Agritech Startup To Begin Commercial Supply Of Potato Protein

Israeli agritech startup PoLoPo, which uses potatoes to cultivate egg white protein, says it will also begin to commercially supply patatin, the native protein in the tubers, following regulatory approval.

PoLoPo uses molecular farming (creating useful proteins inside plants) to get potatoes to cultivate the protein – planting, growing and harvesting the modified vegetables as usual, before extracting it and turning it into powder for use in commercial food production. 

The molecular farming process automatically increases the amount of patatin in the potato, and the company anticipates the affordable production of large amounts of the protein. 

PoLoPo says patatin is a versatile, allergy-friendly, high-quality protein with all essential amino acids valued in the food and beverage and nutraceutical industries. It is used in plant-based meat and dairy products for emulsifying, gelling and texturizing, as well as in baked goods and protein drinks.

“We are keeping our eyes on the prize, which is bringing molecular-farmed egg protein to market, but conversations with clients revealed an additional demand for patatin in large quantities at a fair price,” said PoLoPo CEO Maya Sapir-Mir. 

“Because patatin is the potato’s native protein, we expect it will be a relatively easy regulatory process and a fast time-to-market.”