Company News

Bold Cultr, General Mills’ Animal-Free Cream Cheese Venture, Closes After Losing Funding

Animal-free cream cheese startup Bold Cultr has suddenly closed its doors, the company announced yesterday, following a “difficult” decision by parent company General Mills to deprioritize its funding. 

“It has been an honor and a privilege to serve you”

Revealing the news to fans on social media, Bold Cultr stated it began as a unique startup launched by G-Works, General Mills’ corporate venture studio, which was created to solve food-related consumer problems through experimental innovation.

According to Bold Cultr, G-Works regularly reviews its innovation portfolio to evaluate its investments, and made the decision to deprioritize the brand’s funding, leading it to close operations on February 27. 

Recent partnership

The company’s abrupt closure comes just over a month after announcing a collaboration with Israeli alt-dairy company Remilk. In January, the two companies unveiled a new cream cheese made with Remilk’s cow-free dairy proteins. Initially rolling out in Minnesota retail stores, the partnership marked Remilk’s first commercial collaboration. 

General Mills Vegan Cream Cheese
©General Mills

Original launch

In 2021, General Mills reportedly became the first major food company to test products made with animal-free dairy proteins. Made with precision fermentation science, such proteins are said to be identical in taste, nutrition and performance to cow-based dairy.

Initially containing Perfect Day’s animal-free whey protein, Bold Cultr cream cheese was test-launched at several Minnesota supermarket locations, then became available for purchase online.

Bold Cultr says customers who placed an order for cream cheese through their website should email them for an update. 

Vegan Cream Cheese
©Bold Cultr

“Once again, thank you for being a part of our journey,” the company stated. “It has been an honor and a privilege to serve you.”




>> Click here to go to Cultivated X where you will see a familiar layout and a focus solely on content regarding cellular agriculture, including fermentation-enabled products, and with more granular categories.

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