On April 17, 2026, at the Foodaily Global Food & Beverage Innovation Expo in Wuxi, the Neo-Protein Forum was held as a dedicated session. Co-organized by ProVeg China, the forum convened stakeholders from science, industry, and investment to share insights across three core pillars—technological breakthroughs, real-world application, and industry collaboration—offering an in-depth exploration of the full value chain for advancing neo-protein from laboratory innovation to market application. The discussion particularly emphasized strengthening cross-sector collaboration to accelerate the industrialization, localization, and consumer adoption of neo-protein innovations in China and beyond.
Keynote speakers from institutions including Jiangnan University, The Institutes for Biomanufacturing Innovation (Wuxi) of the State Development and Investment Group (SDIC), FuShine Biotechnology, Angel Yeast, DaoFuZi and Bühler Group explored how neo-protein technologies are progressing toward scalable commercialization. They noted that cell factory and synthetic biology technologies are driving advances in scalable biomanufacturing. Sensory innovation was underscored as a key driver of consumer acceptance, with taste and texture playing an increasingly important role alongside protein content. The session outlined the pathway from technological breakthroughs to large-scale deployment, while highlighting approaches to building a self-reliant neo-protein technology system and better addressing targeted consumer needs.
A key highlight of the forum was the roundtable discussion moderated by Nicole Wu, Executive Director of ProVeg China. The dialogue brought together representatives from SDIC Institutes for Biomanufacturing Innovation (Wu Xi), FuShine Biotechnology, DaoFuZi, and Starfield to explore pathways for accelerating consumer adoption of neo-protein products. Participants reached consensus that progress must move beyond isolated technological breakthroughs toward a collaborative, cross-sector approach spanning the full value chain.
Roundtable participants also shared how they have incorporated the Top Ten Technical Bottlenecks for Neo-Protein in 2025—a blue paper co-developed by ProVeg China and the Neo-Protein Professional Committee of the Chinese Institute of Food Science & Technology (CIFST)—into their R&D priorities. For example, Zhang Ningning from SDIC noted that related upstream strain development has been integrated into their R&D roadmap.
