The Food and Drug Administration issued a “No Questions” letter to Plantible Foods for its flagship Lemna-derived egg alternative, Rubi Protein, acknowledging that the ingredient is generally recognized as safe (GRAS) and greenlighting isolated RuBisCO for use in food applications.
The approval enables the company to accelerate its production capacity for Rubi Protein, Plantible said in a press release.
“This is more than a regulatory milestone. It’s an industry-defining moment,” said Plantible Founder and CEO Tony Martens. “The FDA’s review reinforces the scientific rigor behind Rubi Protein and clears the way for broader commercial applications. We are proud to be the first company to receive a ‘No Questions’ letter for RuBisCO protein, opening the door for a new class of functional, sustainable ingredients.”
Plantible scaling Rubi Protein
Lemna, or water lentils, are grown in a commercial warehouse in Eldorado, Texas, and contain about 85% protein by weight, according to Plantible.
“Unlike many plant proteins, Rubi Protein offers a neutral taste profile, high solubility, and strong emulsification and foaming functionality, enabling food manufacturers to improve functionality, sustainability, and costs without compromising taste or texture,” the company said.
The ingredient can be used in a wide variety of applications, including baked goods, beverages, dairy alternatives, protein bars, snacks, soups and plant-based meat and dairy analogs, Plantible said.
Plantible is expanding the Eldorado facility to support existing customers and new commercial opportunities.
“The completion of the FDA review validates years of investment in safety, transparency, and scientific diligence,” Martens added. “As global demand for stable, sustainable and clean-label proteins continues to rise, Rubi Protein provides manufacturers with a highly functional ingredient that is both nutritionally robust and environmentally efficient.”
The “No Questions” letter is a decade in the making for Plantible, which has been fundraising and striking multi-million-dollar partnerships with food and beverage manufacturers, the company said in 2025.
Egg prices stabilizing
The “No Questions” letter arrived as the egg market is recovering from the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) outbreak in 2025 that sent prices skyrocketing.
The outbreak in 2025 and subsequent years prompted some food manufacturers to look for egg alternatives to help manage costs and reinforce supply without compromising final products.
USDA’s latest report reveals a dozen large shell eggs retailing in the low-to-mid $2 range and cage-free and specialty eggs averaging just under $3.
The egg supply still faces threats from the HPAI, though, with recent outbreaks reported in Pennsylvania and Colorado, USDA noted in its Feb. 13 report.
“One outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) was reported in Pennsylvania this week totaling 104,800 [birds] with the type of operation not identified at this time,” according to the report.
In 2026, HPAI in commercial table egg layer flocks “resulted in the depopulation of 3.7 million birds in four confirmed outbreaks” in Colorado and Pennsylvania, USDA reported.
“Many of the producers of egg layers that we’re seeing are beginning to hold more pullets [young hens that have not started laying eggs] in inventory so they can respond to HPAI losses in a more rapid fashion,” USDA Chief Economist Justin Benavidez said on Thursday at the agency’s annual Agriculture Outlook Forum.
Those replacement pullets have increased substantially over the last two to three years, he said.
“A year ago, two years ago, we were in an environment where we had one replacement pullet for roughly every three laying hens, and we’re getting closer to an environment where we have one replacement pullet for about every two, so there’s an ability to replace HPAI losses more quickly,” he said.
