News on AGRICULTURE

The search for sustainable, healthy alternatives to meat currently has two paths: the meat-mimicking veggie burger and lab-grown proteins. But in the land of dairy, there’s only plant-based alternatives like cashew “butter” and almond milk.

The refrigerator aisle has been full of plant-based dairy for some time, but now there are a few startups who, like the purveyors of cultured meat, want to take dairy one step further.

Already under siege by falling milk sales, dairy lobbyists have been lashing out at makers of plant-based rivals as they grow market-share. But their next enemy may be coming from the laboratory, in the form of synthetic whey, and investors are already lining up.

While fewer people are drinking cow’s milk, they’re still eating yogurt and cheese, and a crucial protein that comes from making those products is whey. It’s relatively flavorless and incorporates well into a range of food formulations for everyone from infants to adults. There’s already a huge market for it, as demand for whey protein and whey-based products is on the rise thanks to consumer demand for protein in everything, from bars to shakes.