This booklet provides a brief introduction to each of the ventures participating in the Unreasonable Food program. For a comprehensive understanding of their work, please scan the QR code on each page to access the Unreasonable Eco platform.
The QR code will direct you to the Unreasonable Eco platform, where you can access detailed information about each venture’s mission, impact focus, notable achievements, operating territories, and more. You can also connect directly with the entrepreneurs through the platform. The “Notes” section on each page is available for you to jot down your thoughts and questions as you learn more about these ventures throughout the program.
Our relationship with food influences almost everything we value: our own health, the health of the planet, and the livelihoods of the people who grow what we eat. Evolving our food system will never be a simple journey; yet it remains one of the most practical levers we have for building a more resilient future and a thriving economy.
Recognizing that potential, we are thrilled to welcome you all here to the 2025 Unreasonable Food Program. Unreasonable Food is a bold
collaboration between Mars Snacking and Unreasonable Group which was born in 2024 to back entrepreneurs turning some of our most pressing challenges into unprecedented market opportunities. As an international network, Unreasonable Food is uniquely positioned to scale high-growth ventures dedicated to creating a more sustainable food system.
Since joining the program in 2024, our first cohort reported nearly $200 million in revenue, 140,000 tonnes of CO₂e avoided, 310 million liters of water conserved, and 1.14
million kilograms of food sold. They reached 24 million more people with safe, nutritious food and educated 2 million more people on climate change mitigation and adaptation, while growing job opportunities and improving working conditions across their communities.1
These figures show the scale of progress already underway and why continuing to support entrepreneur-led innovation matters.
As we gather in Wyndham, New York, we have the privilege of introducing the next Unreasonable Food cohort.
A bold group of fourteen entrepreneurs, who are making tremendous strides in methanereduction technologies, precision fermentation, plantbased proteins, and bio-derived colorants to move us toward the next phase of developing a food system that is more sustainable, nutritious, and equitable for all.
Your presence here, the ideas you share, the relationships you build, and the support and mentorship you provide will be an integral part of how together we can transform these solutions into action.
Alga Biosciences
Reducing Dairy Enteric Emissions
Founded in 2021
Financing to date
$7M
Employees
6-10
HQ California, US
Alex Brown Co-Founder & CEO
Alga Biosciences produces a biochemically modified, algae-based feed additive that cuts bovine methane emissions by up to 98 percent. Fed at under 1 percent of daily ration, the additive integrates smoothly into existing operations and delivers stable performance at low cost. Alga operates in North America and Australia and plans global scale-up. Long term, it seeks to decarbonize livestock globally while boosting farm efficiency and economic resilience.
Key Achievements
Produced the most effective and lowest-cost methane inhibitor on the market.
Produced the first 1 million pounds of low-methane beef in US.
Received grants from the USDA, CDFA, and multiple universities.
ArkeaBio
Colin South CEO
Reducing Dairy Enteric Emissions
Founded in 2021
Financing to date
$38M Employees 21-50
HQ Massachusetts, US
ArkeaBio is developing a next-generation livestock vaccine to reduce methane emissions from ruminants. The vaccine targets methanogenic archaea in the rumen, disrupting methane production at its microbial source. Backed by Breakthrough Energy Ventures and The Grantham Foundation, ArkeaBio is conducting vaccine development and field trials in the U.S. at Texas A&M. Long-term, it aims to provide a scalable, affordable, and safe solution to decarbonize the global livestock sector.
Key Achievements
First company to demonstrate a vaccine to reduce methane emissions in cattle.
Built an experienced team of biotech professionals, most with start-up experience.
Developing methane mitigation solution for all 1.5 billion cattle worldwide.
Hoofprint Biome
Reducing Dairy Enteric Emissions
Founded in 2023
Financing to date
$20.2M
Employees
6-20
HQ North Carolina, US
Kathryn Polkoff Co-Founder & CEO
Hoofprint Biome develops enzyme-based feed additives that reshape the digestive microbiome in cattle to reduce methane emissions and increase yield. The company has discovered proprietary proteins that enable microbiome modulation. Backed by mission-aligned investors such as AgriZero and SOSV, Hoofprint aims to deliver scalable, costeffective solutions that improve animal health, farm profitability, and the environmental footprint of cattle systems worldwide.
Key Achievements
Raised $15M Series A from SOSV, Amazon, AgriZero, Breakthrough Energy, and others.
