Molecular farming pioneer Moolec Science to list on Nasdaq by joining forces with LightJump Acquisition Corp.

Moolec Science Ltd. a science-based food ingredient company and LightJump Acquisition Corp., a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company, have entered into an agreement for a business combination that would result in Moolec Science SA, a newly created affiliate of Moolec incorporated in Luxembourg, becoming a publicly listed company.

Moolec and LightJump will ultimately become wholly owned subsidiaries of the company. The transaction is expected to be completed in the second half of 2022 and upon closing the company is expected to be listed on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “MLEC”.

Moolec is a Molecular Farming pioneer in the new food industry that uses plants to produce real animal proteins, according to a news release from the company. Molecular Farming enables the synthesis of real animal proteins’ DNA in any seed crop, carefully selecting each protein for its ability to add value in terms of a targeted functionality trait such as clotting, taste, texture, or nutritional value. The resulting proteins can then be used as ingredients in consumer food products providing tastier, more functional, and affordable animal-free protein alternatives.

Molecular Farming is unique in its ability to capitalize on the scale that extensive agriculture entails to achieve affordability. It is also cost efficient because it leverages biology, using plants and their inputs – sun, water, and soil – as small factories for the production of animal proteins. The plants are grown through traditional farming practices that result in economies of scale through high productivity volume production.

The first two products are Chymosin SPC, a bovine protein expressed in safflower that has curdling applications in the cheese industry, and gamma-linoleic acid (GLA), a nutritional oil technology sourced from Bioceres Crop Solutions. Both products have been cleared by regulatory authorities and the company is ramping up seed inventories. Moolec has accelerated product development efforts to widen its technology reach, by using soy and peas to develop actual meat proteins.

In addition, Moolec’s Molecular Farming platform has the potential to modify and enhance other plants using animal proteins, which could allow the company to possibly consider other market opportunities. Such possible market opportunities include milk, egg, chicken and fish replacements, or other alternative biomaterials and cosmetics.