MISTA, co-founded by Givaudan, Danone, and others, is a San Francisco-based innovation platform accelerating the development of plant-based and fermentation-powered food solutions. It offers state-of-the-art labs and pilot facilities to help startups and corporates scale sustainable food technologies.
Céline Schiff-Deb has been working for over 20 years at the interface of science and business, translating biotech innovations into relevant commercial products in the areas of food, feed, ag and cosmetics. She is currently the CSO at MISTA. Previously, she led Product Innovation for multiple biotech platforms, including Solazyme (microalgae oils) and Calysta (microbial proteins) and was advising biotech companies in France. Céline is an agronomist by training and has a PhD in plant molecular biology
In this interview, Céline discusses the growing potential of biomass fermentation as a critical pillar for future food security, the technological and commercial challenges facing the sector, and how MISTA is accelerating innovation through collaboration.
What led Givaudan and MISTA to focus on biomass fermentation for this year’s Growth Hack?
We decided to focus the 2024 MISTA Growth Hack on biomass fermentation because this category of ingredients is an important new pillar for human nutrition and food security. Despite the multiple benefits of these microbial-derived ingredients, the food industry has been slow to understand how to formulate with them and launch new products. MISTA’s hands-on programme, involving 14 start-ups and eight global food players working together to evaluate, test, and develop food concepts, helped accelerate the adoption and deployment of Biomass Fermentation for food and beverage applications.
How has the biomass fermentation market evolved in the past few years, and where do you see it heading in the next 5-10 years?
Biomass fermentation-derived ingredients have been in the human food chain for decades but have been limited to pretty niche and specialty applications (e.g., nutritional yeast, probiotics, spirulina). Over the last few years, more ingredients and applications have come in the form of mycelium, which is fungal biomass produced by fermentation.
Mycelium has been commercialised for over 30 years by Quorn, but many other companies have recently developed mycelium-derived ingredients and launched products in the alt meat and alt dairy categories (e.g. Meati, Nature’s Fynd, My Forest Foods). The use of yeast as a source of proteins in foodstuffs has also greatly expanded (e.g. Revyve, Equii, MOA FoodTech). Even more recently, we saw regulatory approval and launches of bacterial-derived ingredients in the US (e.g. SuperBrewed, Solar Biotech).
With a growing global population, how critical is biomass fermentation for ensuring food security in the coming decade?
Fermentation, and in particular biomass fermentation, can be considered as the third pillar for sourcing nutrients, alongside plants and animals. With a growing population and finite planetary resources, all these sources of food will be critical to feed 9 billion people. In addition, with the ability to grow biomass in fermenters anywhere in the world, countries and regions with no arable land or inhospitable weather conditions could produce their food locally, given the proper input (mostly energy, water, and nitrogen). We should not consider biomass-derived ingredients as an “alternative” source of protein and nutrients, but as an “additional” source. With a growing worldwide population, we will need to diversify our sources of food.
What factors are driving the increasing interest and investment in biomass fermentation technologies?
As mentioned above, fermentation is being rediscovered as an untapped source of food. Within the various subsegments of fermentation technology, biomass fermentation appears to be more cost-effective (opex, capex, energy, etc.) and easier to scale up than precision fermentation and cultivated animal cell approaches. A few consumer studies also indicate that fermented foods elicit pretty positive sentiments.
What are the most exciting technological advancements within biomass fermentation that you believe will significantly impact the food industry in the near future?
What is really exciting is that the up-and-coming biomass fermentation-derived ingredients have been optimised for their nutritional profile (e.g. high protein, diverse fibres, vitamin B12, bioavailable iron), and/or their functional properties (e.g. emulsification, texture, colour). This will enable them to unlock meaningful benefits in finished foods and beverages. Another exciting development is the commercial launch of the first bacterial biomass-derived ingredients that are produced using CO2 as a feedstock (Solar Foods), and not sugar, therefore totally decoupling their production from agriculture. Many other gas fermentation platforms are looking promising (e.g. Air Protein, Circe, Lanzatech), including some that leverage methane as their source of carbon (e.g. Calysta, UniBio).
How do microorganisms like microalgae, fungi, and bacteria contribute to improving biomass fermentation’s efficiency and sustainability? What unique benefits do they bring to the table in terms of nutrient density, taste, and sustainability?
