Proeon awarded €1 million grant to develop sustainable egg alternative for bakery sector

Proeon Foods, a food ingredients company with operations in both India and the Netherlands, has received a grant of approximately €1 million (around US$1.07 million) to lead the development of a next-generation egg alternative for use in industrial baking. The funding was awarded as part of the European Union-backed Project EGGcellent, a collaborative initiative focused on delivering scalable, sustainable, and functional vegan solutions for the bakery industry.

The grant was formally presented on 11 April at Planet B.io in Delft, the Netherlands, by Meindert Stolk, Regional Minister for Economy and Innovation of the Province of South Holland. It comes from the 'Kansen voor West III' program, supported by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

Project EGGcellent brings together a consortium of biotechnology and food innovation companies, including Proeon, precision fermentation specialist Vivici, equipment manufacturer Applikon (part of the Getinge Group), and innovation ecosystem Planet B.io. Proeon will lead efforts in plant protein screening, biochemical optimization, and formulation, working to develop hybrid egg alternatives that combine functional plant-based ingredients with precision-fermented β-lactoglobulin (BLG) produced by Vivici.

“This milestone underscores Proeon’s global leadership in developing next-generation, sustainable protein solutions,” commented Ashish Korde, Co-founder of Proeon Foods. “We’re proud to represent Indian biotech innovation on a global platform, working alongside some of the most forward-thinking European institutions to solve real-world food system challenges.”

Kevin Parekh, also Co-founder of Proeon, added, “The EGGcellent project represents everything we stand for – deep tech, purpose-driven innovation, and a collaborative model that scales impact globally. At Proeon, we’re building the protein systems of the future, and this initiative allows us to apply our science in a way that truly matters – replacing eggs without compromise.”

The project responds to a clear need in the market. With egg prices affected by global supply chain instability, animal welfare concerns, and environmental pressures, demand for plant-based and fermentation-enabled alternatives has grown significantly. Bakery applications, in particular, require replacements that can match the functional properties of eggs in terms of texture, emulsification, and binding.

Proeon will draw on its portfolio of high-performance plant proteins and its research capabilities in Pune, India, to characterize and improve promising candidates for use in baked goods. The company, which is also a World Economic Forum Tech Pioneer, focuses on protein ingredients for meat, dairy, and egg alternatives.

The infrastructure built as part of the project at Planet B.io, including advanced bioreactor systems from Getinge, will also be made partially accessible to other small and mid-sized biotech companies. This approach is aligned with the South Holland Growth Agenda, which promotes open innovation and resilience in the regional economy.

“This is a great example of how collaboration between innovative SMEs, the manufacturing industry, and the Planet B.io ecosystem leads to tangible solutions for global challenges,” said Meindert Stolk. “With project EGGcellent, we are not only building a more sustainable food chain but also laying the foundation for the economy of the future.”

Project EGGcellent also supports two key focus areas of the Dutch National Technology Strategy: process intensification and biomolecular and cellular technologies. By bridging Indian R&D strength with Dutch infrastructure and policy support, the project exemplifies a new model of international collaboration in food tech.

Headquartered in Delft with a robust R&D presence in Pune, Proeon continues to expand its global partnerships to accelerate the protein transition. This announcement marks a significant step in its mission to deliver functional, climate-resilient protein solutions for the future of food.