The Pentagon is funding companies creating protein alternatives as part of its Distributed Bioindustrial Manufacturing Program (DBIMP).
The program, as reported by Just the News, is part of President Joe Biden’s 2022 executive order, “Advancing Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Innovation for a Sustainable, Safe, and Secure American Bioeconomy.”
“Although the power of these technologies is most vivid at the moment in the context of human health, biotechnology and biomanufacturing can also be used to achieve our climate and energy goals, improve food security and sustainability, secure our supply chains, and grow the economy across all of America,” the executive order says.
One of the companies receiving a grant from the Defense Department is the Chicago-based Fynder Group. The company was awarded $1.38 million to “plan a bioproduction facility for fungi-based proteins that can be incorporated into military ready-to-eat meals,” the award announcement from last month states.
Another award was granted to California’s Perfect Day, which was given $1.24 million to produce “biobased whey” to “supplement military ready-to-eat meals and provide a safe source of protein for service members with dairy allergies.”
Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Heidi Shyu said at the time of the announcement that the “next industrial revolution will be a biomanufacturing revolution. DoD is keenly aware of that reality.”
“DBIMP’s investment in a diverse set of companies will help transition U.S. bioindustrial manufacturing from the laboratory to a network of large-scale production facilities, able to fortify defense supply chains for critical chemicals and novel materials while positioning the U.S. bioeconomy for surging growth,” Shyu said.
In September, the DOD granted $1.4 million to a lab-grown meat company. The Better Company Meat Company uses protein from fermented fungi to create its fake meat. The lab-grown meat product is called Rhiza.
