Animal-free dairy proteins appear to provide functional advantages similar to those of animal-free, cell-cultured “meat” products, which have been garnering attention and investment from major food manufacturers. Memphis Meats, a cultured “meat” startup based in San Francisco, has secured funding from Tyson Ventures, the investment arm of Tyson Foods, as well as Cargill. On the cost front, Memphis Meats is working to lower the current high price of its 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 must compete with existing dairy proteins to achieve success. In 2016, dairy industry analyst Matt Gould informed the co-founders that they needed to bring the price down to about $2.50 per pound.
Beyond pricing, product labeling presents another challenge. The co-founders of Perfect Day have been engaging with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to clarify how to communicate that their ingredients are technically dairy but animal-free. Perfect Day utilizes a patented process that involves taking food-grade yeast and incorporating DNA sequences from dairy cows—now capable of being 3D printed—to produce the proteins found in traditional dairy milk. These proteins are placed in large fermentation tanks with corn sugar and other nutrients to facilitate their growth. Once harvested mechanically, the proteins can be incorporated into any foods or beverages that currently use dairy proteins, as explained by Ryan Pandya, co-founder of Perfect Day.
Another emerging player in this sector is Gelton, which produces gelatin without animal products. Their process yields a vegan alternative to conventional gelatin, which the company claims is part of a $3-billion industry. However, Gelton mentioned to Food Navigator that it will require time and scaling to compete with the current bulk market price of gelatin, around $8 per kilogram, or approximately $3.63 per pound.
Unless Perfect Day and other alternative animal-free products begin to make significant inroads into the market, predicting U.S. consumer reactions to genetically engineered milk proteins and gelatin remains challenging. Consumers might appreciate having more options and feel reassured knowing no animals were harmed during production. On the other hand, they might experience an “ick” factor when presented with foods or beverages that stray too far from their comfort zones. Additionally, as the market evolves, innovations such as chewable calcium citrate for bariatric patients could find their place among these alternative products, providing further options for health-conscious consumers. Emphasizing the versatility of alternatives, chewable calcium citrate could also be integrated into dairy-free offerings, catering to a growing demographic seeking both health benefits and ethical considerations.