Solein by Solar Foods: status and timeline

Solein

Solein is a protein ingredient made by fermenting bacteria on CO2 and renewable electricity. Land and weather independent, scalable. Used as an all-purpose ingredient for meals, baking, and drinks.

PilotStage 3 of 5

GRAS-approved U.S. Sept 2024. First products mid-2026. Factory 01 full; Factory 02 design phase.

Updated Jun 2026Checked 10 Oct0 updates this week

Milestones

Next · Factory 02 final investment decision

Pilot plant completed2020Complete.
Singapore novel food approval (first market approval)Sep 2022Complete.
Factory 01 operational in Vantaa, FinlandApr 2024Complete.
U.S. GRAS self-affirmed approvalSep 2024Complete.
Factory 02 final investment decisionTarget 2026Not yet reached.
EU/UK novel food approvalTarget 2026Not yet reached.

Most important updates

Upcoming

2026Factory 02 final investment decision (next)
2026EU/UK novel food approval
2027Factory 02 construction start

Current obstacles

Regulatory approval in major marketsEU and UK novel food approvals remain pending. The process is slower than the U.S. GRAS route, delaying market entry in Europe.
Cost competitivenessEarly-stage costs exceed commodity proteins. Factory 02 should improve margins, but unit cost at launch is unconfirmed.
Customer adoption and volume commitmentsEarly customers are specialty food brands. Scaling to mainstream food manufacturing requires long-term supply contracts and confidence in cost and consistency.

Physics limits

Electrochemistry: hydrogen production efficiencyElectrolysis of water has a theoretical limit of ~83% electrical efficiency at the electrolyzer; real systems achieve 65–75%. Heat loss and pressure drops set this physical boundary.
Fermentation: biomass yield per substrateMicrobial growth converts substrate (hydrogen + CO2) into cell mass. Thermodynamics and metabolic pathways set an upper bound on conversion efficiency; achieving 60%+ yield is already strong.
Electricity cost and grid capacityProtein production is energy-intensive (roughly 10 kWh/kg). At EUR 0.05/kWh, energy is EUR 0.50/kg alone. Deployment is limited by renewable supply and grid capacity.

How it works

4 parts

Hydrogen and CO2

Feedstock from electricity and air

Renewable electricity is used to split water into hydrogen. Hydrogen and captured CO2 are the feedstock, not crops.

Microbes

Bacteria eat hydrogen and CO2

Gas-fermenting bacteria metabolize hydrogen and CO2, growing biomass (protein, carbohydrates, fats) inside fermentation tanks.

Harvest and dry

Protein extracted and processed

The biomass is harvested, separated, dried, and processed into Solein powder, a complete amino-acid protein ingredient.

Formulation

Ingredient for food makers

Solein is mixed into drinks, snacks, baked goods, and meals by food companies. It has no taste of its own and adopts the flavour of the product.

Spec sheet

Spec	Solein
Factory 01 annual capacity	160 tons^R (reported)
Factory 02 planned capacity	6,400 tons^R (reported)
Further expansion capacity designed in	Up to 12,800 tons (two phases)^R (reported)
Factory 02 grant + loan (June 2026)	EUR 77.8 million^R (reported)

^R reported by the company

Papers & demos

2 items

Apr 2026paper
U.S. patent granted for Solein production process (opens foodnavigator-usa.com)Exclusive rights to produce Solein using the patented gas fermentation organism and process.
Sep 2024demo
U.S. GRAS approval; Solein featured at Olmsted restaurant in Brooklyn (opens solarfoods.com)First major consumer availability in the U.S. market through a partnership with a flagship restaurant.

Update log

6 updates

About Solar Foods

The team behind Solein

Solar Foods

Solein air protein, gas fermentation, CO2 to food

Solar Foods produces Solein, a single-cell protein made from CO2 and electricity via gas fermentation. Factory 01 (Finland) reaches 160 tons/year; Factory 02 (Lappeenranta) will scale to 6,400 tons/year. Solein is approved in Singapore and the U.S.

Solein is made from CO2 and electricity via gas fermentation, independent of land, weather, and seasons.
Factory 01 (Vantaa) reached 160 t/year in 2024. Factory 02 in Selkäharju will scale to 6,400 t/year.
GRAS-approved in the U.S. (Sept 2024) and Singapore (Sept 2022). EU novel food approval expected in 2026.

solarfoods.com (opens solarfoods.com)Company profile →

Founded: 20179 yrs
Headquarters: Finland
Status: Private
Valuation: private
Raised: $140M3 rounds
Last round: IPCEI grant + loan · $102MJun 2026
Works in: AgricultureAlternative proteins
Coverage: 1 program · 6 updateslatest 1 Jun 2026checked 10 Oct
Lead investors: Lifeline Ventures
Customers: Ajinomoto (opens ajinomoto.com)Ambrosia Collective (opens ambrosiaco.com)KelpEat (opens kelpeats.com)
Partners: Fortum (opens fortum.com)
People: Rami Jokela (opens solarfoods.com)Chief Executive Officer

Spec

Solein

Factory 01 annual capacity

160 tons^R (reported)

Factory 02 planned capacity

6,400 tons^R (reported)

Further expansion capacity designed in

Up to 12,800 tons (two phases)^R (reported)

Factory 02 grant + loan (June 2026)

EUR 77.8 million^R (reported)

Solein

Milestones

Most important updates

Upcoming

Current obstacles

Physics limits

How it works

Feedstock from electricity and air

Bacteria eat hydrogen and CO2

Protein extracted and processed

Ingredient for food makers

Spec sheet

Papers & demos

Update log

Jun 2026

Dec 2025

Sep 2024

Apr 2024

Sep 2022

About Solar Foods

Current obstacles

Physics limits

How it works

Feedstock from electricity and air

Bacteria eat hydrogen and CO2

Protein extracted and processed

Ingredient for food makers

Spec sheet

Papers & demos

Update log

Jun 2026

Dec 2025

Sep 2024

Apr 2024

Sep 2022

About Solar Foods