Alternative Protein Solutions Database
Discover ideas for new startups, commercial ventures and products, research projects, ecosystem support, and investment opportunities for plant-based, cultivated, and fermentation-derived proteins.
Cultivated
Fermentation
Plant-Based
| Opportunity | Production platform | Value chain segment | Technology sector | End product focus | Relevant actor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Affordable animal-free omega-3 ingredients for alternative seafood and other alternative protein applications
In order to appeal to health-conscious consumers, alternative seafood products should contain similar omega-3 fatty acids, especially DHA and EPA, content to conventional seafood. Animal-free omega-3 ingredients can be expensive… |
Fermentation
Plant-Based
|
Investment Production R&D Raw Materials, Ingredients, & Inputs | Bioprocess design Crop development Host strain development Ingredient optimization Target molecule selection | Seafood | Industry Investors Startups |
|
Preventing oxidation of omega-3 fatty acids before and after addition to alternative seafood products
Deeper fundamental knowledge of the causes and prevention of oxidation of omega-3 fatty acids before, during, and after addition to alternative seafood products is needed to improve their nutritional and… |
Cultivated
Fermentation
Plant-Based
|
End Products Investment Production R&D Raw Materials, Ingredients, & Inputs | Bioprocess design Crop development End product formulation & manufacturing Host strain development Ingredient optimization Target molecule selection | Seafood | Academics Industry Investors Startups |
|
Coordination among investors with alternative protein industry-specific expertise
Investors specializing in alternative proteins should be leveraged to educate the broader investment community through coalitions, syndicated deals, and co-investments with industry-agnostic investors, and spearhead efforts to facilitate later-stage funding… |
Cultivated
Fermentation
Plant-Based
|
Investment | Species-agnostic | GFI Investors Startups | |
|
Guaranteed offtake contracts for products and ingredients
Guaranteed offtake agreements, where buyers commit to purchase a volume of product, can help secure loans for infrastructure and other high-cost projects. |
Cultivated
Fermentation
Plant-Based
|
End Products Investment Production | End product formulation & manufacturing | Species-agnostic | Industry Policymakers |
|
Platform for facilitating matchmaking between funders and funding-seekers
It can be challenging and time-intensive for startups and researchers to find funders that are interested in their technology area, technological maturity level, fundraising stage, location, type of funding sought,… |
Cultivated
Fermentation
Plant-Based
|
Investment | Species-agnostic | GFI Investors | |
|
Infrastructure loan fund
The success of early-days products has demonstrated strong consumer interest, but investment is needed to enable alternative protein supply chain companies to build out the infrastructure needed to capitalize on… |
Cultivated
Fermentation
Plant-Based
|
Investment Production | Species-agnostic | Industry Investors | |
|
Infrastructure and equipment leasing fund
Infrastructure leasing for production and processing facilities as well as capital equipment would enable alternative protein companies to rapidly expand capacity without large upfront capital investments. Having leasing funds and… |
Cultivated
Fermentation
Plant-Based
|
Investment Production Raw Materials, Ingredients, & Inputs | Species-agnostic | Industry Investors | |
|
Investor conference for LPs, funds of funds, corporate VCs, family offices, and money managers
Events targeted at promoting opportunities in alternative protein investment via specialized funds could facilitate and diversify investment. |
Cultivated
Fermentation
Plant-Based
|
Investment | Species-agnostic | GFI Investors | |
|
Options for factoring financing for alternative proteins
Increased access to factoring financing instruments would help alternative protein companies improve their cash conversion cycle. |
Cultivated
Fermentation
Plant-Based
|
Investment | Species-agnostic | Investors | |
|
Expanding alternative protein accelerator programs
More alternative protein capacity—different geographies, expertise, and programming—is needed in the incubator and accelerator landscape to de-risk venture capital investment. |
Cultivated
Fermentation
Plant-Based
|
Investment | Species-agnostic | Industry Investors |
Get involved
If you’d like to fund a research project, work on any of these solutions, share information about related efforts that are already underway, or elevate new ideas for advancing the alternative protein industry, we’d love to hear from you!
Explore key innovation priorities
Review commercial whitespaces, research gaps, technological needs, and investment priorities at each stage of the alternative protein value chain.
How we built this
Full report
Delve into the full report on the motivation, methodology, rationale, and key findings and recommendations of the Solutions initiative.
Futures wheels analysis
Explore our framework for uncovering second-order or third-order consequences and implications of hypothetical future scenarios to support better decision-making in the present.
Future-proofing
Discover key findings from GFI’s premortem analysis of potential threats to the widespread adoption of alternative proteins, including strategies to avoid or mitigate the most pressing risks.
