PPTI reveals its 27 Food-Techs to Watch in 2027 after 29,137 ballots

Protein Production Technology International has revealed its 27 Food-Techs to Watch in 2027 at The Future of Protein Production Amsterdam, concluding a selection process that attracted 379 company nominations and 29,137 public ballots.

• Amsterdam reveal names all 27 selected companies.
• Public voting attracted 29,137 ballots and 153,600 selections.
• Full rankings and company profiles follow December 16.

The companies were announced on November 4 at RAI Amsterdam, with Peter Mortimer and Nick Bradley presenting the final selection. The reveal confirmed which businesses had made the list, with their individual rankings reserved for PPTI’s December 16 edition.

This year’s campaign began with 379 nominated companies, which PPTI narrowed to a shortlist of 81. Public voting closed on October 23, generating 153,600 company selections across 29,137 ballots. Each voter could choose between five and 10 shortlisted businesses.

The final result combined three assessments: public voting accounted for 40%, the PPTI Editorial Advisory Board contributed 40%, and the editorial team supplied the remaining 20%. Companies could not pay for inclusion, and commercial relationships with PPTI had no bearing on selection.

The 27 span fermentation-derived proteins and fats, cultivated meat and seafood, plant-based foods, functional ingredients and manufacturing technologies. They include established names alongside younger businesses developing their first commercial applications.

In alphabetical order, the selected companies are Aleph Farms, AmaranthLabs, Bean Possible, BlueNalu, Cauldron Ferm, Celleste-Bio, Enifer, FUDI Protein, Happy Plant Protein, Meala, MicroHarvest, MOA Foodtech, Monkeys by the Sea, NOIET, Nourish Ingredients, Nutrition From Water (NXW), Nutropy, Oshi, Pacifico Biolabs, Plantible, Solar Foods, The EVERY Company, The Mushroom Meat Co., The Protein Brewery, Verley, Vivici and WildBio Co.

Several have already shared their reactions on LinkedIn, thanking voters and describing what the recognition means for their next stage of development.

“Being recognized by industry leaders gives us a powerful platform to accelerate retail expansion and scale across the USA,” Oshi wrote in its announcement.

The whole-cut plant-based seafood company credited CEO Ofek Ron and its team for advancing its proprietary Modular Layering technology. Its post linked the selection to its plans to expand the availability of its seafood alternatives in the USA.

The Mushroom Meat Co. also connected its inclusion to commercial plans, opening its announcement with “We won!!!” and recognizing CEO and Chief Innovation Officer Kesha Stickland and Co-founder and COO Dan Gardner.

“The media coverage will help us gain much needed exposure to customers, partners and investors,” the company wrote. It said it was continuing to raise funding and scale production to bring its mushroom and whole-plant meat alternatives to restaurants and schools.

Nourish Ingredients thanked PPTI and the voters who supported its selection, while drawing attention to its specialty lipids for meat and dairy applications. “We're chuffed to be in such great company, especially with recognition from the people who know the food industry best!” the company wrote.

There were celebrations among founders, too. FUDI Protein’s Udi Lazimy thanked voters, the editorial board and the company’s supporters, while recognizing Dr Amanda Stiles’s work on its technology. He also used the announcement to highlight FUDI’s ongoing community investment round.

ProVeg Incubator highlighted three businesses from its Fast-track To Impact 2026 program that made the final selection: Bean Possible, NOIET and FUDI Protein.

The three offer different approaches to producing functional ingredients. Bean Possible works with imperfect beans and processing waste; NOIET uses fermentation to turn oat and rice by-products into protein ingredients; and FUDI Protein extracts RuBisCO protein from alfalfa.

AmaranthLabs celebrated its inclusion alongside fellow MassChallenge participants NOIET and Bean Possible. Co-founder and CEO Mikhail Glik shared the announcement with his own message about the company’s plans for the coming year.

Bradley also acknowledged the 54 shortlisted businesses that did not reach the final 27, writing that the outcome should not be taken as a verdict on their potential. PPTI would continue watching and reporting on those companies in 2027, he said.

“The hardest part of this process was deciding who to leave out,” said Bradley. “There is exceptional talent among the 54 shortlisted companies that didn’t make the final 27, but also throughout the original list of 379. Reading through those nominations gave us plenty of reasons to be optimistic. There are people tackling difficult problems with real ingenuity, and many deserve more attention than they currently receive. We’ll be following their progress and telling their stories, whether they made this particular list or not.

“We’re also taking the next edition a step further. Our 28 Food-Techs to Watch in 2028 will have a major industry sponsor, with an R&D prize for the winning company. We’ll share the details soon, but the aim is to give a talented team practical support to develop its technology, alongside the exposure the campaign provides.”

The full rankings will be published on December 16 in a dedicated edition of Protein Production Technology International, alongside profiles examining each selected company’s technology, progress and plans.

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