Dao Foods: September, 2025
With fiscal 2025 already past its halfway point, it is an opportune time to pause and reflect. In China, the Mid Autumn Festival is approaching, a holiday when families gather to admire the full moon, share food, and celebrate togetherness. This year the festival will take place on October 6, a time traditionally associated with harvest and renewal. In that same spirit, we look back at what has unfolded across Dao Foods and our portfolio so far this year.
In June 2024, Liven Proteins CEO Fei Luo spoke at TED Countdown 2024 Dilemma Series. The talk, published in February 2025 under the title Collagen’s Dirty Secret — and Its Clean Future, has already attracted more than 350,000 views. Luo explored the widespread use of collagen in cosmetics and nutrition, raised concerns over animal-derived sourcing, and introduced precision fermentation as a breakthrough technology for sustainable collagen production.
In February, Liven attended the Integrative Healthcare Symposium in New York, engaging with industry stakeholders to explore supplement market innovations and highlight how its health ingredients can deliver value to practitioners and consumers alike.
On the R&D front, Liven has created 12 prototypes of Type II collagen polypeptides for joint health at bench scale. These are currently being screened for bioactivity, food functionality, and commercial potential, with the most promising molecule to be scaled up. The company has also begun building bench-scale bioprocessing capacity to accelerate sample production and improve unit economics, with in-house fermentation scheduled to begin in September 2025.
Watch the full video here: Ted Link
Plant Now! has launched a new botanical beverage series made with fresh fruit juices, botanicals, and herbs. The line features four flavors: Yuzu & Honeysuckle, Pear & Chrysanthemum, Plum & Tangerine Peel, and Sugarcane & Imperatae.
Positioned around the “food as medicine” concept, the drinks are formulated with zero sugar, zero fat, and zero calories, targeting rising demand for healthier diets. According to Qianzhan Industry Research Institute, China’s food-as-medicine beverage market was valued at just US$63 million in 2023 but is projected to exceed US$1.4 billion by 2028.
Since launch, the series has helped Plant Now! double sales in 2025 to date compared with the same period last year. The company is also preparing for international expansion, beginning with exports through a South Korean distribution partner.
In addition, Plant Now! has established an ODM business line for leading food companies’ beverage divisions. This not only diversifies revenues but also builds strategic partnerships with major industry players.
Zhonggu Mycelium continues to explore new applications for its mycelium technology with prospective clients. Its sub-brand Mycelia Powder leverages rare mushroom species such as Reishi, Lion’s Mane, and Termitomyces. Cultivated on different substrates, these strains transform raw materials into low-sugar, low-calorie nutrients that are easier to absorb, breaking down sugars, fats, and starches into higher-value compounds such as polysaccharides, amino acids, triterpenoids, superoxide dismutase (SOD), and proteins.
Another sub-brand, Myceloop Coffee, cultivates Reishi mycelium directly on coffee beans. The result is a nutrient-enriched coffee with a complex, earthy aroma reminiscent of a forest after rain. The product is fortified with adaptogens, natural nutrients, and proteins, with protein content boosted by up to 80%.
In March 2025, Starfield made its debut at the International Food & Drink Event (IFE 2025) in London, presenting its wide portfolio of plant-based products. The UK’s largest and longest-running F&B exhibition attracted over 1,500 companies and 30,000 professional visitors. At the event, the World Food Innovation Awards 2025 recognized Starfield’s Poki Salad Bar with a Commendation Award.
In August, Starfield expanded its snack portfolio with two new products: Vitality Veggie Crisps (broccoli, okra, and green radish) and Ruby Veggie Crisps (beetroot, purple sweet potato, and carrot). Building on the success of its beetroot and sweet pea crisps, these snacks preserve vegetables’ natural color and flavor with no additives.
Each pack is rich in dietary fiber—equivalent to 100–120g of kale—while keeping calories below 240 kcal, making them appealing as both healthy snacks and on-the-go options. According to Market Research Future, the global plant-based snack market was worth US$45.9 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow to US$77.9 billion by 2032, underscoring the strong growth potential for Starfield’s new product lines.
In August 2025, Guandong Yuangong, majority-owned by Beizhen, officially opened its new frozen vegetable facility in Ning’an, Heilongjiang. The site includes a 17,600 m² modern plant, a 3,000 m² cold storage unit, and a 4,000 m² office complex, with an annual capacity of 20,000 tons. Strategically located in one of Heilongjiang’s core agricultural regions, the facility is ideally suited for vegetable cultivation.
Beyond serving the Chinese market, the company also aims to expand into overseas sales. By applying cold-chain innovation, the project reduces food loss and underscores Dao Foods’ commitment to driving technological innovation and sustainability in the agri-food sector.
