Top Stories
3D printing and robotics expand additive manufacturing in food production. Companies such as Revo Foods and byFlow are scaling 3D printing technology for food applications, from plant-protein seafood analogues to precision chocolate shaping, while robotic assembly cells from firms like Chef Robotics and KUKA are broadening the definition of additive manufacturing to include pick-and-place meal assembly. Revo Foods has increased output from 80 products per day on a single-head desktop printer to 2,000–2,500 per day using an eight-head industrial system, and byFlow's OPUS platform digitizes chocolate production workflows to replace manual decoration and mold development. Chef Robotics, working with JBT Marel's Proseal, automates fresh and frozen meal assembly by scooping, portioning, and piece-picking ingredients into trays, while KUKA provides hygienic robotic arms and software packages for food-handling environments. (foodengineeringmag.com)
Canadian salmon genomics lab gutted by DFO budget cuts. Fisheries and Oceans Canada is dissolving its world-leading Molecular Genetics Laboratory at the Pacific Biological Station in Nanaimo, with roughly half the team removed and remaining staff reassigned to other departments. The lab, built over decades by senior research scientist Kristi Miller, developed pioneering tools—including high-throughput pathogen screening and environmental DNA/RNA analysis—that fundamentally reshaped Pacific salmon health research and contributed to more than 200 published studies. Scientists familiar with the program warn the cuts will leave the lab a shell of its former self, though they hope a recent $413-million federal investment in Pacific salmon recovery could be redirected to preserve the genomics work. (thetyee.ca)
Florida restricts livestock imports from South Texas over screwworm threat. The emergency rule targets six Rio Grande Valley counties—Zapata, Jim Hogg, Starr, Hidalgo, Webb, and Brooks—requiring veterinary inspections and wound treatment for any livestock entering the state. Although New World screwworm has not been detected in the United States, a confirmed case in Nuevo Leon, Mexico, roughly 60 miles south of the Texas border, prompted the action. All southern border ports of entry are closed to livestock trade, and the USDA is developing a sterile fly production facility at Moore Air Base in Edinburg, Texas, expected to be operational by November 2027. (houstonpublicmedia.org)
Systematic review backs Ahiflower oil as efficient plant-based omega-3 source. A systematic literature review spanning more than 120 papers found that stearidonic acid (SDA), most concentrated in Ahiflower oil, raises EPA blood levels 2.5 to four times more effectively than standard ALA sources such as flaxseed oil, and up to six times faster. The review, which reflects a 40% increase in SDA research over the past decade, found that SDA bypasses a key rate-limiting enzyme in the omega-3 conversion pathway and that as little as 1 gram per day of Ahiflower oil may meet the brain's estimated daily DHA requirement through endogenous production. The authors suggest that SDA-rich plant oils, particularly when combined with algal DHA, could sustain physiologically sufficient EPA and DHA levels and reduce reliance on marine-sourced omega-3s. (nutraceuticalbusinessreview.com)
Fermeate raises $2m seed round for optogenetics-based fermentation platform. The California startup, cofounded in 2024 by Princeton optogenetics researchers, will use the capital to scale its light-based gene expression technology, which can be retrofitted into existing stainless-steel fermenters. Newfund Capital led the round, with participation from SOSV, Ajinomoto Group Ventures, and others. Fermeate says it has partnerships with four global food and ingredient companies and has achieved up to a 200% increase in protein production, with the potential for up to tenfold improvement, by using light-sensitive proteins to dynamically control cellular behavior during microbial fermentation. (agfundernews.com)
University of Queensland launches food innovation hub for start-ups. The facility, called FaBA MakerSpace, is part of Australia's AUD 370 million Trailblazer Universities Program and offers low-cost prototyping, food-grade processing, and packaging technologies to help small businesses and start-ups bridge the gap between concept and commercialization. The hub provides access to spray and freeze drying, ultra-high-temperature processing, modified atmosphere packaging, and other equipment that is typically out of reach for early-stage companies. Plant protein company v2food has welcomed the initiative, describing it as an extension of its R&D capabilities that shortens development timelines and reduces both technical and financial risk. (foodingredientsfirst.com)