Exclusive: Fonterra and Superbrewed Food collaborate to advance postbiotic protein tech

World dairy co-op Fonterra has signed a multi-year joint growth settlement with biomass fermentation startup Superbrewed Food to discover the potential of its “postbiotic” ingredient.

Beneath the settlement, Fonterra—which additionally makes ‘animal-free’ dairy proteins through precision fermentation at Vivici, a startup fashioned with DSM in 2022—will assess how the protein-packed ingredient would possibly complement its portfolio.

It’s also exploring utilizing lactose permeate, a byproduct of milk protein manufacturing, as a feedstock for Superbrewed Meals’s microorganisms, making a round answer, mentioned Superbrewed Meals founder Dr. Bryan Tracy.

“Fonterra has evaluated our present industrial ingredient and located it to have fairly compelling performance and vitamin,” mentioned Tracy, who has secured TO VC because the lead investor in a sequence B spherical he goals to finish this 12 months.

“They’re taking a look at how you can tackle demand for sustainable protein sources that complement dairy, precision-fermented dairy, and plant-based substances, as they’re invested in all of those areas.”

“It’s a really versatile ingredient so there are many totally different use instances,” added Tracy, who has partnered with Döhler to dedicate “substantial fermentation capacity” to the manufacturing of the postbiotic at one in every of Döhler’s services, with massive portions set to hit the market later this 12 months forward of product launches early subsequent 12 months.

He added: “Throughout our conversations, Fonterra additionally talked in regards to the quantity of lactose [milk sugar] generated by means of their very own dairy processing, so the query turned, may your organism or others in your library make the most of lactose [as opposed to glucose] as a feedstock? And the reply is sure, we’ve discovered one other species [of bacteria] that may feed on lactose and in addition make a compelling ingredient that might be complementary to our present product.”

“Fonterra is happy by the potential to boost the purposeful and dietary efficiency of meals utilizing substances sourced from new applied sciences equivalent to these utilized by Superbrewed Meals and that may be complementary to our dairy sourced substances and enterprise.” Chris Eire, common supervisor, innovation partnerships, Fonterra

85% protein content material, impartial coloration and style

Superbrewed Meals’s non-GMO bacterial biomass has unusually excessive protein content material (85%), a PDCAAS (protein digestibility) rating of 0.91 (which ranks greater than most plant proteins), and excessive ranges of B nutritional vitamins together with B12, plus minerals together with iron and zinc.

With a impartial style, pure white coloration, wonderful pH and temperature stability, and good emulsification properties, the C. tyrobutyricum pressure is attracting curiosity in all kinds of merchandise, claimed Tracy, who obtained a ‘no questions’ letter from the FDA this year affirming the ingredient’s GRAS (Typically Acknowledged as Secure) standing. 

“We’re working with some massive gamers, a few distributors, and a few smaller gamers, spanning the whole lot from shelf secure snacks to sports activities vitamin, together with our dairy and alt dairy partnerships [one of which is with BabyBel maker Bel Group], and count on to see the primary merchandise [containing the postbiotic] hit the market in Q1, 2025.”

Biomass and precision fermentation are usually not the identical

Quite than utilizing genetic engineering to “program” microbes to supply goal proteins, Superbrewed Meals is working with a bacterium that naturally produces excessive ranges of protein when grown in an anaerobic [without oxygen] atmosphere utilizing sugars from a wide range of feedstocks.

Not like precision fermentation firms which can be left with massive quantities of microbial biomass on the finish of every batch that’s both thrown away or despatched to the animal feed market, Superbrewed Meals is harvesting the entire biomass to make a complete meals ingredient. It has a co-product—butyric acid—for which there’s a longtime market, famous Tracy.

“We wish to valorize the whole lot. The postbiotic will generate the lion’s share of the income, however butyric acid will not be insignificant. Most firms use fermentation to make a chemical after which see the biomass as an afterthought. We flipped the script.”

Advertising bacterial protein

Whereas protein-packed microbes could not sound very client pleasant, the notion of consuming micro organism has develop into very nicely established due to probiotics, mentioned Tracy.  Though within the case of Superbrewed Meals, the micro organism are usually not “stay,” however are totally deactivated, he harassed. “They’re solely useless, and non spore-forming.”

In response to Superbrewed Meals, its bacterium meets the definition of “postbiotic” specified by an ISAPP (Worldwide Scientific Affiliation for Probiotics and Prebiotics) consensus paper (‘a preparation of inanimate microorganisms and/or their parts that confers a well being profit on the host’).

Manufacturing

Superbrewed has bought an ethanol plant it had acquired in Little Falls, Minnesota for large-scale anaerobic fermentation and is evaluating various websites to retrofit for better manufacturing capability, mentioned Tracy. “Superbrewed has booked gross sales into 2027 that can exceed the capability of its manufacturing partnership with Döhler. Accordingly, the corporate determined to hunt an alternate website within the US that might be transformed to supply bigger volumes than the Little Falls retrofit may help. Thus, we’re evaluating different website choices that would help bigger and quicker manufacturing capability.”

TO VC: ‘Of all of the microbial protein firms that we’ve got evaluated, Superbrewed is probably the most superior’

Joshua Phitoussi, managing associate at investor TO VC informed AgFunderNews: “We’ve been on the lookout for a protein answer that gives a no-compromise worth proposition to the CPG buyer. For instance, you can discover protein that’s low-cost, or nutritious, or purposeful, however by no means all on the identical time. Superbrewed’s product solves this trade-off, and C. tyrobutyricum’s distinctive bodily, mechanical, and dietary traits as a protein ingredient are central to this worth proposition.

“We imagine that inside the various protein house, microbial proteins are an especially compelling class. The speedy development charges of microbes, feedstock flexibility, and excessive protein, mineral, and vitamin ranges create three core benefits: First, this phase can attain value ranges at scale that solely the most affordable plant proteins can attain, but with far superior vitamin and performance traits. Second, manufacturing scale-up might be a lot simpler than different biotech options given the simplicity of the fermentation course of for many organisms. Third, the manufacturing of fermentation co-products affords a number of income streams that add to the underside line.

“Of all of the microbial protein firms that we’ve got evaluated, Superbrewed is probably the most superior in regulatory, manufacturing, and industrial features. The corporate has signed a producing settlement with the European CMO Döhler to get to 1,200mt/12 months by 2026. The purpose in 2027 and later is to supply within the US in retro-fitted ethanol property, both by means of partnership or acquisition. At scale (2,000mt+), the corporate’s COGS drop to low single-digit {dollars} per kg.

“The scalability, low manufacturing threshold to get to breakeven, and the extraordinarily low potential COGS, coupled with the product attributes listed above, are the explanation why we determined to spend money on Superbrewed.”

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