They developed some vegetable seeds.
Oh, look, new progress in research.
Then they cloned a few more organisms.
Oh, look, even more progress.
The scientists at the Agricultural College were absolute geniuses, replicating one ingredient after another, but what was the point?
Restaurants were ultimately a rich person's game.
The general public had no way to master the art of "cooking," so market demand remained minuscule.
To increase their returns even slightly, the College had no choice but to raise the prices of all its better-selling products, essentially robbing Peter to pay Paul.
But the hole was just too big. Even as they patched it, the College's other expenses were still hammering new holes in the wall.
Just raising prices wasn't enough. After some deliberation, the Agricultural College researchers also started selling their technology and seeds. If certain products sold well on the market and attracted buyers, they would license out the technology for a fee.
