The Protein Digest

Beyond Meat beats Q2 estimates but shares slide on persistent losses. Revenue of $68.8 million and a narrower-than-expected loss beat Wall Street forecasts, but shares dropped roughly 8% as investors focused on ongoing sales declines, negative adjusted EBITDA, and a cautious outlook. (m.investing.com)

NuCicer launches high-protein chickpea ingredient line after $18.5M in funding. The Davis, California, company developed its Nuchi chickpea through cross-breeding wild varieties with commercial strains, producing up to 75% more protein than standard chickpeas and selling it as flour, concentrate, and isolate ingredients. (bizjournals.com)

Study finds yeast biomass rivals plant protein ingredients in nutritional and functional properties. Researchers evaluated 27 strains across Saccharomyces and non-Saccharomyces species, finding average protein content of 69 g per 100 g dry matter and technological properties suitable for incorporation into food matrices. (sciencedirect.com)

Eatable Adventures launches equity-free deeptech accelerator for agrifood startups in Bilbao. The NOVO Agrifoodtech program, supported by the Provincial Council of Bizkaia, will select ten international startups applying AI, biotech, robotics, and other breakthrough technologies to agriculture and food in a 12-week hybrid program based in Bilbao. (Protein Report)

Aleph Farms targets 2027 cell-cultured beef launch in Singapore. The Israeli startup received regulatory clearance to sell its thin-cut beef steaks and will work with contract manufacturer Cell Agritech on initial production, citing a streamlined process it says can reach price parity with conventional beef. (agfundernews.com)

State bans on cell-cultured meat echo a century-old pattern of regulatory capture. Seven U.S. states have outlawed the sale of cell-cultured meat, most before any product reached shelves, while the DAIRY PRIDE Act targets plant-based dairy labeling—measures an economic analysis argues serve incumbent producers more than consumers. (thedailyeconomy.org)

Evolutionary taste biology shapes divergent palatability in dogs and cats. A review from Mars Petcare's Waltham Petcare Science Institute synthesizes research showing cats depend on umami driven by nucleotides in animal tissue, while dogs retain broader taste sensitivity—findings with growing relevance as pet food formulators adopt novel ingredients. (petfoodindustry.com)

ETH Zurich turns dairy and tofu waste into low-energy carbon capture sorbents. The waste-protein-derived microbeads capture 97 milligrams of CO2 per gram of sorbent, outperforming existing amine-based direct-air capture methods by 10 to 50 percent while offering a low-energy regeneration cycle. (chemengonline.com)

Lawsuit challenges Minnesota's approval of major dairy expansion near Morris. The plaintiffs argue the state erred in not requiring a full Environmental Impact Statement for Riverview's planned expansion of West River Dairy to nearly 19,000 cows, which would make it the largest dairy in the state and generate waste comparable to a city of 750,000 people. (minnesotareformer.com)

Scientists engineer lettuce to produce animal myoglobin protein. Researchers at Imperial College London inserted pig myoglobin genes into lettuce and tobacco chloroplasts, yielding about 810 mg of the protein per kilogram of dry weight and demonstrating that higher plants can stably produce a key meat protein. (sciencealert.com)