The Good Food Institute

🤔 What if the way we produce protein could strengthen food security AND create new opportunities for farmers? At FAO’s World Food Forum, GFI convened global leaders to explore how alternative proteins can support both—especially in the Global South. Get the top takeaways: bit.ly/4Br7zWv

🍄 One example: Irakoze Mizero Axelle, a researcher in Rwanda, won a challenge co-organized by GFI & Bezos Center for Sustainable Protein for her proposal focused on heat-resistant oyster mushrooms that can support smallholder farmers while expanding access to affordable, protein-rich foods.

What if we could produce protein anywhere? That's the promise of food biomanufacturing. And it'd have major advantages for both the U.S. defense sector and everyday Americans. In a new op-ed, GFI's Maille O'Donnell explores what such a future could look like and how we get there: bit.ly/4iGKmrR

It also means decoupling food production from place. What could this look like in action? Think mobile production units that make fermentation-derived ingredients—co-located with troops. Or meat cultivated in regions with land and water constraints.

What if we could produce protein anywhere? That's the promise of food biomanufacturing. And it'd have major advantages for both the U.S. defense sector and everyday Americans. In a new op-ed, GFI's Maille O'Donnell explores what such a future could look like and how we get there: bit.ly/4iGKmrR

The Outlaw Ocean Project's latest investigation pulls back the curtain on a part of seafood production that is typically hidden from consumers and policymakers alike. It also leaves us with a fundamental question: How do we meet growing seafood demand without putting more pressure on our ocean? 🧵

The investigation points to algae and microbial proteins as potential alternatives to using wild-caught fish in aquaculture feed. Those same ingredients can also be used to make plant-based and cell-cultivated seafood—both of which take the ocean out of the equation.

The Outlaw Ocean Project's latest investigation pulls back the curtain on a part of seafood production that is typically hidden from consumers and policymakers alike. It also leaves us with a fundamental question: How do we meet growing seafood demand without putting more pressure on our ocean? 🧵

🌏 Happy #WorldFoodDay! This year’s theme, “Innovate today. Nourish tomorrow,” is a reminder that building a food system that can provide safe, nutritious food for all—now and for generations to come—will require new ideas and more ways to produce the foods people love 🧵

Climate change and other supply chain shocks are already exposing vulnerabilities in today’s global food system. This is particularly clear when we look at how meat is made. That’s why protein innovation (like plant-based, cultivated, & fermentation-derived meat) is a critical part of the solution.

New World screwworm, avian flu, drought, and rising beef prices have all been in the news this summer. GFI + @sentientmedia.org recently teamed up for a webinar connecting the dots between today’s headlines and larger food-system pressures. Explore top takeaways and resources for journalists:

A combination of technological, economic, ecological, and cultural factors just might be lining up to challenge the hold that beef has had on the American diet for decades, says @billmckibben.bsky.social. If so, this would be great news for the planet 🌎 Check out his fantastic new piece:

The latest data from @copernicusecmwf.bsky.social confirms what many have suspected based on what they've been feeling over the past few months: 2026 has been the hottest summer on record. What does that mean for our food system—and how can protein diversification help? Learn more: bit.ly/4yzo8xh

A new UN report concluded that the world is likely to cross 1.5°C of warming within the next few years. Even under the most optimistic scenario, warming would peak around 1.8°C—and every fraction of a degree will intensify extreme weather and make adaptation harder.

🇪🇺 Fermentation is powering Europe’s alternative protein investment growth. In the first half of 2026, European alternative protein companies raised €236 million in private investment—up 56% from the same period last year. 💡 Much of that growth came from fermentation. ⤵️

💡 These numbers point to a challenge that goes beyond any single investment cycle: scaling food technologies is expensive, and venture capital can only take companies so far.

🇪🇺 Fermentation is powering Europe’s alternative protein investment growth. In the first half of 2026, European alternative protein companies raised €236 million in private investment—up 56% from the same period last year. 💡 Much of that growth came from fermentation. ⤵️

🔬 Precision fermentation companies raised €100M—more than in all of 2025. 📈 Biomass fermentation companies raised €99M, ⬆️ from €60M last year. 💰 Many ferm. companies also secured grant funding alongside private investment, reducing risk for investors + helping scarce private capital go further.

🇯🇵 Japan is positioning biomanufacturing and “new food” tech as strategic engines of long-term economic growth! A new government roadmap outlines more than ¥370 trillion ($2.26 trillion) in anticipated public & private investment across 17 strategic fields through 2040, which include:

✅ ¥12.8 trillion ($78.2B) in investment for biomanufacturing ✅ ¥1 trillion ($6.1B) for novel food technologies While these fields do encompass a range of applications beyond alternative proteins, the roadmap is still a critical win for the sector.

📊 Food System Innovations (FSI) crunched the numbers, and according to their research, the food system will blow past its carbon budget by more than 50% if consumption of animal products increases as it is projected to.

📈 According to FSI’s modeling, dietary shifts or food-waste reductions alone don’t cut emissions fast enough. Every successful pathway it modeled for staying within the carbon budget requires a transition from animal-sourced foods to lower-emissions options like plant-based & cultivated meat.

📊 Food System Innovations (FSI) crunched the numbers, and according to their research, the food system will blow past its carbon budget by more than 50% if consumption of animal products increases as it is projected to.

A new FAO–WMO report warns that extreme heat is magnifying existing weaknesses across agricultural systems, leading to disruptions in crop yields, livestock health, water availability, and rural livelihoods. Keep reading to learn how protein diversification can play a role in mitigating risk 🧵

This is exactly why protein diversification is so important. Plant-based, cultivated, & fermentation-derived proteins are more resilient to today's climate shocks + give us additional ways to meet demand when conventional supply chains are under stress. They can also help slow future warming.

A new FAO–WMO report warns that extreme heat is magnifying existing weaknesses across agricultural systems, leading to disruptions in crop yields, livestock health, water availability, and rural livelihoods. Keep reading to learn how protein diversification can play a role in mitigating risk 🧵

In late 2023, extraordinary temperatures in Brazil showed how head can magnify existing weaknesses across agricultural systems. On top of a warmer baseline shaped by climate change & amplified by El Niño, the heatwave simultaneously impacted crops, livestock, forests, fisheries, and human health.