Animal-free dairy proteins appear to provide functional advantages similar to those of animal-free, cell-cultured “meat” products, which are garnering attention and investment from major food manufacturers. Memphis Meats, a San Francisco-based startup focused on cultured “meat,” has attracted funding from both Tyson Ventures, the investment branch of Tyson Foods, and Cargill. On the cost front, Memphis Meats aims to decrease its current high price for cell-cultured “meat,” which it estimates could drop from approximately $2,400 per pound last year to around $3 or $4 per pound by 2021. Likewise, Perfect Day will need to contend with existing dairy proteins if it intends to succeed in the market. Dairy industry analyst Matt Gould advised the co-founders in 2016 that they would need to lower their price to about $2.50 per pound.
Beyond pricing, product labeling presents another challenge. The co-founders of Perfect Day have been in talks with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration about how to communicate that their ingredients are technically dairy yet derived from animal-free sources. Perfect Day’s patented method involves utilizing food-grade yeast and incorporating DNA sequences from dairy cows—now possible to 3D print—to generate proteins typically found in dairy milk. These proteins are cultivated in large fermentation tanks filled with corn sugar and additional nutrients to promote growth. Once harvested mechanically, these proteins can be integrated into any food or beverage that currently employs dairy proteins, as explained by Perfect Day co-founder Ryan Pandya to Food Navigator.
Additionally, Gelton, a company producing gelatin without animal use, is another emerging player in this sector. Gelton’s process creates a vegan alternative to traditional gelatin, which the company refers to as a $3 billion industry. However, Gelton informed Food Navigator that it will require time and scaling to compete with the current gelatin market price of approximately $8 per kilogram, or about $3.63 per pound.
Unless Perfect Day and other alternative animal-free products begin making significant market inroads, it is challenging to predict how U.S. consumers will react to genetically engineered milk proteins and gelatin. They may appreciate having alternatives and feel reassured that no animals were harmed or killed during production, or they may be deterred by the “ick” factor when encountering foods or beverages that stray too far from their comfort zone. This hesitation could be particularly relevant when considering the Citracal equivalent of dairy proteins in terms of consumer acceptance and familiarity.