Geb Impact’s Thrive Culinary Algae Oil continues to gain traction across Hong Kong’s restaurant sector. Made from microalgae, the LongFry 80 varietal was developed specifically for food-service applications. The oil offers high oxidative stability that extends frying life and lowers kitchen costs, a high smoke point that produces cleaner-tasting food, and a rich content of monounsaturated fats (oleic acid) that supports heart health, lowers cholesterol, and reduces inflammation. Compared with canola, sunflower, and even olive oil, algae oil contains a higher oleic acid content, making it a healthier and more durable choice for professional kitchens.
Thrive LongFry 80 is now used at Priyo Shaad Restaurant (Bengali/Bangladeshi cuisine), the Bistro Café at Hong Lok Yuen Country Club, and Sushi Ocean (鮨海料理) in Tsim Sha Tsui. Chefs report enhanced flavor, durable frying performance, and meaningful cost savings.
The NewDay Farm research team has published a paper in Bioactive Materials: “Lotus fiber-derived scaffolds for enhanced cultured meat production: Quality and sustainability.”
The study addresses a major challenge in cultivated meat—finding a safe, edible, low-cost framework that lets cells grow into meat with real texture and bite. By transforming lotus fibers, which are naturally strong, flexible, edible, and renewable, into a plant-based scaffold, the team created a 3D “home” where pig muscle and fat cells grow in alignment. The result: meat with authentic marbling, improved flavor, and nutritional quality closer to conventional pork.
Unlike traditional scaffolds made from costly animal-derived collagen or gelatin, lotus fiber is fully plant-based, food-safe, scalable, and environmentally friendly. It also supports fat formation for taste and early vascularization for developing thicker, whole-cut products.
Zero Limit continues to follow the principle of “food as medicine,” staying committed to developing healthy, additive-free, plant-based baked goods. With the Mid-Autumn Festival approaching, the company has launched a new Five Elements Mooncake, combining festive tradition with modern wellness. Flavors include: Mulberry Leaf & Pine Nut, Mixed Nuts, Red Date & Red Bean, and Siberian Solomon’s Seal & Black Sesame.
The Five Elements (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water) are a core concept in traditional Chinese philosophy and medicine, linking natural forces with the body’s organs and flavors. Zero Limit applies these principles to ingredient selection and product design, creating foods that are both delicious and nourishing.
Earlier this year, the company also introduced Five Elements Cakes and Five Elements Breads, further expanding its health-focused portfolio.
Industry Forum at Hi & Fi Asia-China
On June 25, 2025, Dao Foods convened a high-impact forum at Hi & Fi Asia-China 2025. The event gathered industry leaders, scholars, and practitioners to discuss challenges and opportunities for alternative protein companies at their growth stages.
Speakers included experts from Innova Market Insights (China), Protoga Biotech (microalgae biosynthesis), Fushine Biotechnology (bio-protein industrialization), GFI China, and Nurasa, a Temasek-backed innovation platform accelerating sustainable food adoption across Asia.
Dao Foods x Linear Capital: AI Meets the Future of Food
On June 27, 2025, Dao Foods and Linear Capital co-hosted a workshop in Shanghai titled AI Meets the Future of Food. Discussions ranged from AI-driven crop breeding to synthetic biology flavor design and optimized fermentation processes.
Linear Capital, an early-stage fund managing more than US$20 billion and backing over 150 startups, partnered with Dao Foods to spotlight AI’s transformative role in food innovation. Portfolio companies Zhonggu Mycelium, Zero Limit, and iRaw & Rock shared how they are applying AI to product development and consumer engagement.
Future Hacker Podcast
Dao Foods co-founder Albert Tseng joined Maria Athayde on Future Hacker to discuss one of the most urgent challenges of our time: how we produce and consume meat, and the implications for climate, public health, and food security. Albert spoke about rethinking the global food system and accelerating alternative protein startups in China, highlighting innovations in mycelium, regulatory pathways, and consumer adoption.
Listen to the full episode here: YouTube Link
Guest Article on AI in AgFunder News
Dao Foods co-founder Tao Zhang contributed a guest article to AgFunder News on how AI is reshaping China’s food system. Highlights included:
Reducing food loss with predictive algorithms and the “Clean Plate Campaign”
Precision agriculture using drones and sensors to improve yields
AI-driven innovation in alternative proteins
Personalized nutrition platforms tailored to diverse culinary traditions
Enhanced supply chain traceability for consistent quality and transparency
This integration of AI is not just technological—it is a moral imperative in tackling global challenges of sustainability, health, and food security.
Read the full article here: AgFunder Link
In the first half of 2025, our China Food for Thought series explored China’s cross-border food market, looking at how imports and exports are evolving in a shifting trade environment. You can revisit the piece here:
China’s Cross-Border Market I: Food Imports in the Age of Tariffs and Transformation
China’s Cross-Border Market II: Lessons for Sustainable Food Brands from China’s Export Wave
Across our portfolio, we’ve seen steady progress, from new research and product launches to steps toward industry collaboration. As
