In a nutshell
Ten Lives makes sustainable, high-protein cat food. Meat accounts for 60% of the carbon emissions from food production, and pets consume 20% of the world’s meat. Ten Lives is on a mission to reduce this climate impact by making animal protein for our carnivorous feline friends, without killing or harming a single animal.
DIF II
U.S.
37.3875° N, 122.0575° W
(9) Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure, (12) Responsible Consumption and Production, (13) Climate Action, (14) Life Bellow Water; (15) Life on Land
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KPI's
Historical aggregate
2 land animals saved per kg of protein
2kg of CO2eq to produce 1kg of animal protein vs. 60kg of CO2eq for beef and 24kg of CO2eq for lamb
<100L of blue water per kg protein vs. 15,400L/kg protein for beef and 10,400L/kg protein for lamb
Positive Notes
Over $100B has been invested in protein discovery, yet 99% of proteins still cannot be produced at commercial-scale yields. Ten Lives is tackling this bottleneck head-on. In 2025, the company achieved legal approval to commercialize its whole-cell yeast ingredient, unlocking a formulation up to 10x cheaper to produce than purified protein. It also reached record yields for its methanol-free strain, improved protein purity, and increased treat palatability by 60%. With 95% data reproducibility and one of the largest, cleanest biological datasets in its category, Ten Lives is building a powerful AI-driven protein production platform. Growing engagement from global pet food leaders signals strong commercial momentum.
As Ten Lives prepares its next scale-up with large-capacity fermentation partners, the challenge now lies in converting yield leadership into consistent, cost-competitive production at industrial scale. Achieving price parity while maintaining performance will be critical to unlocking meaningful disruption in the $140B pet food market.