Alt-Protein & Precision Fermentation

The Trade Policy and Strategy Office of the Ministry of Commerce disclosed that Japan has announced a draft long-term public and private investment plan through 2040, elevating the novel food industry to one of the country's strategic industries. This national plan aims to attract a total of more than 370 trillion yen, covering 17 strategic fields and 62 key products and technologies, ranging from artificial intelligence, semiconductors, quantum technology, biotechnology and clean energy to Food Tech, which is one of those 17 strategic fields. For the novel food industry specifically, Japan plans to allocate about 1 trillion yen in investment to push the market value to 3 trillion yen by 2040, from the current market value of 300 billion yen for alternative protein and 15 billion yen for functional foods. The government plans to establish a new budget category called Strong and Prosperous Japan with no spending ceiling and the ability to plan long-term budgets. Japan has chosen to build on its strengths in fermentation technology, functional foods and food formulation innovation rather than investing in cultivated meat, and has set a strategy to expand into the United States and Europe before entering Asian markets. Meanwhile, in 2025 Japan was Thailand's third-largest export market for agricultural and agro-industrial products, with export value of 5.08194 billion US dollars, or about 166.781 billion baht, although this was down 2.1% from the previous year. The director of the Trade Policy and Strategy Office stated that Japan's accelerated investment in the novel food industry is a golden opportunity for Thai operators to upgrade to become technology developers and producers of high-value food ingredients.

Jiangxi Fushine Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. announced that the company and its subsidiary Jiangxi Fushine Biotechnology Co., Ltd. have obtained an invention patent certificate issued by the Japan Patent Office. The invention is titled "Application of Fusarium oxysporum in the Production of Mycelial Protein," with Japanese patent number 7881733, a grant date of June 19, 2026, and a patent term of 20 years. The company stated that it has become the first enterprise in China to achieve thousand-ton-scale industrialization of filamentous fungal protein, and that the technology related to its proprietary strain Fusarium oxysporum has reached an internationally advanced level overall. The technology had previously been granted invention patents in China, South Korea, and the United States. This Japanese patent represents important progress in the company's international strategic layout for its microbial protein business and will provide a technical barrier for the entry of its Weiran brand protein products into the Japanese market. The patent has already been applied to existing production lines and is not expected to have a significant impact on near-term performance, but it holds positive strategic significance for long-term business development.

BSF Enterprise shares soared 56.5% to 1.33 pence after the tissue engineering company agreed outline terms for a joint venture to sell its lab-grown leather into the American luxury market. The London-listed group signed non-binding heads of terms with US brand operator IMPOSTER to form a 50/50 venture, with BSF contributing technology licensing and material supply while IMPOSTER provides operational funding of between 500,000 and 1 million dollars drawn from a planned 3.5 million dollar growth capital raise. Full commercial exclusivity for the venture only activates once that funding is received. The venture will focus on small luxury items such as bag charms, keyrings, desk accessories, equestrian goods, and a limited run of bespoke handbags and wallets, while BSF retains all intellectual property and commercial rights in higher-volume categories including mainline footwear, apparel, automotive interiors, and mass-market handbags. BSF is targeting three revenue streams: a gross margin of 25 to 35 percent on raw material transfers, a royalty of 3 to 7 percent on net sales, and half of any venture profits.

AMSilk and Ajinomoto Foods Europe have entered into a long-term manufacturing and supply agreement to enable dedicated, large-scale production of silk proteins. Under the deal, AFE will establish a dedicated production line at its Nesle, France biomanufacturing site, based on 160 m³ fermentation reactor capacity and customized downstream processing. The setup involves a multi-million joint investment in equipment and facility upgrades, and at full performance is expected to reach commercial production volumes of industrial-grade silk protein. The agreement also provides a framework for future expansion of precision fermentation capacity, supporting AMSilk’s ability to meet growing demand across textiles, automotive, and consumer care applications.