Jim Fader,founder and chief executive of Eden Brew,which has replicated the process of making milk using the same fermentation process that happens in dairy cows.Credit:Nick Moir
CSIRO-backed start-up Eden Brew,which has worked out how to “brew” milk in a lab in a way that emulates the natural fermentation process that happens in cows,is working on industrialising the process and expects to have its animal-free products on the market by 2024.
Founder and chief executive Jim Fader said the company’s business model would be based on global beverages giant Coca-Cola’s supply chain,where the main ingredient - in this case the animal-free milk protein - is brewed centrally and then shipped to dairy companies across the world.
“We’re taking it from two- to 10-litre scales to 500,000-litre scale so that we can make it at a cost and scale that makes the whole thing worthwhile,” he said.
“We expect that by about 2028 to 2030,we will be at the same retail price to the consumer as milk,mostly because we come down in price but in part because there’s forecast continued inflation in dairy.”
The process involves inserting synthetic cow DNA into yeast to form a protein known as a casein micelle,the “essential building block” for cow’s milk. These proteins are then brewed,filtered and dried ready to be rehydrated and turned into animal-free dairy products.
Milk brewed in a lab using precision fermentation. Eden Brew expects the product to be on the market by 2024.
Eden Brew is among a host of new companies racing to get animal-free products to consumers,promising a more ethical and ecologically sustainable alternative to dairy. In the US,consumers can already buy ice-cream,spreadable cheese and protein powder made from animal-free milk protein produced by Silicon Valley player Perfect Day.
Fader said the fledgling industry would help meet the growing global demand for protein,which the UN forecastswill increase by 74 per cent by 2050 as the global population nears 10 billion.