All PFN ARTICLES

Let’s call it like it is, when almost 21,000 Dutch consumers were asked whether terms like vegaworst or veganburger were confusing, a thumping 96% knew exactly what they meant. That alone pulls the rug out from under claims EU shoppers can’t tell a plant-based sausage from an animal one. The data couldn’t be clearer, consumers aren’t confused, regulators are.

Strap in: the European Space Agency (ESA) has just signed a deal with Finnish startup Solar Foods to test a protein powder made from microbes, air, electricity and urea (yes, that urea, found in urine) aboard the International Space Station; giving a whole new meaning to pee protein!!

Veggie tea drinks have moved from niche novelty to legitimate new category, led by brands like Millie’s Sipping Broth in the US, essentially broth in a tea bag and GOBBi, which positions itself as a savoury “energy tea” with tomato, mushroom and miso profiles. Add in the OGs like Numi’s early “Savory Tea” lineup, plus celery-ginger and herbal-vegetable hybrids across Asia, and the signal is clear: warm, vegetable-forward teas are becoming a recognised hot-drink ritual.

Alejandro Cancino (ex Fenn Foods and The Aussie Plant-Based Co) has always been one of the few operators who shaped its rise with real integrity. While others chased supermarket space at any cost, he obsessed over renewable energy, responsible packaging, and carbon-neutral production, often putting principle ahead of profit. Now, after stepping back and spending time in Indonesia, he’s returned with something feeling far closer to his food philosophy: Murni, and a clean, shel

Plant-based egg innovator, Crafty Counter’s new Protein Buns are the kind of functional convenience foods consumers are absolutely primed for - soft, gluten-free, microwave-ready, and stuffed with a hemp-based “egg” scramble packing 40% more protein per gram than a real egg. In a protein-obsessed food economy, this is the kind of micro-innovation that creates its own demand curve.

The food-innovation world is buzzing with hybrid meat products, blends of animal and plant proteins being touted as the “bridge” for flexitarian consumers. But when US based, The Mushroom Meat Co. co‐founder & CEO Kesha Stickland writes “ALL MUSHROOM, NO BEEF – WHY WE DON’T BLEND,” she makes a strong case for going full fungi. Her startup is committed to 80 % mushrooms + ~20 % whole plants (hempseed, seaweed, beets), consciously not blending in animal meat or hybridising wit

The arrival of a bioprinted meat product into the spotlight of a major industry awards show signals a turning point, as Redefine Meat’s 3-D-printed Flank Steak takes out the Plant-Based Meat Alternatives champion title in the UK's The Grocer’s New Product & Packaging Awards 2025. But it isn't just a trophy, it's recognition from the heart of the UK food trade.

A nacho pie has just taken out New Zealand’s top vegan baking honour and honestly, could anything scream 2025 more? Richoux Patisserie’s Supreme-winning “Nacho Pie” blended Mexican spice, crunch, and creamy plant-based comfort into a mash-up that feels perfectly tuned to the times: bold, global, and comfort-driven. Judges called it “flavour-packed” and “innovative”, which is code for this one actually made us smile.

UK-based One Planet Pizza just did what many ANZ plant-based brands haven’t yet dared: they launched into Southeast Asia, starting with 60 Tops stores in Thailand. The country’s plant-based food market is already worth over £1 billion, and with more than 75 percent of the population lactose intolerant, this move feels almost surgically smart.

America’s appetite for white mushrooms is going through a full-blown functional food awakening. The market is forecast to surge from US$13.3 billion in 2024 to US$22.34 billion by 2033, a nearly 6% annual increase driven by wellness-minded consumers seeking nutrient-dense, plant-forward foods doing more than fill a plate.

Three startups have been crowned winners of the inaugural Bezos Centre for Sustainable Protein @ NUS × Enterprise Singapore “Sustainable Protein Startup Competition” at the Asia‑Pacific Agri‑Food Innovation Summit 2025 in Singapore. Each of the winners, cultivated meat startup, Magic Valley from Melbourne , Fermeate a photomolecular fermentation startup based in California and Terra Bioindustries from Toronto, Canada and involved in up-cycling agro-industrial by-products, wil

In a world of weather shocks and geopolitical tension, Cellular Agriculture Australia has thrown down the gauntlet — food isn’t just sustenance, it’s national security. Their new white paper “Made & Grown: The Future of Food Biotechnology & Biomanufacturing in Australia” argues that investing in biomanufacturing is no longer optional; it’s a sovereign imperative.