Received non-dilutive NSF and USDA grants to advance technology development.
Built proprietary enzyme platform with global manufacturing scalability.
Reducing Dairy Enteric Emissions
Founded in 2017
Financing to date
$25M Employees 21-50
HQ UK
Francisco Norris Co-Founder & CEO
ZELP is an agricultural technology company developing low-cost, scalable solutions to measure and mitigate livestock methane emissions, while supporting animal welfare, farm profitability and food security. Its technology shows potential to cut emissions by up to 50% in all livestock systems, and generate third-party verified, fully traceable carbon insets and offsets.
Key Achievements
Raised over $25M from Danone Ventures, Novo Holdings, and others.
Received grants and support from Gates Foundation, Global Methane Hub, ABP Foods, and others.
First company to develop a mechanical, nonchemical methane-reduction solution
Alpine Bio
Alternative Dairy
Founded in 2016
Financing to date
$102M
Employees 21-50
HQ California, US
Magi Richani CEO
Alpine Bio is pioneering plant molecular farming, leveraging plants as living bioreactors to produce high-value proteins at unmatched scale, cost, and sustainability. The company has successfully produced casein, the key dairy protein responsible for milk’s functional properties. In addition, Alpine Bio has developed a proprietary plant-based protein that replicates the functionality of whey protein at a fraction of the cost and environmental footprint.
Key Achievements
Expressed over 15 complex proteins in plants and filed over 40 patents.
Created the first plant-derived casein
Created a plant-based protein with superior functionality to whey protein at half the GHG footprint.
Standing Ovation
Alternative Dairy
Founded in 2020
Financing to date
$28M
Employees 21-50
HQ France
Yvan Chardonnens CEO
Standing Ovation is a French foodtech company with global reach, specialising in animal-free proteins through patented precision fermentation. Its main focus is casein, the key protein in milk, produced without animals. One of only a few global leaders in fermentative casein production, Standing Ovation aims to help safeguard dairy sovereignty worldwide.
Key Achievements
Already producing 4 product lines from a single fermentation process.
Delivered first certified animal-free casein Life Cycle Assessment with circular economy model.
Proven industrial-scale production and world-class commercial ecosystem.
Oobli
Future of Sweetening
Founded in 2014
Financing to date
$61M Employees 21-50
HQ California, US
Ali Wing CEO
Oobli is a sweet protein technology platform company focused on replacing sugar in food and beverages. Sweet proteins have no glycemic impact or effect on the gut microbiome. Produced via fermentation, Oobli sweet proteins are costeffective as a sweetener replacement and climate friendly, saving large amounts of land, water, and carbon compared to farmed sugarcane.
Key Achievements
Recognized among Fast Company’s 2025 “World Changing Ideas”.
Announced partnership with Ingredion as demand for sweet proteins accelerates.
Strong B2B traction with multi-year protein supply agreements, including Grupo Bimbo.
Debut Biotechnology
Non-Artificial Colours
Founded in 2019
Financing to date
$80M
Employees 51-100
HQ California, US
Joshua Britton Founder & CEO
Debut Biotech uses advanced biotechnology to discover and produce high-performance, clinically backed ingredients for beauty, food, and nutrition. Its process combines AI-driven ingredient discovery with a capital-light, vertically integrated model to deliver novel, higher performing ingredients in formulation faster than traditional methods. With early commercial traction and an expanding customer pipeline, Debut is building a differentiated portfolio of bioactives to transform consumer product categories through performance-driven innovation.
Key Achievements
Named one of the TIME100 Most Innovative Companies of 2025.
Raised $80M in venture capital and private equity.
Has seen revenue 100-300% YOY for 3 years.
Octarine Bio
Non-Artificial Colours
Founded in
Nethaji Gallage Founder & CEO
Octarine bio-engineers yeast to produce ultrastrong, sustainable, and natural dyes through precision fermentation, offering a full color palette—including a bio-based black—as dropin replacements for synthetic dyes. Based in Copenhagen, the company has gained early traction with global fashion brands and secured off-take agreements with industrial customers. This year, Octarine is scaling to commercial production, expanding into food markets, and positioning itself as the go-to clean-color platform across industries.
Key Achievements
Raised $13.1 million in investment rounds.
Partnerships and off-take agreements with leading industrial customers.
Octarine’s first commercial products, PurePalette, launched at London and Copenhagen Fashion Weeks; currently in industrial trials with top global dye houses.
