‘USA asks EU countries for eggs’ – in the face of the US president's tariff threats, this headline in mid-March caused many Europeans to shake their heads. The reports surrounding the egg shortage in America shine a spotlight on a central problem in world nutrition. Factory farming makes our food systems vulnerable to pandemic risks: In the United States, more than 166 million poultry have had to be culled since 2022 due to the bird flu epidemic there. Bird flu, foot and mouth disease and swine fever are the obvious brutal side of animal husbandry; land and water consumption is the other: in Europe, around 70 per cent of agricultural land is used to grow animal feed.
The Berlin start-up Neggst Foods is showing that there is another way. Neggst Foods is currently marketing the idea of ‘Bettr Egg’ – plant-based egg products that are modelled on their natural counterpart in every respect. A complex interplay of ions and algae-based hydrocolloids ensures that the yolk forms a spherical yolk with a yolk membrane in the products based on vegetable proteins. The egg white consists mainly of proteins and hydrocolloids – these are polysaccharides that easily form a gel.
What was utopian yesterday is already on the shelf today – or growing in a bioreactor: ‘new food’ represents a revolution in nutrition, and sustainability is setting the pace. The term may sound futuristic, but it describes a very real category: ‘new food’ is food that was hardly consumed in the EU before 15 May 1997 and is therefore subject to authorisation under the EU Novel Food Directive. But even beyond the legal definition, the buzzword has now become synonymous with a reorientation of food production. The focus is on plant-based proteins, fermented ingredients, cultured cell products and raw materials that have been little used in Europe to date, such as algae or insects. The aim is to make our diet more resource-efficient, climate-friendly and, at the same time, more enjoyable – with alternatives to meat, fish and milk that are suitable for everyday consumption.
From the laboratory to the market – already a reality
Numerous start-ups and scale-ups throughout Europe are showing that ‘new food’ is no longer a pipe dream. In Vienna, for example, Revo Foods uses 3D printing to produce plant-based salmon fillets based on mycoprotein, a protein-rich ingredient produced by fermenting fungal cultures. It contains all nine essential amino acids, has a texture similar to meat and is high in fibre. Revo Foods uses a specially cultivated mycelium with an especially good structure. The product looks deceptively like real salmon.
Bluu Seafood from Hamburg goes one step further: the biotech company cultivates fish cells in stainless steel tanks and promises sustainable fish fillets without by-catch, antibiotics or microplastics. At the same time, Solar Foods in Finland is developing a microbial protein called ‘Solein’, which is produced from CO₂, hydrogen and electricity – a radical innovation with minimal land and water consumption. At the latest here – but also in the production and processing of proteins – the circle closes with the machine solutions that will be on display at POWTECH TECHNOPHARM 2025.
Sustainability as a central element
All innovations have a clear focus on sustainability. According to a study by the CE Delft research institute, cultured meat reduces CO₂ emissions by up to 90 per cent compared to conventional animal husbandry. Water consumption also drops dramatically: while up to 15,000 litres of water are needed for one kilogram of beef, a fraction of that is sufficient for insects or fermented proteins.
Another advantage is the low space requirement. Microalgae such as golden chlorella grow in closed systems, require neither arable land nor pesticides, and provide high-quality protein and omega-3 fatty acids. It's no wonder, then, that companies like BettaF!sh in Berlin are already processing algae into sandwiches, sandwich spreads and plant-based tuna. And the examples from Revo Foods to BettaF!sh are just the tip of the new food iceberg: in the EU, start-ups with innovative nutrition ideas are now being organised and funded through the RisingFoodStars programme. Since 2018, more than 130 companies have already taken part in the programme, which is aimed at promising agrifood and food tech scale-ups in Europe.
Nevertheless, it would be too simplistic to describe all new food as sustainable. The technologies must first prove their environmental advantages through life cycle assessments, transparent communication and clear standards. Only if production, logistics and packaging are thought through together in a sustainable way can the promise be kept.
