China repurposing pharma mega-factories to make novel foods, GFI report reveals
China’s industrial fermentation ecosystem is among the largest and most developed in the world. Decades of investment in fermentation-based pharmaceuticals and vitamins have created a manufacturing sector with vast production capacity, experienced technical talent, established supply chains, and competitive operating costs.
Historically, these companies have shown limited interest in food applications, since pharmaceuticals are often produced in smaller volumes and can command far higher prices.
However, a new report authored for GFI APAC by Australian biotech and geopolitics expert Dr. Dirk van der Kley shows that due to the expansion of biopharmaceuticals capacity in China and increased competition from biosimilars (off-patent drugs that are broadly analogous to generics), the attractiveness of some pharmaceutical manufacturing markets has lessened.
This has encouraged some major manufacturers to explore novel foods by leveraging their existing fermentation capacity to produce mycoprotein, yeast proteins, and precision-fermented fats—particularly where applications may attract market premiums.
Government support for protein innovation as part of China’s “new quality productive forces” strategy is further encouraging diversification into the ‘future food’ sector—creating an unprecedented opportunity for alternative-protein startups to drive down costs and rapidly ramp up their production capacity.
International Startups Meet Chinese Scale-up
Through his independent analysis and on-the-ground interviews in China, van der Kley’s research uncovered many examples of Chinese fermentation manufacturers diversifying into alternative proteins:
- Australian startup Nourish Ingredients has partnered with Chinese biomanufacturing company Cabio Biotech, which has production capacity to formulate 170,000 tonnes of finished products containing Nourish’s fermentation-derived fats.
- Fushine Biotech, a subsidiary of Fushine Pharmaceutical Company Ltd., is a Chinese biopharma contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO) that is diversifying into alt proteins. Fushine is currently constructing an industrial-scale facility and expanding its current 1,200 tonne mycoprotein capacity to a 20,000-tonne plant in Jingdezhen. Once opened, this CDMO will be open to collaborations with international partners.
- Another international company that van der Kley interviewed, whose name remains confidential, has contracted a large Chinese biopharmaceutical CDMO to carry out its fermentation, which marks the first time the CDMO in question has expanded into the food space.
Examples of recent alt protein facilities and partnerships in China (non-exhaustive)
Pulling From a Proven Playbook
As GFI’s report notes, the historical path to technological leadership for many Chinese companies has been to first establish scale and cost competitiveness in mature industries, before expanding into higher-value, adjacent sectors.
Huawei, for example, began in 1987 as a reseller of telecommunications switching equipment before growing into a global communications technology leader. Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd (CATL) was a manufacturer of standard consumer electronics batteries before becoming China’s leading electric vehicle (EV) battery manufacturer. And BYD started as a low-cost nickel cadmium battery maker before evolving into the world’s largest EV company three decades later.
China’s industrial fermentation sector appears to be following a comparable path. Having developed world-leading scale and manufacturing capacity in mature markets such as amino acids and vitamins, a growing number of manufacturers are seeking to deploy their capabilities in new categories.
Biomanufacturing construction in China is also far less expensive than in most global innovation hubs. A general rule of thumb expressed by Chinese companies interviewed by Dr. van der Kley is that the USD value of facility construction in the U.S. will cost roughly the same number in RMB in China—meaning a US$100 million facility in the U.S. will cost RMB100 million in China, equivalent to only ~US$15 million.
It’s tempting to explain away that low cost through government subsidies, but there is much more to it, van der Kley explains.
Chinese construction and manufacturing companies are highly experienced at building new fermentation facilities, and they are located close to the building materials supply chain. There is also a strong government culture towards reducing red tape and costs for manufacturers, which spurs innovation, rapid scaling, intense competition, and falling prices. On top of this, there are lower wages, more affordable land, and, of course, subsidies.
According to an interviewee whose company recently conducted a tech transfer for their fermentation-derived product to a Chinese partner, and is now completing its first commercial run, “It would have taken two times as long and double the cost if we had done it elsewhere.”
The Risks of Non-engagement
Engaging with Chinese biomanufacturing partners is not without inherent risks—most prominently, the potential for IP leakage, geopolitical tensions, regulatory uncertainty, and dependence on foreign manufacturing partners.
Yet, there is an equally important risk of non-engagement: remaining outside a market that may soon become the centre of manufacturing scale and cost reduction for the entire industry.
If China succeeds in scaling alt protein production in the same way it has scaled industries such as vitamins, amino acids, and other fermentation-derived products, not to mention solar photovoltaics and EV batteries, companies that choose not to engage may preserve greater control over their technology, but could struggle to compete on cost, speed, and scale.
That’s why Dr. van der Kley stresses that engagement need not be an all-or-nothing decision. Companies can pursue a spectrum of approaches, ranging from relationship building and pilot projects, to manufacturing partnerships or strategic investments, thus allowing them to test opportunities, build optionality, and scale involvement as conditions evolve. And evolve they will.
Onwards,
Ryan Huling
Senior Writer | GFI APAC
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