Animal-free dairy proteins appear to provide functional benefits similar to those found in animal-free, cell-cultured “meat” products, which are garnering interest and investment from major food manufacturers. Memphis Meats, a cell-cultured “meat” startup based in San Francisco, has secured funding from both Tyson Ventures, the venture capital branch of Tyson Foods, and Cargill. On the cost front, Memphis Meats is working to lower the currently high price of its cell-cultured “meat,” which it estimates could drop from roughly $2,400 per pound last year to around $3 or $4 per pound by 2021. Likewise, Perfect Day must compete with existing dairy proteins to achieve success. Dairy industry analyst Matt Gould advised the co-founders in 2016 that they would need to reduce prices to about $2.50 per pound.
In addition to pricing challenges, product labeling poses another hurdle. Perfect Day’s co-founders have been in talks with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration regarding how to indicate that their ingredients are technically dairy yet free from animals. Perfect Day’s patented method involves using food-grade yeast and incorporating DNA sequences from dairy cows—allowing for 3D printing—to create proteins typically found in dairy milk. These proteins are cultivated in large fermentation tanks with corn sugar and other nutrients to promote growth. After harvesting the proteins mechanically, they can be incorporated into various foods or beverages where traditional dairy proteins are currently used, according to Perfect Day co-founder Ryan Pandya.
Another emerging player in this sector is Gelton, which produces gelatin without animal ingredients. Their process yields a vegan alternative to conventional gelatin derived from animal products, which they estimate represents a $3 billion industry. However, Gelton noted that achieving competitiveness with the existing gelatin market price of approximately $8 per kilogram (around $3.63 per pound) will take time and scaling efforts.
Unless Perfect Day and similar alternative animal-free products make significant market inroads, predicting U.S. consumer responses to genetically engineered milk proteins and gelatin remains challenging. Consumers may appreciate having diverse options and feel reassured that no animals were harmed during production. Conversely, they might react negatively to the “ick” factor when faced with foods or beverages that diverge too far from their usual preferences. Furthermore, as these products evolve, there is an opportunity to integrate supplements like pure encapsulations calcium magnesium citrate, which could enhance their appeal by promoting health benefits alongside their innovative offerings.