Protein Diversification 2024

Alternative protein research in Israel’s major academic institutions Start-ups in Israel’s alternative protein sectorFIGURE 1 FIGURE 2Cultivated Plant-based FermentationVolcani Center (ARO)Hebrew UniversityTechnion Migal Tel-Aviv UniversityIsrael Oceanographic and Limnological ResearchWeizmann InstituteBar Ilan UniversityAshkelon Academic CollegeTel-Hai CollegeThe Open University of IsraelBen-Gurion UniversityTriangle Research and Development Center024681012Number of projects Academic institutions Fermentation (19)Cultivated (20)Seed (32)Development (14)Pilot and scale-up (12)Commercialization and growth (15) Plant-based (34) Source: GFI Israel, 2024 Source: GFI Israel, 2024Ensuring progressive and evolving venture creation: There was a record high of 15 new start-ups in Israel’s alternative protein sector in 2023. These diverse ventures include start-ups in all three technologies (cultivated, plant-based and fermentation-based meats), along with companies focusing on final products, ingredients and supporting technologies. This diversity allows for synergies and further development of the field. As of January 2024, Israel has 73 active start-ups in this sector alone and more than 200 start-ups in food technologies as a whole. Creating a Vibrant Food Innovation Ecosystem 12