December 17, 2025 – Senator Adam Schiff (D-California) will introduce legislation today to direct more than $500 million in federal support over the next five years toward research and development for “alternative proteins.” The Producing Real Opportunities for Technology and Entrepreneurs Investing in Nutrition (PROTEIN) Act would also invest in education and workforce development and direct the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to create a national strategy on “protein diversification.” Representative Julia Brownley (D-California) will introduce a companion bill in the House.
“Right now in America, it seems all anyone can talk about is protein, but the exploding demand for it is not something our current food system will be able to meet,” Schiff said in a statement. “Investing in protein innovation, which is already supporting thousands of jobs in California and across the U.S., will help us meet those needs while investing in a climate-friendly food system and positioning the U.S.
as a global leader in a growing market that will create new revenue opportunities for American producers.” More than 150 alternative protein companies are based in California, making plant-based burgers, lab-grown chicken, and other novel faux meats. The legislation is endorsed by industry trade and advocacy groups, including the Good Food Institute (GFI), Food Solutions Action, and the Plant Based Foods Institute.
GFI, in particular, has been lobbying to secure federal investment in alternative proteins for several years. The PROTEIN Act would direct the USDA to select three existing research and development centers around the country, such as academic labs, to be designated “centers of excellence” for protein innovation and would then support them with $15 million annual funding through 2030.
It would also create an alternative protein research program within the USDA’s Agriculture Research Service (ARS), with $10 million in annual funding and support outside research and workforce development efforts through new grant programs. After a rush of investment and development starting around a decade ago, the sector hit major speed bumps: Plant-based meat sales dropped 20 percent between 2022 and 2024, although the market is still nearly double the size it was in 2017.
Lab-grown meat companies have fared worse, with many already gone and investment declining precipitously before products meaningfully entered the marketplace. Experts who are supportive of Schiff’s bill said that’s why the legislation is needed. The scientific fundamentals for creating high-quality alternative proteins are well established, but translating these discoveries into commercially viable products at scale requires significant infrastructure investment,” D.
Julian McClements, a professor of food science at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, said in a statement. “This comprehensive federal strategy addresses the critical bottleneck between laboratory innovation and market-ready products that can actually feed people sustainably.” However, the bill is likely to face pushback from the meat industry, which has launched attacks on the alternative protein sector in the past.
It’s also on the table at a time when concerns over health harms associated with ultraprocessed foods are part of the D.C. political conversation more than ever before, and some alternative proteins qualify as ultraprocessed foods. Schiff’s office said the goal is to supplement, not replace, meat in the supply chain, and that more investment in innovation will help improve products’ nutrient profiles.
(Link to this post.) The post Exclusive: Senator Schiff Introduces Bill to Support ‘Alternative Protein’ Development appeared first on Civil Eats.
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