{"id":68036,"date":"2025-05-22T10:35:06","date_gmt":"2025-05-22T08:35:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fhi.nl\/?post_type=news&p=68036"},"modified":"2025-11-19T15:33:53","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T14:33:53","slug":"smakelijke-vlees-en-zuivelvervangers-hoe-precisiefermentatie-ons-eten-verandert","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/fhi.nl\/en\/news\/smakelijke-vlees-en-zuivelvervangers-hoe-precisiefermentatie-ons-eten-verandert\/","title":{"rendered":"Tasty meat and dairy substitutes: how precision fermentation is changing our food"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By: Eline te Velde<\/h6>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\tTasty meat and dairy substitutes: how precision fermentation is changing our food\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\n\t\t\t\t
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What will our food supply look like if we no longer need cows or chickens for milk and meat? Julia Keppler, researcher at Wageningen University & Research (WUR), is looking into exactly that question. She is investigating how alternative proteins \u2014 from plants or micro-organisms \u2014 can contribute to full-fledged and tasty meat and dairy substitutes.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Julia Keppler investigates how proteins from plants, fungi, insects and micro-organisms can replace animal meat and dairy products. In her research, she does not limit herself to one protein source or technology, but looks at a wide range of proteins, and investigates in particular how you can process them in such a way that they can be used in real food. Surprisingly enough, her career started in a completely different field: architecture. \u201cBack then I designed buildings, now I also design, but then on a micro scale,\u201d she says with a laugh. \u201cProteins are surprisingly suitable for this \u2014 they literally form the building blocks of our food.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Anyone who\u2019s ever tried vegan cheese knows that it rarely melts like real cheese\u2014let alone tastes the same. Keppler explains that this is because plant proteins are fundamentally different from animal proteins. Animal milk, for example, contains casein micelles: complex protein structures that, together with calcium and fat, form a strong network. \u201cThat network provides the structure, the meltability, the flavor development\u2026 everything that makes cheese cheese.\u201d<\/p>\n

Precision fermentation<\/h4>\n

Enter precision fermentation, a technology that\u2019s gaining traction as a promising source of protein. Where traditional fermentation, like beer or yogurt, uses microorganisms to produce flavor or alcohol, precision fermentation modifies a microbe\u2019s DNA so that it produces exactly the protein you need\u2014a milk protein, for example. \u201cYou introduce a piece of genetic code into a yeast cell,\u201d Keppler says, \u201cand then that cell grows into a whole colony that produces that specific protein.\u201d<\/p>\n

The result is a protein that is nearly indistinguishable from the animal original, but produced without the animal. \u201cAnd the beauty of it,\u201d she says, \u201cis that the microbe itself doesn\u2019t end up in the final product. You just filter out the protein.\u201d But there are challenges: the fermentation process also produces other substances, such as polysaccharides, that affect the behavior of the protein. \u201cWe have to learn to deal with those \u2018byproducts\u2019, without removing them all \u2013 because in many cases they are healthy. And less processing is ultimately more sustainable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hybrid products<\/h4>\n

In addition to precision fermentation, Keppler is also investigating whether we can eat microorganisms directly \u2014 for example, as a meat substitute. Some yeasts or bacteria contain up to 80 percent protein, and with a little technological processing you can transform them into something that closely resembles meat. \u201cThe idea is to use the biomass as purely as possible, without excessive processing. That is more sustainable, and sometimes yields surprisingly good results.\u201d<\/p>\n

Keppler talks about a promising direction, in which plant, microbial and animal proteins are combined: hybrid products. \u201cThis way you can use the best properties of both worlds,\u201d she says. Still, Keppler does not expect animal proteins to disappear completely. \u201cWe may discover completely new products, with such fine properties that people will automatically prefer them over animal alternatives.\u201d<\/p>\n

Frog tongues<\/h4>\n

The future of our food doesn\u2019t have to be a carbon copy of the past. Instead of imitating existing animal products, Keppler believes the real challenge lies in discovering something new \u2014 inspired by nature. \u201cIn nature, you see clever protein structures everywhere: adhesive strength, color, texture. Think of a frog\u2019s tongue. It consists of very specific protein structures that make flies stick to it. If we look at that carefully, we can learn to control proteins to do exactly what we want. That\u2019s what makes this work so special to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

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