Indian State-Backed Hub Develops Six Plant-Based Protein Bars from Local Pulses

The Bangalore Bioinnovation Centre has worked with Karnataka state’s agriculture department to create six plant-based energy bars using protein from local pulse varieties.

As Indians seek more high-protein, clean-label food options, a government-backed initiative is looking to local pulses to deliver on this front.

The Bangalore Bioinnovation Centre (BBC), a life sciences incubator established in 2014 by the state of Karnataka’s electronics and IT department, has developed six plant-based protein bars using legumes grown in Kalaburagi city.

The ready-to-eat energy bar range was developed in collaboration with Karnataka’s agriculture department. It has four variants based on toor dal (pigeon peas), black gram, green gram, and Bengal gram, as well as a multi-pulse version and a higher-protein option.

Looking beyond pulses as a raw commodity

Kalaburagi is an important pulse-growing region in Karnataka, but much of its produce currently leaves the district as raw grain, while the higher-value processing and margins are captured elsewhere. BBC is looking to explore how these pulses can be converted into shelf-stable plant protein products within a higher-value food chain.

The project is part of the Kalyana Karnataka Bio-Economy Mission, which aims to develop a region-specific bioeconomy roadmap around the region’s agricultural strengths, with a focus on toor, red bananas and sugarcane.

Its approach is to boost productivity and value across the value chain via tissue culture and disease-free planting material, locally developed biofertilisers and bio-inputs, better processing and value addition, productive use of agricultural byproducts, and stronger market linkages.

The single-pulse bars created by BBC use pulse crisps as the main ingredient, combined with peanuts, jaggery, oats and pumpkin seeds. They contain no artificial colours, flavours or chemical preservatives and offer 4g of protein and 1.8-2g of fibre per 30g bar. The higher-protein version delivers 4.85g of protein.

“The idea was to look beyond the pulse as a raw commodity and explore what else can be created from it,” said BBC managing director Mohamed Adil AA.

Karnataka’s IT and biotech minister, Priyank Kharge, called the initiative an example of how Bangalore’s innovation ecosystem can work with the Kalyana Karnataka region to turn local crops into high-value products and create opportunities for farmers, producer organisations, and local businesses. “Karnataka has strong agricultural production, but the next opportunity is to create more value from what we grow,” he said.

“Innovation is not just about developing new products; it is about understanding what we produce, recognising emerging market and consumer demand, and finding new ways to present our agricultural products so that they can reach more consumers and increase consumption.”

Karnataka aims to add value for pulse farmers

The larger objective of the pulse protein bar project is to create a pathway for farmer producer organisations (FPOs), self-help groups (SHGs) and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Kalyana Karnataka to participate in processing and value addition.

“By developing ready-to-eat products using locally grown pulses, we are demonstrating a possible pathway for value addition that can eventually be taken up by FPOs, SHGs and MSMEs in the region,” said Mohamed. “The objective is to connect science and product development with a real economic opportunity for Kalyana Karnataka.”

The initiative comes as Indians become hungrier for protein, particularly plant-based.  Polling shows that 37% of Indians want to add more plant proteins to their diets, and more want to increase their protein intake from plant-based sources than from animal products.

This shift is being driven by Gen Z, which accounts for 27% of the population and controls 35% of consumption spending. In a 2026 Ipsos survey, 82% of this cohort said it’s important to consume protein, and 91% are open to adopting plant-based foods (mainly to increase protein intake).

It’s also a response to the burgeoning GLP-1 market in India, which has already skyrocketed from $16M in 2021 to nearly $100M today. Weight-loss drugs are entering India at much lower prices than in the West, and analysts expect more than 50 branded semaglutide medications to enter the country this year.

This is why companies focused on plant-based proteins are attracting investor interest. In July, Arboreal Bioinnovations raised $24M to scale up its suite of functional ingredients, which include yeast and plant proteins, sugar replacers, and fibres. A month later, Inaara NeoFoods secured ₹21 crore ($2.2M) to advance its AI-powered platform for producing plant-based proteins, fibres, fats, and functional starches.

In February, Good Monk closed a ₹33 crore round ($3.6M) to scale its dietary supplements and plant-based proteins, just as Shark Tank alum Cosmix Wellness agreed to sell a 60% stake to CPG giant Marico in a deal worth $25M. And last year, Earthful, another Shark Tank success, landed $2.9M to support the expansion of its women’s health products, which include plant protein powders.