the planet and can address global challenges like food insecurity. It comes days after the company reported a turnover of $3.3B for 2024, making a net profit of $209M (a 5.5% increase from the previous year).

    “The global food chain faces significant challenges if we are to successfully and sustainably feed our growing population. How we produce and consume protein will continue to change, and requires a transition of our protein system to deliver this,” said Roberts.

    In December, it opened The Cultured Hub, a cellular agriculture scale-up plant, in partnership with Swiss retail giant Migros and flavour specialist Givaudan. Situated in The Valley in Kemptthal, the factory can support the development of products like cultivated meat, fermentation-derived dairy, cell-based chocolate, and more.

    The post Bühler & Israeli Cultivated Meat Co Joins Forces To Solve Industry Bioreactor Problem appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.

  • Future Food Quick Bites: Vegan Dubai Chocolate, Impossible BrewDog & Non-Dairy Liqueurs

    vegan dubai chocolate
    5 Mins Read

    Our weekly column rounds up the latest sustainable food innovation news. This week, Future Food Quick Bites covers NotCo’s Dubai chocolate, BrewDog’s collaboration with Impossible Foods, and new products at Expo West.

    New products and launches

    Chilean AI-led food tech player NotCo has released Dubai Style NotSquare, a vegan version of the viral pistachio-kunafa-filled chocolate bar.

    notco dubai chocolate
    Courtesy: Matias Muchnick/LinkedIn

    Scottish pub chain BrewDog has partnered with Impossible Foods to introduce a vegan chicken menu across 48 UK locations, which includes cheeseburgers and tacos made from the latter’s Chicken FIllets, as well as nuggets. The limited-edition menu is running until the end of March.

    UK oat milk chocolate maker Happi has rolled out Salted Honeycomb and Cherry & Almond Easter eggs, which contain 35% less sugar than mass-market brands and are available at Waitrose and other retailers for £11.99 per 155g egg.

    British sports nutrition brand Myprotein has launched a caramel-pecan flavour of its double-dough brownie in collaboration with Hotel Chocolat. It’s available on its website for £25.99 for a box of 12.

    vegan cream liqueur
    Courtesy: Continental Wine & Food

    Yorkshire-based Continental Wine & Food has launched Lacey’s Vodkashake, a line of dairy-free cream liqueurs available in strawberry and banana flavours. Inspired by 1950s-style American diner milkshakes, the 15% ABV product is stocked at 500 B&M stores, retailing for £12 per 70cl bottle.

    Elsewhere, Indian plant-based meat brand GoodDot has obtained a listing at Australian health food store Wholefood Merchants.

    Also in Australia, Coyo has unveiled a dairy-free yoghurt line made with 74% oat milk and 17% coconut cream. They come in natural, vanilla bean, mango and strawberry flavours, and will be stocked at Woolworths and independent retailers nationwide starting March.

    coyo vegan yogurt
    Courtesy: Coyo

    Amid the US egg shortage, UK startup Crackd – which makes the pourable vegan No-Egg Egg – is gearing up for a launch stateside, and will have a booth at Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim, California (March 5-7).

    Also at Expo West, alt-dairy leader Elmhurst 1925 will debut three new products: unsweetened vanilla cashew milk, barista cashew milk, and unsweetened coconut-cashew barista milk.

    colruyt vegan
    Courtesy: Colruyt

    And Belgian retailer Colruyt Group has launched Boni Plan’t, a plant-based brand under its Boni Selection private label. The move unites over 100 existing meat-free products under the new label, with several new items to be added in the coming months.

    Company and finance updates

    Swedish dairy giant Valio has acquired Raisio‘s plant protein business, which includes the Härkis and Beanit fava bean brands, for €7M. The deal will see 16 employees transferred to Valio.

    After two years of tumult, Swedish oat milk giant Oatly reported a 5% hike in revenue for both Q4 and the full year of 2024, and expects 2025 to be its “first full year of profitable growth as a public company”.

    nespresso oatly
    Courtesy: Nespresso

    In northern Spain, Hijos de Rivera, Inproteins and the Xunta de Galicia have invested €7.5M in a new plant protein manufacturing facility. The project will receive a total of €18M in funding, supported by the Galician Institute for Economic Promotion and Banco Sabadell.

    In the UK, AI-driven meal-planning platform Remy has acquired Kitche, an app that helps prevent food waste at the household level.

    Dutch cultivated pork producer Meatable hosted a cross-industry event with 80 stakeholders to discuss sustainable proteins and the future of food.

    meatable
    Courtesy: Meatable

    Speaking of cellular agriculture, Singapore’s Umami Bioworks has introduced a cultivated seafood platform to address protein diversity in the pet food industry. It comes as the firm works with another startup to commercialise cat treats made with cultivated fish, and just after the first cultivated pet food launched in the UK earlier this month.

    Policy developments

    Californian alternative protein pioneer Eat Just and its cultivated meat subsidiary, Good Meat, have reached an “agreement in principle” to settle their legal dispute with bioreactor supplier ABEC.

    singapore food safety bill
    Courtesy: Eat Just

    Israeli startup Yeap has announced that its upcycled yeast protein now meets EU regulatory requirements, paving the way for its market entry in the region.

    The European Plant-Based Foods Association (formerly the European Natural Soyfood Association, or ENSA) has changed its name to Plant-Based Foods Europe to “better reflect the industry’s dynamic landscape”.

    After more than 70 years, Humane Society International and the Humane Society of the United States have changed their name to Humane World for Animals, marking the occasion with a new ad campaign featuring Sia.

    In a written submission, the UK government is being urged by The Vegan Society to raise awareness of vegans in the parliament to prevent harassment and bullying, as well as increase plant-based options for policymakers.

    Finally, in New Zealand, the Vegan Society of Aotearoa and the New Zealand Vegetarian Society have handed in a petition to ban the misleading labelling of animal-free products, since there’s no legislation to determine what products qualify as vegan or vegetarian in the country.

    Check out last week’s Future Food Quick Bites.

    The post Future Food Quick Bites: Vegan Dubai Chocolate, Impossible BrewDog & Non-Dairy Liqueurs appeared first on Green Queen.

    This post was originally published on Green Queen.