DE3PBIO
Improve Nutrition Quality
Founded in 2018 Financing to date $11.5M Employees 21-50 HQ Delaware, US
Sasikanth C Co-Founder & CEO
DE3PBIO develops IP-backed, tech-enabled, clean and sustainable active functional ingredients (AFIs) to help CPG companies launch cutting-edge fortified foods, nutraceuticals, and beauty products.
Successes include DNA-identical mother’s milk fat fortification, top seven probiotic metabolites, animalfree collagen precursors, nano vitamins, minerals and bioactives, enzymatically transformed animalfree proteins, targeted protein delivery compounds, caffeine-free and cognitive-boost compounds, and yeast and fungal host platforms for specialty lipids and proteins.
Key Achievements
Raised $11.5M in pre-Series A funding.
Awards/Grants from United Nations, World Food Forum, BMW Foundation, Proveg & Falling Walls Germany.
Grants/Recognition from Startup Chile, Puerto Rico Science & Tech Trust, CSIR-India, CleanTech-USA.
NuCicer
Kathryn Cook Founder & CEO
NuCicer is unleashing the full potential of chickpeas to deliver high-impact ingredients for food brands and climate-smart crops for growers. Backed by a proprietary wild-species seed library and precision breeding platform, NuCicer develops all-natural chickpeas with ultra-high protein and low fat. These nutrient-dense chickpea varieties enable brands to improve flavor and texture while replacing heavily processed protein isolates with high-protein chickpea flour and simply milled protein ingredients.
Key Achievements
Raised $11.5M in Series A from leading agtech, genetics, and CPG companies.
Unlocked dry-fractionation of chickpeas without the need to defat enabling competitive economics.
HQ California, US
Produced 2,500 acres of NuCicer high-protein chickpeas with ability to 10x production next year.
Plantible Foods
Improve Nutrition Quality
Founded in 2018
Financing to date
$70M Employees 51-100
HQ California, US
Tony Martens Co-Founder & CEO
Plantible is building a vertically integrated agricultural supply chain to cultivate highly sustainable, nutrient-dense plants and convert them into functional and nutritional ingredients for food and cosmetics. Its flagship crop, lemna, is an aquatic superplant that outperforms traditional crops in resource efficiency and nutrient density. From lemna, Plantible extracts RuBisCO (“Rubi”), a protein that surpasses animal proteins in functionality and nutrition while replacing synthetic ingredients in commercial food and cosmetic formulations.
Key Achievements
Signed over $40M in commercial agreements.
On track to achieve profitable run rate by September 2025.
Built and operating first-of-its-kind commercial facility.
Hydrosome Labs
Enhancing Fermentation
Founded in 2019 Financing to date $11M Employees 6-20
HQ Illinois, US
Paul Gadbut President & CEO
Hydrosome Labs is a pioneering biotechnology company specializing in ultrafine bubble (UFB) technology to transform water’s performance in biological and physicochemical processes. By dramatically increasing the surface area and gastransfer efficiency of water, its platform enhances cellular uptake, fermentation yields, and overall bioprocess efficiency. The technology has also shown promise in enhancing food textures and emulsion stability. Hydrosome’s novel technology is being applied across industries including precision fermentation, biomanufacturing, food and beverage, and health sciences.
Key Achievements
Raised $11M in funding to scale fermentationenhancing bubble technology.
40+ companies currently testing; pilots active with several of the world’s largest food and agribusiness leaders.
2 patents granted; 4 additional applications filed to expand IP portfolio.
Pow.Bio
Shannon Hall Co-Founder & CEO
Enhancing Fermentation
Founded in 2019
Financing to date
$20M Employees 21-50
HQ California, US
Pow.Bio is building the future of biomanufacturing through continuous fermentation technology that delivers competitive unit costs, faster product development, and rapid scale-up. Its AI-integrated platform combines advanced bioprocessing with real-time optimization, enabling companies to bring sustainable, bio-based products to market more efficiently. Headquartered in Alameda, California, Pow.Bio works with partners across the U.S. and globally to modernize industrial biology.
Key Achievements
Demonstrated ~164,000 kg CO₂e savings in a single run vs. animal-based methods.
Raised $9.5M Series A to commercialize continuous biomanufacturing at scale.
Launched FDA-registered 25,000 sq ft facility, tripling pilot capacity.
