Key Takeaways:
- Happy Plant Protein, a Finnish food technology company, will license its patented dry extrusion technology to a new production facility in Latvia, operated by local agricultural firm Agrofirma Lobe SIA.
- The facility represents an approximately €6 million greenfield investment, partially supported by EU funding, with construction expected to take around one year.
- Production is scheduled to begin in early 2027, with a planned annual capacity of approximately 5,000 tonnes of plant-based protein ingredients.
- The plant will process locally grown crops — including faba beans, oats, and peas — into textured vegetable protein (TVP) for food industry customers across the Baltics, Europe, and the Nordic region.
- This marks the first industrial deployment of Happy Plant Protein's technology.
Happy Plant Protein Announces First Industrial Deployment in Latvia
Finnish food technology company Happy Plant Protein announced on 14 April 2026 that its patented dry extrusion technology will be deployed at a new plant protein production facility in Latvia. The facility, to be developed and operated by Latvian agricultural company Agrofirma Lobe SIA, is described by both parties as the first of its kind in Latvia and Europe to process locally grown crops into plant-based protein ingredients at industrial scale.
Construction is expected to take approximately one year, with production targeted to commence in early 2027.
How the Technology Works
Happy Plant Protein's dry extrusion process is a single-stage method that converts flour directly into textured vegetable protein (TVP) without the use of chemical inputs and with what the company describes as minimal water and energy consumption. The technology originated from research conducted at VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland.
