Our beef analog meets or exceeds meat nutritionally, costs less than half to produce, and is highly sustainable. Most importantly, pets love the taste — even picky eaters like cats — and we don’t need any masking agents or artificial flavor enhancers.
co-CEO
Proteine Resources
Proteine Resources, a biotech company developing insect-based ingredients for pet food, recently announced the development of the world’s first scalable beef analog. According to the company, this product — which precisely matches the profile of real beef — can meet both the nutritional and taste requirements of pets without the need for additives.
Bart Roszkowski, co-CEO of Proteine Resources, argues that insect-based ingredients often fall short in delivering on four key success factors: Nutritional quality, price parity, sustainability, and palatability. However, he believes that their newly developed product overcomes these challenges.
We spoke with Roszkowski about what sets their insect-based beef analog apart, how its production has been scaled, its price parity, and its contributions to sustainability. He shares the details below.
Mr. Roszkowski, could you start by introducing Proteine Resources and your area of expertise to our readers? What can you tell us about your company’s focus, operations, and key practices?
Proteine Resources is a biotech company developing functional, insect-based ingredients for progressive pet food brands. We specialize in ready-to-use formulations — primarily supplements, toppers, and treats — that deliver true nutritional value, sustainability, and excellent palatability.
We’re not aiming to be a commodity supplier. Our products are designed for companies that prioritize quality, functionality, and the long-term health of pets, not those looking to fill the bowl with the cheapest possible ingredients.
On the operational side, we’ve taken a radically different approach to scale. While others have sunk hundreds of millions into massive centralized factories, we’re building mid-sized, fully automated production modules, each costing under $13M. They’re flexible, autonomous, and low-risk, which allows us to expand in a way that’s both practical and resilient.
The alternative proteins industry has been rapidly evolving, with many innovative approaches emerging. What inspired you to enter this space? How do you position your company in the market, and what competitive advantages set you apart?
We were motivated by a persistent gap between what was promised and what was actually delivered. The four essential success factors — nutritional quality, price parity, sustainability, and palatability — were rarely achieved all at once. In fact, 65% of the insect industry underestimated palatability, leading to poor product performance and weak repeat sales.
We solved that. Our beef analog meets or exceeds meat nutritionally, costs less than half to produce, and is highly sustainable. Most importantly, pets love the taste — even picky eaters like cats — and we don’t need any masking agents or artificial flavor enhancers.
We also cracked another fundamental flaw in the industry: Most producers rely on human-grade feedstocks, which are expensive, unsustainable, and misaligned with the whole mission. We’ve developed a proprietary system using true sidestreams from the mushroom industry — an input that’s abundant year-round, chemically clean (by law), and consistent. It’s a win across cost, sustainability, and ethical sourcing.
You mentioned that you have developed the world’s first scalable beef analog for pets that matches real beef’s nutritional profile 1:1. How suitable is the product for the dietary health and habits of pets? Can you explain the technology behind this innovation, along with how it will be produced?
Our analog is nutritionally equivalent to beef — and in many ways, better. It’s rich in bioavailable proteins, contains a broad spectrum of vitamins and minerals, and is naturally high in taurine, which is critical for feline health.
What sets it apart is that it tastes good to pets — without any additives. That alone addresses one of the biggest consumer pain points and opens the door to real adoption.
On the production side, we’ve built the system around modular, fully automated units using Buffalo mealworms — chosen not just for their nutritional profile, but also because they perform well in autonomous, scalable farming environments. Each unit is efficient, replicable, and low in capital requirements, enabling us to scale with demand, not ahead of it.
Sustainability has been one of the biggest issues in the pet food industry lately, as developing solutions that are cost-effective while also being environmentally friendly can be challenging. How sustainable is your beef analog, and what studies or data can you share to support its environmental impact?
Our product is radically more sustainable than meat — with up to 85% fewer greenhouse gas emissions, 60% less land use, and a fraction of the water footprint. These are not projections — they’re supported by third-party lifecycle assessments.
But we’re also exploring something even more ambitious. Based on heat balance modeling, our system could soon become carbon-negative. Our production modules show promising signs of generating surplus energy due to their thermal efficiency — a factor that has been a heavy burden for many other insect farming operations.
Pair this with our use of true sidestreams instead of human-grade feed — and you get a model that’s economically viable, ecologically sound, and fundamentally scalable.
We also advocate for blended formulations — our product typically replaces just 20– 30% of the meat in pet food. This small shift delivers outsized gains in sustainability, nutritional function, and profitability — without needing a complete reformulation.
Why did you choose Buffalo mealworms for your product? What advantages does this species offer you?
Buffalo mealworms are an ideal species for our approach. Nutritionally, they offer a complete amino acid profile, are rich in taurine, and have a neutral, naturally appealing flavor — meaning pets respond to them without needing added flavoring.
From a systems perspective, they thrive in automated, vertical farming setups. Their life cycle aligns perfectly with our fully autonomous module model, allowing us to scale production without scaling complexity.
And unlike other species, they’re efficient, low-maintenance, and compatible with sidestream-based feeding, making them both biologically and economically the right choice.
How does the cost of your beef analog compare to traditional meat- based ingredients? At what point will it offer cost-saving advantages to pet food manufacturers and customers?
Our ingredient is already over 50% cheaper to produce than beef, with none of the volatility or ethical baggage associated with meat. But it’s not just about cost — it’s about total value.
With our ready-to-use format, there’s no need for R&D investment, tech upgrades, or flavor-masking steps. It performs out of the box — in treats, toppers, and supplement formats that offer premium positioning and higher margins.
Even with just 20–30% inclusion, our clients are seeing cost efficiency, stronger sustainability KPIs, and better palatability — all with a smoother, faster path to market.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Yes — we’re not here to serve everyone. If you’re a brand looking for the cheapest path forward, we’re not the right fit. But if you’re building products around pet health, performance, sustainability, and meaningful differentiation, we are your partner.
We’ve solved the taste barrier, cracked scalable production, rejected the mega-factory trap, and secured a truly sustainable feedstock. Our model is built for resilient, intelligent growth — and for brands that want to lead, not follow.
If you’re serious about next-generation pet nutrition, we’re ready to build it with you.
About Bart Roszkowski
Bart Roszkowski, with 17 years in VC-backed startups, is a triple-founder and expert in scaling ventures globally and in CEE. At Proteine Resources his responsibilities include co-creating strategy, fundraising, finance, business development, compliance, and marketing.
