0:00
0:00
Saudi Arabia to Host World’s Largest Single-Cell Protein Plant as Food Security Push Accelerates
Danish biotech firm Unibio partners with Saudi Industrial Investment Group to build massive microbial protein facility in Jubail
Saudi Arabia is preparing to host what developers describe as the world’s largest single-cell protein production facility, as the Kingdom intensifies efforts to strengthen food security and reduce reliance on imported animal feed.
The project will be built in the industrial city of Jubail on the Arabian Gulf through a joint venture between Danish biotechnology company Unibio and the Saudi Industrial Investment Group.
The planned facility will use natural gas-based fermentation technology to produce microbial protein designed primarily for aquaculture and animal feed markets.
According to project plans, the plant will initially produce about fifty thousand tons of protein per year, with long-term expansion expected to increase capacity to more than three hundred thousand tons annually.
The aim is to support Saudi Arabia’s domestic feed supply while helping meet rising global demand for sustainable protein sources.
Construction of the facility is expected to begin in the second half of twenty twenty-six, with commercial production projected to start in twenty twenty-eight.
The project will rely on a joint financing structure, with the Saudi Industrial Investment Group holding eighty percent of the equity and Unibio retaining twenty percent, alongside bank financing.
The plant will produce a microbial protein ingredient known as Uniprotein, which is generated through a fermentation process using methane and other gases to feed specialized microorganisms.
The resulting biomass is processed into a high-protein feed ingredient intended to replace traditional sources such as fishmeal and soy.
Saudi Arabia has been expanding investment in next-generation food technologies as part of its Vision 2030 strategy to diversify the economy and enhance domestic food production.
Localizing feed production has become a priority as the country seeks to reduce dependence on imported agricultural inputs and support the rapid growth of its aquaculture sector.
The microbial protein produced at the planned facility has already been approved for aquaculture feed use in Saudi Arabia following regulatory review by the Saudi Food and Drug Authority.
The ingredient is also authorized in several other global markets, including the European Union and parts of Asia.
Industry analysts say fermentation-based protein production is gaining momentum globally as governments and companies search for ways to decouple food supply from agricultural land constraints.
By using gases rather than crops as feedstock, single-cell protein technologies can produce large volumes of protein with far lower land and water requirements than conventional agriculture.
Supporters of the Saudi project argue that the country’s abundant natural gas resources and industrial infrastructure position it well to become a major hub for large-scale protein fermentation.
If completed as planned, the facility would represent one of the largest industrial deployments of microbial protein technology anywhere in the world.
The project will be built in the industrial city of Jubail on the Arabian Gulf through a joint venture between Danish biotechnology company Unibio and the Saudi Industrial Investment Group.
The planned facility will use natural gas-based fermentation technology to produce microbial protein designed primarily for aquaculture and animal feed markets.
According to project plans, the plant will initially produce about fifty thousand tons of protein per year, with long-term expansion expected to increase capacity to more than three hundred thousand tons annually.
The aim is to support Saudi Arabia’s domestic feed supply while helping meet rising global demand for sustainable protein sources.
Construction of the facility is expected to begin in the second half of twenty twenty-six, with commercial production projected to start in twenty twenty-eight.
The project will rely on a joint financing structure, with the Saudi Industrial Investment Group holding eighty percent of the equity and Unibio retaining twenty percent, alongside bank financing.
The plant will produce a microbial protein ingredient known as Uniprotein, which is generated through a fermentation process using methane and other gases to feed specialized microorganisms.
The resulting biomass is processed into a high-protein feed ingredient intended to replace traditional sources such as fishmeal and soy.
Saudi Arabia has been expanding investment in next-generation food technologies as part of its Vision 2030 strategy to diversify the economy and enhance domestic food production.
Localizing feed production has become a priority as the country seeks to reduce dependence on imported agricultural inputs and support the rapid growth of its aquaculture sector.
The microbial protein produced at the planned facility has already been approved for aquaculture feed use in Saudi Arabia following regulatory review by the Saudi Food and Drug Authority.
The ingredient is also authorized in several other global markets, including the European Union and parts of Asia.
Industry analysts say fermentation-based protein production is gaining momentum globally as governments and companies search for ways to decouple food supply from agricultural land constraints.
By using gases rather than crops as feedstock, single-cell protein technologies can produce large volumes of protein with far lower land and water requirements than conventional agriculture.
Supporters of the Saudi project argue that the country’s abundant natural gas resources and industrial infrastructure position it well to become a major hub for large-scale protein fermentation.
If completed as planned, the facility would represent one of the largest industrial deployments of microbial protein technology anywhere in the world.