Microbes are really efficient at converting carbon, nitrogen and a few minerals to reproduce themselves, thus producing more cells or biomass. They typically can reproduce themselves in a couple of hours or less, leading to commercial production time counted in days, vs. months for a crop and years for a cow.
Also, many microorganisms are able to utilise CO2 as their source of carbon (e.g. microalgae, cyanobacteria, some bacteria). Others can upcycle side streams from agriculture and food manufacturing to produce yet more biomass, while reducing the carbon footprint. As far as their composition is concerned, microbial biomass contains all the components necessary for their life, and the life of bigger organisms eating them (protein, carbohydrates, lipids, minerals, vitamins, etc.). They are mini nutrition-dense packages.
It is true that in some instances, these complex ingredients come with some off-taste or an undesirable colour. However, there are technical solutions to alleviate these limitations, and Givaudan can partner with start-ups and food manufacturers to deliver delicious finished goods. We can also hope that consumers’ tastes and expectations will evolve with time. For example, consumers now know that breads with complete unbleached flours and grains are healthier than white breads.
What are the key technological hurdles that need to be addressed to scale biomass fermentation in food production? How is Givaudan working with start-ups and other partners to address these challenges?
First, there are the technical hurdles linked to the economic scale-up of the fermentation process itself. Coming up with cheaper fermenter designs or improving dewatering and drying technologies could help shave some of the production costs. The second set of hurdles is related to the formulation of these new fermented ingredients and the production of finished foods and beverages. For that to happen, there may need to be some modifications to the food manufacturing process, as these fermented ingredients are often not drop-ins and may need different mixing or pasteurisation steps, for example.
Another challenge is the taste of these ingredients. Some may come with off-notes, others can be bland and lack the flavour of the meat or dairy-derived ingredients they are meant to replace. Givaudan can support start-ups as they develop their ingredients, helping to identify and alleviate potential sensory shortcomings by modifying their processes. Givaudan is also working closely with CPG and food service companies that want to include these new fermented ingredients in finished products, and can provide integrated solutions, including flavour, colour, texture, and preservation, to make delicious and healthy foods.
How do you see biomass fermentation integrating into mainstream food production processes in the next few years? Will we see large-scale adoption soon, or is this likely to be a gradual shift?
Though I would love to see widespread adoption as soon as possible, realistically, it will likely be more gradual over the next five or so years. Indeed, it will take a few successful targeted product launches (one new fermented ingredient launched in a few SKUs, in a limited geography) to derisk this ingredient category for large CPG, retailers and food services companies.
In parallel, the production of these ingredients will need to be scaled up to support global product launches across multiple food categories. As many ingredients are derived from liquid fermentation (some from solid-state fermentation), fermentation infrastructure, including downstream processing, will need to be built to support the demand. Some of the infrastructure is being built and expanded, but the substantial existing infrastructure from large historic ingredients players can also be redeployed.
What are the main obstacles food manufacturers face when adopting biomass fermentation?
The main obstacle is risk aversion. In the last few years, most of the innovations in the food space have been incremental (e.g., new flavours and new packaging). In the case of biomass fermentation ingredients, the risk can be boiled down to: Will consumers understand this ingredient and its benefits? Is it in my brand’s best interest to be the first to launch? Will there be a reliable supply of this ingredient at a cost-effective level for my company to invest resources and brand equity?
Unfortunately, for most large food producers, it seems that the incentive to explore new food concepts while increasing nutritional value and sustainability does not yet outweigh the risk. The task at hand is not trivial: from developing new formulations and possibly new brands, marketing, labelling, production challenges, etc. But the rewards will be substantial if done well. Despite these obstacles, as the planet reaches its classical food production limits, the question remains not if, but when.
As the biomass fermentation market grows, what are the main factors driving this growth? Are food manufacturers particularly focused on improving sustainability, reducing production costs, or addressing nutritional gaps, or is there another key motivator?
As discussed previously, biomass fermentation has the potential to tick all of these boxes. In the context of tariffs and commodity ingredient supply chain disruption, the ability to limit price volatility and produce locally should increasingly become a strong driver. However, in the near term, we believe that the ability to deliver healthier nutrition to the masses could be the fastest engine for the mass adoption of biomass fermentation ingredients.
