A woman in a lab coat is wearing gloves and she stands next to a woman wearing a blazer. Together, they are looking downwards at small balls of fungi that is laid on a large blacktop. — Researchers at UC Davis have created small balls of edible fungi that can be processed into products like boba and lab-grown caviar. Pictured are biological and agricultural engineering doctoral student Lin Cao and project lead and Professor Ruihong Zhang, Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering. (Jael Mackendorf/UC Davis)

Farms to Fungi to Food: Growing the Next Generation of Alternative Protein

by Noah Pflueger-Peters
December 08, 2022

"A solution to world hunger might start with boba and caviar.

Using an innovative process, engineers at UC Davis are growing “myco-foods” — small balls of edible fungi that can be processed into products like boba and lab-grown caviar with a wide range of textures, colors and flavors. These myco-foods, grown from the nutrients of agricultural byproducts like coffee grounds and almond hulls, provide an important new source of protein to feed the world.

Agricultural byproducts often contain many of the same nutrients as the main products, so re-using them reduces waste while adding more value to the existing materials."

Read the full story at UC Davis News