Inside BENEO’s new pulse plant: pioneering sustainable protein from faba beans
Highly focused on animal-free casein production which is the most complex protein and hasn’t been commercialised by any company globally
Zero Cow Factory, a biotechnology startup producing India’s first animal-free protein and dairy products using bioengineering microbes and precision fermentation, has raised $4 million (Rs 32 crore) in a seed round. The round was co-led by Green Frontier Capital, GVFL and pi Ventures, with participation from Pascual Innoventures, the investment arm of a leading Spanish dairy group Calidad Pascual. With this funding, Zero Cow Factory will be able to accelerate their R&D efforts, scale up production capacity, and obtain regulatory approvals to hit the market.
The Surat-based startup has developed a patented technology to produce dairy proteins such as casein & whey, without any animal being involved. Its first product is A2 Beta-casein which is also healthier as the A1 milk protein which causes indigestion is absent from their product.
The aim is to be the first company to get global regulatory approval for this protein. This will be used to formulate various sustainable food and dairy products like cheese, yogurt, ice-cream, supplement powder etc. which are used across various industries like food, dairy, nutraceutical, and dietary supplements.
Image caption- Sohil Kapadia and Parini Kapadia, Co-Founders, Zero Cow Factory