BMC Ingredients Wins FSSAI Approval for Rhiza Mycelium Protein, Targets India Launch in Q2 2027

BMC Ingredients, the Sacramento-based company formerly known as The Better Meat Co, has received an approval letter from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) for Rhiza, its fermentation-derived mycelium ingredient. The company plans to start supplying Indian food manufacturers in the second quarter of 2027.

India is the fourth market to clear Rhiza, after the United States, Singapore and Canada. Under FSSAI rules, a novel ingredient needs prior approval before it can be manufactured or imported for sale. That makes the letter a precondition for any commercial supply in the country.

What Rhiza is

Rhiza is a whole-food fungal biomass made by fermenting Neurospora crassa, a fungus with a long history of food use in Indonesia. After fermentation, the mycelium (the thread-like root structure of the fungus) is separated from its growth medium, then processed, dehydrated and packed.

BMC sells it in two formats:

• Rhiza Tex, a textured chunk with a meat-like bite, used either as a full meat replacer or as an enhancer in blended meat products.
• Rhiza Pro, a powder for adding protein and fibre to baked goods, pasta, bars and smoothies.

The company describes Rhiza as a complete protein containing all nine essential amino acids, along with dietary fibre, iron, zinc and potassium. It also says the ingredient is non-GMO, vegan, halal, kosher, shelf-stable and free from soy, dairy, eggs and gluten. Data from the Health Canada assessment, as reported by Green Queen in July, put Rhiza at about 45% protein and 30% fibre.

Building a regulatory footprint

The FSSAI approval adds to a regulatory record built over two years. In July 2024 the US FDA issued a “no questions” letter on BMC’s GRAS determination for Rhiza, covering uses including meat alternatives, dairy alternatives and meat enhancement. The USDA separately found it suitable for use in meat products. The Singapore Food Agency approved it later in 2024, and Health Canada issued a Letter of No Objection in July 2026 covering blended meat and seafood, animal-free meat alternatives and dairy alternatives.

For a mycoprotein start-up selling to manufacturers, approvals in several markets matter commercially. Multinational food companies tend to prefer ingredients they can use across regions rather than qualifying a new supplier market by market.

Why India

BMC is pitching Rhiza at Indian demand for higher-protein everyday foods, for both blended meat products and fully animal-free applications. The company pointed to Euromonitor figures, reported by Reuters, showing that India’s high-protein dairy segment grew 9.4% in 2024 to $1.5 billion.

“India has extraordinary culinary traditions that lend themselves well to a new high-protein mycelium ingredient,” said Paul Shapiro, CEO and co-founder of BMC Ingredients. “Indians want more protein, but they don’t have to get it from meat or processed isolates like whey, and can instead enjoy this all-natural whole food.”

BMC has not named any Indian manufacturing customers or said which finished products will be the first to use Rhiza.

Capacity is the gating factor

The Indian launch date is tied to BMC’s production plans. The company expects to bring commercial-scale capacity online in the second quarter of 2027, the same quarter it plans to start Indian supply and shipments to Canada. In July, Shapiro told Green Queen that BMC was working with a contract manufacturer in Asia on capacity expected to produce 100 dry metric tons of Rhiza a month.

The approval comes as Indian activity in fungal protein picks up. Earlier this month, sugar and ethanol producer Dhampur Bio Organics signed a ten-year licence with Swiss start-up Planetary to produce mycoprotein from sugar and molasses in India. For food manufacturers there, the arrival of approved, scalable mycelium ingredients from more than one supplier could make high-protein reformulation and blended meat products easier to source.

The next milestones for BMC are commissioning its commercial capacity on time and announcing its first Indian customers.