Friedberg’s claim was that companies like Perfect Day, Impossible Foods, and Beyond Meat would be early exemplars of genetic‑engineering/biomanufacturing approaches to alternative protein and would help make biomanufactured food a significant category.

1. These firms did become early exemplars of biomanufactured/engineered alternative proteins.

• Perfect Day bioengineers microflora and uses precision fermentation to produce animal‑free whey proteins that are chemically identical to dairy proteins, and has supplied these proteins into branded products like Brave Robot ice cream, Bored Cow milk and Bel’s Nurishh Incredible Dairy cheese line. It is a founding member of the Precision Fermentation Alliance and is routinely described as a global leader in precision‑fermented dairy. (en.wikipedia.org)
• Impossible Foods uses genetically engineered yeast and fermentation to produce soy leghemoglobin (heme), a flagship example in Good Food Institute reports and biotech write‑ups of how precision fermentation enables new alternative‑protein ingredients. (en.wikipedia.org)
• Beyond Meat, while based on plant extrusion rather than engineered microbes, was one of the first mass‑market plant‑based meat brands, with global restaurant partnerships and tens of thousands of retail and foodservice outlets, and its IPO helped trigger a broader investment boom in alternative proteins. (en.wikipedia.org)
  Together, these brands became the reference points for investors, media, and policymakers discussing the “next pillar” of alternative proteins (plant‑based plus fermentation and cultivated meat). (synbiobeta.com)

2. Biomanufactured/fermentation‑enabled food is now a significant, distinct category.

• Good Food Institute’s fermentation state‑of‑the‑industry report shows 165 fermentation companies focused on alternative proteins by the end of 2024 and about $4.8 billion in cumulative private investment, as well as hundreds of millions of dollars of new funding in 2024 alone. (gfi.org)
• Market reports estimate the fermentation‑derived protein ingredients market at $5.8–6.2 billion in 2024, with forecasts to grow to around $17–18.5 billion by 2034, explicitly positioning fermentation‑derived proteins as a major segment of the alternative‑protein space. (gminsights.com)
• A separate analysis of “fermentation for alternative protein” puts that specific niche at about $1.2 billion in 2024 and identifies Perfect Day and Impossible Foods among the key players driving the category. (globalgrowthinsights.com)
• Public‑sector support has also scaled: GFI estimates roughly $2.1 billion in cumulative government commitments to alternative proteins (including fermentation and cellular agriculture) by 2024, underlining that this is not a fringe market. (gfi.org)

3. Causality and timing.
By 2020–2024, Perfect Day’s precision‑fermented dairy launches, Impossible’s heme‑based burgers, and Beyond Meat’s plant‑based meats had already catalyzed consumer awareness, retailer adoption and investor interest in alternative proteins and fermentation as a new industrial food platform. Industry and trade groups explicitly highlight these companies as leading examples of precision‑fermentation and alternative‑protein technologies, and they helped pave the way for dozens of follow‑on startups and large‑company partnerships in animal‑free dairy and meat. (synbiobeta.com)

Even though the phrase “over the coming decades” cannot be fully evaluated yet, by 2025 biomanufactured/fermentation‑enabled foods are clearly a recognized, multi‑billion‑dollar category, and these named companies did serve as prominent early exemplars and drivers. On the observable part of the claim, the prediction has effectively come true.