Japan’s Lacto Japan is betting on next-generation alternative protein. As BigGo Finance reports, on 4 June, the company announced an investment in New Zealand startup Leaft Foods, which extracts Rubisco protein directly from plant leaves for the Japanese market.
Lacto Japan (3139.T, Tokyo Stock Exchange Prime) is a company engaged in the import and sale of dairy products and food ingredients. The investment builds on a partnership established last year and aims to create a production and sales framework for the new ingredient. The investment amount has not been disclosed; the company notes the impact on its fiscal year ending November 2026 results will be negligible, but positions the move as a medium-to-long-term play on alternative protein market growth.
Leaft Foods has developed a proprietary process for extracting protein directly from green leafy plants. Rubisco is an enzyme involved in photosynthesis, present in all chloroplast-containing plants. Unlike soy or wheat protein, it uses leaves as its raw material — raising expectations as a sustainable protein source that leverages abundant plant resources.
The company’s two flagship products are Rubisco Protein Isolate — a powder suitable for nutritional fortification of dairy products and as an egg replacement — and Leaft Blade, a ready-to-drink functional beverage. Both are produced at a commercial facility in the Canterbury region of New Zealand’s South Island, with mass production systems already in place.
Rubisco protein contains a well-balanced profile of essential amino acids and is attracting attention as the “third plant-based protein” after soy and pea protein. As health-conscious consumers and food manufacturers in Japan increasingly seek sustainable protein solutions, the partnership positions both companies to capture that demand.
Source: BigGo Finance
