From cultured fats to encapsulated oils to precisely fermented palm oil substitutes, food tech startups have fat on their radar.
As global chains of origin for classic fats, such as palm oil and cocoa butter, continue to come under scrutiny for their effect on people and the planet, an increasing number of European start-ups are turning to food generation to expand next. generation alternatives.
Founded in 2022 by Estonian bioengineers Petri-Jaan Lahtvee and Brazilian bioengineers Nemailla Bonturi, Estonian logo ÄIO produces fats and oils from the agricultural and wood industries.
Specifically, the team uses natural, precision fermentation to tame microorganisms from those secondary streams, which are capable of generating fatty acids, antioxidants, and pigments. These are then used to create microbial oils that are rich in omega-3 fatty acids and have a much smaller effect on the environment than fats such as palm oil, the company says.
The startup has already created 3 products: A Red Oil, capable of replacing traditional vegetable, seed and fish oils, as well as for use in cosmetics and family products. An encapsulated oil, designed as a plant-based option to palm and soybean oils and can be used in categories such as animal-free meats and baked goods. And a “butterfat” that, according to the new company, can be used as a substitute for coconut and animal fats and butters.
The company, which currently works with food manufacturers for its products, plans to begin industrial-scale production until 2026.
Barcelona-based Cubiq Foods uses a combination of mobile cultivation technologies, omega 3 oil microencapsulation and new oil/water emulsion formulations to create healthier fat options for the food sector, a multi-pronged strategy which, according to the company, makes it the first to implement industrial-scale programs for select fats.
Its current portfolio of fats and oils includes Go! Drop, a fat substitute that they say provides “improved juiciness, a full flavor profile that contains fewer calories, less saturated fat, and 20% oil. “
Last year, the Spanish start-up signed an agreement with the US company Cargill Foods to collaborate on the progression of products and go-to-market advertising strategies, to boost advertising for its portfolio of fats and oils.
“The signing of joint development and advertising agreements represents the next phase of our partnership, as our innovative generation is now in a position to develop applications, ramp up production and large-scale advertising, functions that Cargill has at its unique disposal to help us move forward. “”, said President Andrés Montefeltro.
Earlier this year, Berlin-based start-up Cultimate effectively closed an initial investment of €2. 3 million to expand the production processes of its premium cultured fat ingredient.
Founded in 2022, the biotech startup has developed fats from cultured beef and red meat, which it considers a “revolutionary” ingredient, due to its added flavor and from an “authentic” meat texture to plant-based products. Its fat is on the market, the company claims, because it uses a “3D culture generation method” that replicates the structure of animal adipose tissue and reduces the production rate.
“Science is the key to solving many of the disorders caused by the food industry. Through cutting-edge technology, we can deliver the meat flavors consumers crave, while reducing unethical industrial agriculture and combating climate replacement by reducing CO2 emissions,” said co-founder and CEO Eugenia Sagué.
London-based Hoxton Farms was first introduced in 2020 as a collaboration between schoolmates Ed Steele and Max Jamilly. The team developed fats grown from stem cells extracted from pigs and cows, and fermented them into a mixture of plant-based nutrients to create a product. that the two men said “it looks, cooks and tastes like something genuine”, but with a much higher quality.
“Our state-of-the-art procedure combines computational modeling and artificial biology to grow animal fats from stem cells in proprietary reactors—a sustainable, scalable, and cost-effective element,” Steele said. “We then sell our cultured animal fats as a B2B element to the food manufacturers. “
In September last year, the team opened a 14,000-square-foot pilot facility in London, complete with mobile grow labs and a food progression kitchen. An on-site workshop will also manufacture bespoke bioreactors, designed to optimise mobile fat expansion at investment prices. which are much smaller than the popular bioreactors in the industry. The site will produce about 10 tons of fat per year, the new company says.
Swedish startup Melt & Marble believes that fats are the main contributor to the flavor hole that exists in plant-based foods. “The fat that’s used now, like coconut, doesn’t have the same sensory homes as meats,” co-founder and CEO Anastasia Krivoruchko told FoodNavigator last year. “You don’t get the same mouthfeel; you don’t get the same juiciness or flavor.
The company’s solution is to use precision fermentation to produce fat with a fatty acid composition and saturation point from animal proteins and dairy products. Using artificial biology and metabolic engineering, the team can create proprietary yeast strains to convert natural sugars into specialized fats, with the addition of carefully selected enzymes to dictate fat structure and accommodation. final.
Because the resulting product is “fat only,” cultured or encapsulated fat that has an express structure, the team says it can upgrade existing vegetable fat, such as coconut, cocoa butter, and shea butter, much more easily.
This year, the team moved to its new headquarters in Gothenburg with the aim of expanding production, with the aim of expanding the capacity of its bioreactor to several tens of cubic meters in the coming months, which would allow it to produce loads of kg per cycle. The plan is to aim for a U. S. launch. in 2025.
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