Delaware Court Dismisses Onego Bio Suit Against The EVERY Co Over Precision-Fermented Egg Protein Patent

A US federal court has dismissed Onego Bio’s lawsuit against The EVERY Company in full, closing the main legal dispute between the two leading producers of precision-fermented egg protein, but without deciding the patent question that has hung over the category for more than a year.

In a memorandum and order dated 9 October, Judge Joshua D. Wolson of the US District Court for the District of Delaware granted EVERY’s motion to dismiss Onego’s amended complaint (Onego Bio Inc. v. Clara Foods Co., case 1:25-cv-01131). The ruling follows the dismissal of a parallel case in the Western District of Wisconsin on 5 May for lack of personal jurisdiction. With both actions gone, there is no pending litigation between the companies.

What the court decided, and what it did not

Onego, which produces ovalbumin using the fungus Trichoderma reesei, had sought a declaration that EVERY’s US patent on recombinant ovalbumin was invalid and unenforceable, and that Onego did not infringe it. EVERY produces its ovalbumin in the yeast Komagataella phaffii.

The court found no “imminent, substantial controversy” when Onego filed suit, so it lacked jurisdiction over the declaratory claims. The judge wrote that EVERY never singled out the patent or accused Onego of infringement, and that the record showed Onego “played the instigator” while EVERY tried to de-escalate. He also found Onego lacked standing for its Lanham Act false-advertising claim over EVERY’s “bio-identical” marketing, because it had not shown commercial injury, and that it failed to state a tortious-interference claim.

Crucially for investors, the ruling says nothing on whether the patent is valid or infringed. The judge noted that EVERY has no obligation to promise, at a time of Onego’s choosing, that it will never sue.

Both sides claim the outcome

EVERY called the suit “meritless from the start” and said it would keep investing in its patent estate and “vigorously defend” its position. Its egg proteins are already sold in products at Walmart, Target and on Amazon.

Onego said the decision provided clarity, pointing to the court’s view that EVERY’s reported remarks to investors were “puffing rather than actual threats”. Chief executive Maija Itkonen said there is now no infringement claim against Onego and no challenge to its freedom to operate, and that the company is shipping metric tons of its Bioalbumen protein to US customers, including Zen Waffles. Onego also noted that patent offices in Japan and South Korea have rejected EVERY’s counterpart applications, that Mexico’s IP office has raised objections, and that the European Patent Office has issued a preliminary opinion citing added subject matter.

The financial read-through

For capital allocators, the case was always about freedom to operate. Onego alleged that an investor weighing a $50 million commitment pulled back over infringement concerns, a claim EVERY disputed. That kind of IP overhang matters in a sector where scale-up means expensive fermentation and downstream processing capacity. Onego is planning a manufacturing facility in Wisconsin, while EVERY is exploring a four-million-litre precision fermentation plant in Abu Dhabi with Vivici and the Abu Dhabi Investment Office.

The dismissal removes litigation cost and headline risk for both businesses, which should make fundraising and offtake talks simpler in the near term. It does not remove the underlying uncertainty. Any future infringement action would be EVERY’s decision, and the outcome of foreign patent proceedings could shape how much weight buyers and lenders give to the US patent.

What to watch

• Whether either company files new US patent actions or post-grant challenges.
• Decisions from the EPO and other offices on EVERY’s counterpart filings.
• Commercial volumes and pricing for recombinant ovalbumin as more food makers trial animal-free egg white in bakery, confectionery and protein products.
• Progress on Onego’s US plant and EVERY’s capacity partnerships, the main signals of whether precision-fermented egg protein can reach cost parity with conventional egg white.