React Foods lands $631K grant to turn CO₂ into yeast protein
What's the deal? React FoodsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a Copenhagen-based spinout, has secured US$616K (around $631,000) from the BioInnovation InstituteDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → to pilot a two-stage fermentation process that turns CO₂ and renewable hydrogen into protein-rich yeast biomass. The grant comes from the accelerator funded by the Novo Nordisk FoundationDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →.
What's the endgame? React Foods wants to build a protein source that needs no farmland. It is targeting the egg and dairy protein markets, with uses such as protein bars and replacements for whey.
How it works: In the first stage, microorganisms convert CO₂ and hydrogen into acetate, the main component of vinegar. The acetate then feeds yeast, which grows into protein-rich biomass. That biomass still needs further processing into a usable ingredient.
The company is a spin-out of research from Aarhus University, Stanford University, and the University of Tübingen, carried out with the Novo Nordisk Foundation CO₂ Research Center. It will run its scale-up work at pilot facilities at AU Viborg, Aarhus University's research campus in central Denmark.
Why now? Record-high prices and supply shortages in the egg and whey protein markets have pushed manufacturers toward more resilient alternatives.
In their words: "We are aiming to supplement existing protein value chains by creating a sustainable, vegan alternative — one that does not depend on arable land and is less exposed to extreme weather and geopolitical uncertainties," said chief executive officer Michael Martin.
What could go wrong? The pilot must prove the two stages can run as one integrated system — a step React Foods has yet to clear. The findings will inform decisions on further scaling, investment, and industrial partnerships.
The signal: The grant is a small, pilot-stage bet in a sector seeing broader momentum, with European alternative-protein companies raising €236 million in the first half of 2026. But investment increasingly favors larger scale-up rounds over early technical validation, and React Foods — joining gas-protein peers such as Solar Foods and Unibio — still has to show its process can work before it competes with egg or dairy proteins.
Read more: vegconomist.com
Image credit: Generated with Gemini
