As The Future of Protein Production Chicago kicks off today, our entire FPP team is on the ground – but the news cycle hasn’t slowed down one bit. Even with all eyes on the Windy City, there’s plenty happening across the protein landscape that deserves your attention.

Leading the week, a precision fermentation player secured US$38 million in Series A funding to scale its animal-free whey globally. With dairy supply under pressure and demand for functional proteins rising, the raise signals growing investor confidence in fermentation as a serious pillar of future dairy.

Staying with scale-up momentum, a fermentation-based ingredients company added €4 million to its Series A to accelerate industrial rollout. The extension brings it closer to full commercial deployment – a reminder that bridging pilot to production remains one of the sector’s defining milestones.

Meanwhile, policy took a decisive turn in the USA. A newly formalized Farm Security Plan has brought advanced defense research capabilities into food and agtech oversight, signaling a sharper focus on resilience, biosecurity, and supply chain protection. What might this mean for innovation pathways going forward?

On the demand side, one school district’s journey from product evaluation to full adoption shows how thoughtful implementation – and smart defaults – can shift protein choices at scale. It’s a case study in how behavior, not just technology, shapes the transition.

Ingredient innovation also moved forward this week, with the launch of a new pea protein designed specifically to tackle persistent taste challenges. As formulation hurdles continue to define category success, improvements at the functional level could have outsized impact.

And finally, a coffee alternative company outlined plans to reach 1,000-ton capacity as it moves toward commercial launch. As climate volatility continues to threaten traditional crops, scalable substitutes are edging closer to mainstream reality.

So while we connect, debate, and network in Chicago, the industry keeps building – molecule by molecule, facility by facility, policy by policy.

More next week from the show floor.

Enjoy reading, and as always, let us know which developments you think will have the biggest impact next.

🧬 Verley raises US$38 million Series A to take precision-fermented whey global as dairy strains under demand

🟢 Roquette targets pea protein’s taste problem with NUTRALYS Pea 850F launch

💶 REDUCED raises €4 million Series A extension to support industrial rollout

🥩 GFI study finds ‘real meat’ and humane framing boost appeal for cultivated meat among US consumers

🛡️ USDA and Department of War formalize Farm Security Plan, bringing DARPA into food and agtech oversight

🏫 Default by design: how 50Cut moved from evaluation to adoption in South Carolina schools

🌱 Happy Plant Protein bets on local legumes to rewire Europe’s protein supply chain

🌿 Planteneers targets ‘powerhouse protein’ boom with new high-protein plant-based drinks and puddings

🤝 EFSA and FAO sign three-year MoU to deepen regulatory science collaboration

This Autumn, The Future of Protein Production Amsterdam returns, taking place 4-5 November 2026 at RAI Amsterdam.- and this time it’s co-located with the Cultured Meat Symposium. Our flagship event will welcome 1,000 attendees, 100 speakers, and +75 exhibitors, all gathering under one roof to explore the breakthroughs shaping the next wave of alternative protein commercialization. From technical deep dives to strategic discussions, this is where the global industry meets. Reserve your place now to lock in the lowest rate. The first 50 speakers will be announced soon so keep an eye out on our website for more details!

🧬 The Molecular Leap: Why Better Nutrition Needs New Building Blocks – Not Better Blends

👉 Save your seat here

As companies push for better stability, performance and nutritional outcomes, it’s becoming increasingly clear that you can’t solve structural problems by remixing the same commodity ingredients in slightly different ratios.

Join us on Thursday, March 12, 2026 (4pm London/12pm New York City) for a deep dive into why the next step-change in nutrition will happen at the molecular level – not at the blending tank.

In partnership with Checkerspot, this free-to-attend webinar explores what happens when you stop treating fats as interchangeable commodities and start designing them with purpose.

Rather than producing and selling off-the-shelf ingredients, Checkerspot works through joint development and licensing models – starting from a consumer need and engineering backwards to the specific lipid structures required. It’s a fundamentally different way of thinking about fats.

And it raises a bigger question for the industry: Are we reaching the ceiling of what ‘better blends’ can realistically deliver?

Join us to learn:

🧩 Why incremental reformulation struggles to solve structural nutrition and performance challenges

🧪 How molecular interactions – not ingredient labels – govern oxidation, stability, texture and nutritional outcomes

🔬 What lipid–protein co-oxidation research reveals about the hidden limitations of commodity oils

🧬 How designing specific lipid structures unlocks capabilities conventional fats simply can’t deliver

🤝 Why licensing and joint development models may be a smarter route to access purpose-built lipids

🏗️ What this shift means for food, infant nutrition and specialty applications where performance margins are tight

Featuring J. Casey Lippmeier (CTO), John Krzywicki (CEO) and Walter G. Rakitsky (SVP of Development) from Checkerspot, plus more speakers to be confirmed.

If you care about oxidation, stability, texture, nutritional integrity – or just the limits of commodity thinking – this one is worth your time.

👉 Save your seat here

🎙️💡 Listen to our latest episode now! In this episode of the PPTI Podcast, Annick Verween (VIB), Ali Osman, Diana Oliveira, and Harry Barraza (PfX Biotech), Amy Williams (GFI Europe), Filipa Soares (Cell4Food), and David Laubner (Sennos) discussed how systems thinking could reshape the future of nutrition. The conversation covered precision fermentation, shared standards, digital and sensor technologies, and why closer collaboration across science, regulation, and markets is essential for scalable food systems.🎙️🥩➡️🌱

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