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San Francisco, CA - March 20, 2024 – Food tech innovator MeliBio is expanding its technology platform to enhance its precision fermentation capabilities, with scale-up projects commencing this month.
MeliBio’s R&D team has successfully completed proof of concept work related to the production and use of fermentation-enabled protein targets, and will begin scale-up with Pow.Bio, its preferred partner in the San Francisco Bay Area.
The expansion of MeliBio’s fermentation technologies will enable the company to produce high- value bee proteins and enzymes for multiple markets including global functional food ingredients, valued in excess of $100B. Production and use of these targets will greatly enhance products both current and under development, expanding the product portfolio owned and managed by MeliBio.
MeliBio has selected Pow.Bio as a scale-up partner for their expertise in traditional fermentation and innovative continuous fermentation technology utilizing artificial intelligence (AI). By offering AI-enhanced and traditional methods of precision fermentation, Pow.Bio is uniquely positioned to work with MeliBio to scale their bioprocess efficiently.
“Working with cutting edge science, particularly that aided by precision fermentation, has always been part of our long term technological vision at MeliBio,” said Chief Technology Officer and Co-founder Dr. Aaron Schaller. “Our ability to produce target bee proteins and enzymes through our experimental methods has yielded promising results, and we’re ready to take our technology to the next stage. This initiative will help us elevate the functionality of our products to come, and provide more of the benefits of bee-derived honey to current products, while also matching authenticity beyond taste and texture.”
MeliBio CEO and Co-founder Darko Mandich added, “We’ve enjoyed a fantastic market response to our plant-based honey products and will continue to serve that demand. Beyond that, accessing levels of product performance and authenticity not possible through plant science alone, through our enhanced technology platform, opens up a variety of significant commercial opportunities.”
MeliBio produces high quality, sustainable alternatives to traditional bee-derived honey products, which place a critical burden on bee health and biodiversity. MeliBio products are sold under the Mellody® brand in the US, as ALDI’s JustVeg! Vegan Hanny™ in the EU, and Better Foodie Vegan H*ney in the UK.
The company’s award-winning Golden Clover and recently launched Spicy Habanero vegan honey products, both lauded for their match to the taste, texture, and performance of bee- derived honey, were developed using advanced culinary techniques and proprietary plant science, and are available through its wholly owned consumer brand, Mellody®.