NuCicer Debuts Nuchi, a Reworked Chickpea Built for High-Protein Formulation
NuCicer, a US crop genetics company, has launched Nuchi, a new chickpea variety designed to address processing barriers that have limited chickpea protein’s use in food manufacturing. According to the company, Nuchi delivers 50% more protein and 25% less fat than a standard chickpea, changes that eliminate the defatting step typically required to process chickpea into concentrated protein ingredients.
“Nuchi proves we can deliver elite nutritional traits directly into the seed”
NuCicer, which was founded in 2019 by CEO Kathryn Cook alongside her father, UC Davis professor Douglas Cook, uses a genetic library and breeding research licensed from the university. The company previously introduced chickpea varieties with up to 75% more protein than commodity chickpeas in 2021, and closed an $11.5 million Series A round in July 2025 to scale a variety offering up to 35% protein, compared with a 21% commodity baseline.
Four ingredient formats
Nuchi is available as a high-protein flour, a low-fat flour, a protein concentrate, and a protein isolate, and according to the company is compatible with existing pea protein processing infrastructure. NuCicer says it has tested the ingredient across crackers, pancakes, waffles, pasta, snacks, and cereal formats. The variety is non-GMO and gluten-free, and the company describes its flavor as neutral, reducing the need for masking agents common in pea and soy protein applications.
Nuchi is grown by partner farmers in North America, with 10,000 acres planted for 2026, according to the company. As a legume, chickpea crops fix nitrogen in the soil, a trait NuCicer positions as an agronomic advantage amid rising fertilizer costs.
Entering a tightening protein market:
NuCicer frames the launch against pressure on existing protein supply chains, citing a more than 50% rise in whey protein concentrate prices since January 2026, according to the company. NuCicer is now working with ingredient processors and food manufacturers on formulation partnerships and is accepting sample requests through its website.
Sean MacEachern, CTO of NuCicer, stated, “Nuchi proves we can deliver elite nutritional traits directly into the seed and at speeds traditional methods can’t match. By pairing our proprietary genetic library with our AI-guided breeding platform, we are engineering a climate-resilient crop designed to drop directly into existing processing infrastructure.”
