Day 8, an Israeli plant-based food startup, has secured USD 750,000 in pre-seed funding led by The Kitchen FoodTech Hub.

The funding will be used to introduce a new functional ingredient made from the leaf protein "Rubisco" for plant-based meat, dairy, and food applications. 

Day 8 aims to harness the nutritional value of Rubisco, a protein found in all green leaves, to offer a functional protein ingredient on par with animal proteins. It uses existing crop leaves for raw material and combines them with a unique extraction method to create a taste-neutral white powder that is claimed to surpass the benefits of soy protein.

Analyst QuickTake: While Rubisco is an abundant protein, its commercial use has been limited due to extraction challenges. New Zealand-based startup Leaft Foods uses nitrogen-fixing crops like lucerne, while Plantible Foods utilizes lemna (duckweed) to create Rubisco-based ingredients.