Laboratory-produced cheese

Three French start-ups - Nutropy, Standing Ovation, and Bon vivant - are working on precision fermentation, a technology enabling the production of animal-free cheese and dairy products.

After the production of vegan cheese from soya, coconut oil, or cashew nuts, the biotech companies are seeking to 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐮𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. This involves cultivating proteins identical to those found in cow milk. For example, in Standing Ovation’s laboratories, 𝐜𝐨𝐰 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐬 capable of producing the main protein of milk - casein - 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐚 𝐦𝐢𝐜𝐫𝐨-𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐦, such as yeast, fungus, or bacteria, and this process is performed in a dark room.

The 𝐦𝐢𝐜𝐫𝐨-𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐦𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐯𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐬 and subsequently 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬, where they are mixed with water, salt, nitrogen, and sugar to enable their multiplication. The company can produce up to 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝟐𝟒 𝐡 only from a 30mL-flask. After filtration, centrifugation, and separation from the micro-organisms, the resulting product is a 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐝𝐞𝐫 that can be sold to manufacturers. The latter can then 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐞𝐬𝐞 (camembert, spreadable cheese) by reconstituting its firmness, stringiness, or fondant.

The yielded 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐥-𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 than the vegan substitutes. The environmental impact of this technology is believed to be lower without unduly affecting the 𝐧𝐮𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐪𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 and the taste of the product.