Moolec achieves high pig protein yield in soybeans

In Luxembourg, alternative proteins startup Moolec is developing soybeans with pig DNA to provide pig proteins to food manufacturers. The goal is to enhance the taste and texture of animal-free meat alternatives.

Gastón Paladini, CEO and co-founder of Moolec, tells Fast Company the approach allows the crop to be cultivated on farms like regular soybeans. The process, termed molecular farming, is less energy-intensive than cultivated meat and doesn’t require the specialized infrastructure of precision fermentation.

Moolec recently demonstrated the efficacy of its Piggy Sooy platform by producing soy seeds containing 5–26.6% porcine protein. To ensure commercial viability, Moolec estimates 5% of the soybean’s total protein content would need to be pig protein.

Production of pig protein by Moolec’s process also has a 60x lower carbon footprint than conventional pig farming.