Startups, Accelerators & Incubators

Start-Up Aims to Replace Animal Gelatine by 2020

The new American start-up Geltor specialises in animal-free, plant-based gelatine, and is researching new biotechnological alternatives for this purpose. Geltor has set itself the goal of completely replacing conventional animal gelatine by 2020, and has already taken the first steps towards exploring markets.

Traditional gelatine, derived from animal products such as bones, pig skins and cow skins, is used in many different products in the food industry. Animal gelatine has very specific properties and gives products texture and stability. So far, it has been difficult to find or develop plant-based alternatives with identical properties. Through its research efforts, which have included vegan collagen, Geltor has now come very close to achieving this goal.

Alexander Lorestani, managing director and co-founder of Geltor, calls his company a “microbial factory” for the production of plant-based rennet. Geltor scientists use biotechnological methods to introduce protein genes into yeasts. The genetically modified yeasts are then placed in a fermentation tank where they are enriched with nutrients to produce a gelatin-like product.

According to a report in the San Francisco Chronicle, the company will soon start sending samples of its innovative products to major manufacturers. Furthermore, the company is confident that it will be able to launch the product within the next three years. Thanks to the continuing global vegan trend and the increasing production of animal-free, plant-based consumer goods, Geltor expects high demand for its plant-based innovations.

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