Chile’s Luyef Receives $1.25M to Develop Nutrients for Cultivated Meat Using Fermentation and Agro By-Products
Luyef (previously Luyef Biotechnologies), a biotech startup focused on cellular agriculture based in Santiago de Chile, has received two substantial grants totaling $1.25 million to accelerate cultivated meat production (detailed information about the grants below). The Ganesha Lab, LATAM’s global biotech scale-up for science and technology-based startups, announced the investment. Kris Blanchard, a biotechnology engineer from the University of Chile, co-founded Luyef in 2020, participating in The Ganesha Lab’s accelerator program …
Oobli Gains FDA Nod for Sweet Protein Monellin, Expands Portfolio of Zero Glycemic Impact Sweeteners
US sweet protein developer Oobli (formerly Joywell Foods) announces that it has received the FDA’s first “no questions” letter for its monellin sweet protein, produced via precision fermentation. With the letter, the FDA confirmed that Oobli’s monellin is safe to use as a sweetener in food and beverages. The acknowledgment follows a previous FDA approval of brazzein, another sweet-tasting protein. Monellin is originally found in the serendipity berry of the …
APAC: Investments in Innovative Food Make “Remarkable Recovery” in 2024, Increasing by 85%
The annual Asia-Pacific AgriFoodTech report by AgFunder has revealed a partial recovery in innovative food investments, a category that encompasses cultivated meat, novel ingredients, and plant-based proteins. $204 million was raised by innovative foods companies in the APAC region between January and the end of October, up 85% compared to the same period in 2023. Furthermore, 59 deals were made during this time, up from 49 last year. Notably, Singaporean …
Aleph Farms Submits Thailand’s First Cultivated Meat Application, Eyes 2026 Market Launch
Israel’s Aleph Farms has submitted a regulatory approval application to sell its cultivated beef products in Thailand, marking the country’s first application for a cultivated meat product. The safety dossier was filed to the National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (BIOTEC) under the Thai Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines for novel foods. While timelines can be uncertain, a novel food regulatory process can take around 18 months, which …
The Cultured Hub Facility Finally Opens, Positioning Switzerland as a Leader in Scaling Cell-Based Foods
The Cultured Hub has launched a “scale-up as a service” facility for cell-based foods in The Valley in Kemptthal, Switzerland, and celebrated its opening yesterday with the State of Play Cultured Foods 2.0 event. The Cultured Hub is a joint venture between three Swiss industry giants — Migros, Givaudan, and Bühler Group as first announced in 2021 — that aims to leverage their extensive food processing and product development experience to …
Farmless Secures €1M EU Grant to Validate its “Dramatically Efficient” Landless Protein Production
Dutch fermentation startup Farmless has secured a €1 million grant from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). Farmless produces functional proteins with a complete amino acid profile for the F&B industry. Its air-based fermentation process uses microorganisms powered by CO2, hydrogen, nitrogen, and renewable energy-produced feedstock rather than sugar to produce protein “dramatically” more efficiently than animal farming. With the funds, the startup will demonstrate and optimize its fermentation method …
NAPIC Becomes Latest Alternative Protein Innovation Centre to Open in the UK
The National Alternative Protein Innovation Centre (NAPIC) has been formally launched at the UK’s University of Leeds. It comes after the centre received £15 million in investment from two government funding bodies — the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and Innovate UK. NAPIC is hosted by the University of Leeds and co-led with the James Hutton Institute, the University of Sheffield, and Imperial College London. Its aim is …
US DoD Injects Millions into The Every Co. & Other Biotechs, Says the “Next Industrial Revolution Will Be a Biomanufacturing Revolution”
San Francisco-based The Every Company has received a $2 million award from the US Department of Defense (DoD) to explore establishing a precision fermentation facility in the US. With the funding, EVERY will conduct a feasibility study for a manufacturing site for its two main fermentation-derived ingredients: OvoBoost, a highly soluble protein for protein-boosting, and OvoPro (ovalbumin) for egg and egg white replacement in food and beverages. In addition, the …
NovelSweets Project Develops Protein-Based Sweetener 10,000 Times Sweeter Than Table Sugar
Researchers at Fraunhofer IME have partnered with metaX Institut für Diätetik GmbH and candidum GmbH to develop a new type of protein-based sweetener. Called NovelSweets, the project is supporting the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture in its efforts to reduce the sugar content of ready-made foods and beverages. The new sweetener is made from sweet-tasting proteins, molecules that occur naturally in some plants and bind readily to taste …
Danish Scientists and Michelin-Starred Chefs Explore New Mycelium From Oyster Mushrooms for Meat Alternatives
Scientists from the Technical University of Denmark, collaborating with chefs from the Michelin-starred restaurant Alchemist in Copenhagen, have found that mycelium from oyster mushrooms (P. ostreatus) has excellent potential and acceptance as an alternative to meat and seafood. Although oyster mushrooms are widely consumed, the culinary qualities and food safety of their root structure have thus far never been explored. But, as part of a project funded by the Good …