Brisbane-based food technology company Just Meat Protein (JMP) has closed an oversubscribed $1.8 million seed round, with Inghams Group (ASX: ING) taking a 10 per cent stake. The start-up moves to commercialise a CSIRO-developed process that converts low-value poultry cuts into powdered protein ingredients.
Inghams invested $1.05 million in the round. Under the terms of the investment, Inghams’ chief growth officer, Caroline Hayes, will join the JMP board, and the poultry producer holds an exclusive first-right supply arrangement with JMP in Australia.
JMP holds an exclusive worldwide licence to the patent-pending hydrolysed poultry protein technology developed by CSIRO. The process transforms low-value cuts, inputs that would typically enter the animal feed supply chain, into shelf-stable powdered protein ingredients for sports nutrition, functional foods and specialised nutrition applications, including aged care, meal replacement, and military and space nutrition.
Inghams’ research estimates the global sports nutrition market alone is worth US$27 billion.
The seed funding will go towards scaling up manufacturing, with a commercial launch targeted by the end of 2026. JMP said it is in active discussions with food ingredients distributors and food brands in Australia and internationally.
Just Meat Protein CEO and co-founder, Ellie Whelan, said demand for new protein sources was being driven by population growth, the rise in GLP-1 use, and more conscious consumers.
“For us here at Just Meat Protein, to be able to solve for this problem through targeting low-value cuts is not only a commercial win, but a positive shift towards a more sustainable food system,” Whelan said.
Just Meat Protein CSO and co-founder, Dr Aarti Tobin, said whey protein had long been the gold standard in protein ingredients. “What we are providing is a quality alternative protein source which has added benefits of being highly soluble, retaining clarity in solution, and being allergen-free,” Tobin said.
Inghams Group CEO and managing director, Ed Alexander, said the investment was “precisely the kind of innovation-led, high-value adjacency we have been looking to establish and is strongly aligned to our strategy to maximise the value we generate from every bird we process.
“The investment allows us to secure an early and strategically advantaged position in a category we believe has significant growth ahead of it.
The investment comes as Inghams, Australia and New Zealand’s largest integrated poultry producer, looks to rebuild momentum after a 65 per cent drop in first half FY26 profit, with the company reporting a return to volume growth in Q2 and guiding to a stronger second half.
