Roquette, a leading player in plant-based ingredients and a pioneer of plant proteins, has recently announced its investment in DAIZ Inc., a Japanese food tech startup that has developed breakthrough technology utilising germination of plant seeds combined with an extrusion process to enhance texture, flavor and the nutritional profile for plant-based foods.
This partnership will allow Roquette and DAIZ to continue realizing their strong growth ambitions and meet rising global demand for innovative and sustainable plant-based ingredients combining great taste and high-quality nutritional value.
Plant proteins are one of the most promising answers to contribute to sustainability while providing healthy and tasty food. Thanks to DAIZ’s proprietary technology initially developed for soy and now applied to pea, Roquette further strengthens its position as the pioneer in plant innovation and contributes to the development of disruptive solutions to better answer market needs.
Partnering with DAIZ is a perfect fit with Roquette’s commitment towards innovation and long-term ambition of creating a better and healthier tomorrow based on its plant-based solutions. The coming months will allow building a stronger collaboration to offer the best textured pea-based ingredients that would enable food innovators to create wide-ranging choices in meat alternatives that are both delicious and healthy for today’s demanding consumers. Roquette and DAIZ will also explore technical collaborations to develop a new approach of selective plant-based protein extraction for future generations by leveraging seed germination. In addition to meat alternatives, they will explore joint development in other applications such as fish alternatives or dairy, and other food sectors. The launch of the first products on the market is expected in 2023.
Pierre Courduroux, CEO of Roquette said: “Our objective is to be the best partner for our customers as they develop delicious products that will encourage more consumers to enjoy plant-based food more often. This investment in DAIZ reflects our commitment to developing plant-based ingredients to meet those expectations. This latest initiative comes a year after we opened the world’s largest pea protein plant in Canada and adds to our NUTRALYS® plant protein range extension in organic pea and rice protein. We have also continued to build an impressive set of capabilities to co-develop with our customers and scale new plant protein ingredients.”
Tsuyoshi Ide, President and Representative Director of DAIZ added, “We are very glad to partner with the Roquette group, the France-based worldwide leader in pea protein as well as in plant-based ingredients for food, nutrition and health markets. Pea protein is an indispensable ingredient for plant- based meat alternatives that are expanding in Europe and North America. Through the partnership, we anticipate that DAIZ’s germination technology (Ochiai Germination Method JP-5795679) would be able to contribute to the further enhancement of functionalities of pea protein to the market of plant-based meat alternatives and beyond. DAIZ’s goal is to expand Miracle Meat to the market of plant-based alternatives not only in Japan but also in Europe and North America. We are confident that the partnership with the Roquette group will represent a significant leap forward.”
DAIZ was wstablished in 2015 by serial entrepreneur, Mr. Ide. DAIZ has developed MIRACLE MEAT, a soybean-derived plant meat chip, by utilizing the Ochiai Germination Method invented by Mr. Ochiai, Chief Technology Officer of DAIZ, as its core proprietary technique to reproduce the flavor and texture of meat from germinated soybeans. The unique method stimulates the metabolism of soybeans by applying various stress factors, causing the soybeans to germinate in a state that is more suitable for use in plant-derived meat than general soybeans. MIRACLE MEAT produced by the method excels other protein-based meat’s ingredients in terms of taste, aroma, and flavor, and has already boasted a track record of its adoption by more than 50 companies including major hamburger chains, supermarkets, and restaurants. Regarding overseas business of DAIZ, the Kumamoto-based company established its subsidiary in Boston, US in May 2021, and has already embarked on breaking into overseas markets in partnership with Japanese food manufacturers.
To discover more about DAIZ, click HERE
Roquette is a global leader in plant-based ingredients, established in 1993 with operation in more than 100 countries and a sales turnover of €3.9 billion (US$4.17 billion).
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Roquette Asia Pacific Pte Ltd
