Lab grown meat became a hot topic of debate in the past couple years, and plant-based food companies are on an upward trend in popularity. The idea was to remove the environmental impact and animal suffering from the equation, while still enjoying the taste of meat.
Cultivated foods have been around for hundreds of years, but lab scientists are taking this idea to the next level. Health Canada has recently approved an innovation in dairy production that takes the cow out of the milk.
According to Health Canada: "In 2022, Health Canada received a submission to allow the sale of β-lactoglobulin protein produced from a novel yeast strain, Komagataella phaffii yRMK-66. This protein is the same as β-lactoglobulin in whey protein from cow's milk."
The company, called Remilk, was co-founded by Aviv Wolff and in February 2023 it received a No Questions Letter from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Singapore Food Agency, and Canada was given the greenlight.
"It was determined that the β-lactoglobulin protein produced in this yeast strain does not pose a greater risk to human health than whey protein from cow's milk that is currently available on the Canadian market," stated Health Canada in a media release. "Health Canada also concluded that this β-lactoglobulin protein is no different in nutritional value compared to whey protein from cow's milk."
This cultivated protein will be allowed in a variety of foods such as milk, ice cream, yogurt, cream cheese, but is free of lactose, cholesterol and growth hormones. However, Health Canada indicated that, "the novel yeast strain may produce the same allergic response as milk when it is consumed, so all products containing it will be labelled to indicate that it contains a milk allergen."
Health Canada also stated that, "scientists with expertise in molecular biology, microbiology, toxicology, chemistry and nutrition conducted a thorough analysis of the data and the protocols provided by the applicant to ensure the validity of the results.”
"There's a lot to love in dairy, which is why we set out to create a solution that will enable consumers to enjoy the taste of the dairy without dairy's environmental and health-related drawbacks," stated Wolff in a media release. "This is the first company producing animal-identical protein to receive Health Canada's No Objection Letter."
According to Health Canada's assessment of β-lactoglobulin produced from yeast strain, K. phaffii yRMK-66 was conducted according to the Guidelines for the Safety Assessment of Novel Foods: "The approach taken by Health Canada in the safety assessment of novel foods is based upon scientific principles developed through expert international consultation over the last 20 years with agencies such as the World Health Organization (WHO), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)."
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