At the same time, AI, fermentation platforms, next-generation fibers, hybrid proteins, and sustainable packaging solutions are maturing more quickly than expected. Bright Green Partners’ newly released 2026 FoodTech Trends Report brings these forces together in a rare, comprehensive analysis of where the sector is heading and what will matter most for companies in the year ahead. 

Eggs have become the latest pressure point in the global food system, and the strain is showing in the sectors that depend on them most. Industrial bakeries, pastry manufacturers, and pasta producers have spent the past two years navigating rising input costs, repeated supply disruptions, and tightening allergen protocols. Against this backdrop, Spain-based MOA Foodtech is stepping into the gap with a new fermented ingredient intended to bring stability to the industry

Ripple Foods has secured $17 million in new funding, a decisive step forward for a company that has quietly become one of the strongest performers in the plant-based dairy aisle. The round brings together new investors Material Impact and Rich Products Ventures with continued backing from S2G Ventures, Prelude Ventures, Fall Line Capital, Euclidean Capital, Tao Capital Partners, and Tim Koogle.

The Protein Brewery has taken a decisive step toward bringing its flagship ingredient, Fermotein®, to consumers across Europe. The Dutch food-tech company announced that the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has issued a positive scientific opinion for the fermented fungal ingredient. This milestone places Fermotein one approval away from being authorized for sale across the EU.

Europe is redefining its industrial future through the lens of biology. What began years ago as a sustainability exercise, improving resource efficiency, valorizing waste, regenerating soils, has evolved into something far more consequential: an attempt to build a competitive, sovereign bioeconomy capable of withstanding geopolitical volatility, climate shocks, and accelerating global competition in biotechnology.

Athian’s latest announcement arrives at a moment when food and agriculture companies face intensifying pressure to demonstrate verifiable climate progress. Since 2024, the Indianapolis-based startup has facilitated $18 million in direct payments to farmers for methane and manure-related reductions achieved on their operations.

Every year, the International Food Information Council’s (IFIC) Food & Health Survey peels back another layer of the complex, emotionally charged, economically constrained, and increasingly value-driven relationship Americans have with their food. But the 2025 edition is particularly revealing. Based on responses from 3,000 adults ages 18 to 80, weighted to reflect the U.S. population and fielded in March 2025

Ruminant Biotech has closed a $9.5 million Series A round to accelerate the commercial rollout of one of the most anticipated methane-mitigation technologies for pasture-based cattle, a sector long identified as the most difficult and impactful frontier in agricultural decarbonization.

Canadian plant-based snack maker Trubar is set to join one of Turkey’s largest food groups in a deal that underscores both the strength of the brand and the shifting landscape of the alternative protein market. The Vancouver-born company has agreed to be acquired by ETİ Gıda Sanayi ve Ticaret for approximately CAD 201 million (about $142 million), marking a significant exit for one of North America’s fastest-growing protein bar businesses.

CookUnity has secured up to $250 million in non-dilutive financing from General Catalyst, one of the largest recent capital injections into the prepared-meals sector and a significant validation of the chef-to-consumer model. The raise follows a year of rapid operational growth, with the New York-based company reporting a more than 75% increase in total meals ordered for the twelve months ending October 2025.

The food industry has grown accustomed to volatility, but the pressures shaping it today go far beyond price spikes or shifting consumer preferences. Climate-linked disruptions, emerging definitions of “processing,” tightening regulatory scrutiny, demographic shifts, and the rapid advance of digital and biological technologies are forcing companies to look much further ahead than their traditional planning cycles allow.

The cultivated meat sector is edging closer to commercial reality, but one stubborn roadblock has slowed nearly every company in the space: sourcing the tools needed to actually make the product. Bioreactors, media, cell lines, scaffolds, and sensors each sit within a fragmented, opaque supply chain still shaped by pharmaceutical procurement norms. For startups trying to scale a food system, those norms have become a drag on progress.