Got milk? It might not be real

Caryn Lipson

April 14, 2024

Faux meat, meet faux dairy

You may not have heard as much about synbio (synthetic biology) milk as about lab-grown meat, which Frontline News recently brought to readers' attention. Lab-grown meat is produced by replicating cells from a cow. Synbio dairy is produced by “precision fermentation,” a process that uses genetically engineered yeast to replicate a whey protein. The Alliance for Natural Health (ANH) describes how the Bored Cow company uses precision fermentation to make its synbio milk.

This involves taking a gene for whey protein and inserting it into a GE yeast. The yeast is put into fermentation tanks with other nutrients to help it grow. At the end the GE yeast is supposed to be filtered out, leaving only the milk protein. Bored Cow takes this protein and adds vitamins, minerals, and other ingredients to mimic the taste, consistency, and nutritional content of real cow’s milk.

According to the Non-GMO Project Standard, all products of genetic engineering, including synthetic biology, are GMOs.

Bored Cow's synbio milk is sold in stores such as Sprouts Market, Fairway, Save Mart, and others. It advertises its genetically engineered faux milk as "The first milk alternative to do it all."

Does it really “do it all?” For people interested in fake foods, synbio milk certainly seems to fit the bill; it's animal-free, vegan-friendly, said to be nutritionally equivalent to milk, and can be used in foods, cooking, and baking in the same ways as real milk. In her article about Bored Cow for HuffPost, Su-Jit Lin sings the faux milk's praises.

Animal free

Lin explains that the milk-like product does not involve any animals because the genetic sequencing of the Montana cow named Dominette used to make it was already on file with the Bovine Genome Project. Because no animals were involved, the company claims it is vegan-friendly, although unsafe for those with milk allergies.

Better than the real thing?

Ben Berman, co-founder and CEO of Bored Cow, stated that their product, created to “replicate the taste, texture, nutrition and functionality of conventional dairy milk,” has a nutrition panel nearly identical to, if not better than, the generic milk he had in his fridge, according to the report:

Like other milk alternatives, we combine our protein with plant-based ingredients, vitamins and minerals.” But unlike those alternatives, in a side-by-side comparison to the generic market milk I had in my fridge, I found the nutrition panel to be nearly identical, if not better.

“Just like conventional dairy milk, a serving of Bored Cow has 8 grams of complete protein, amino acids and all, and is an excellent source of calcium, vitamin D and B12,” Berman said.

Bored Cow passes the cereal and coffee tests

Lin stated that Bored Cow was similar to 2% milk in taste and texture in her cereal and coffee and, according to Berman, it could be used in the same ways as milk.

The viscosity of it in a glass, in cereal, and in my iced coffee mimicked that of 2% or whole milk, and unlike plant milks, didn’t break in hot coffee. Even better news, Berman said: “It froths, foams, cooks and bakes just like cow’s milk.”

Real milk is much cheaper

The only downside she reported was pricing, since it was much more expensive per quart than real milk and some families who drink a lot of milk would be hard-pressed to buy Bored Cow's. She hoped that, as it gained popularity and production increased, the price would come down.

Bored Cow has a lot of company

Bored Cow is not the only company developing synthetic milk based on precision fermenting.

This tweet by Organic Garden Coach & Business Strategist links to an article by the Non-GMO Project highlighting the price difference between Bored Cow and real milk and reviewing companies in Europe that are developing their own versions of synbio milk.

Other companies that produce synbio dairy by precision fermentation include the ones below, which were reviewed by the Non-GMO Project. These companies also claim, on their websites, that their faux dairy products are equivalent to the real thing yet better for cows, people, and the environment.

ReMilk - Real Dairy. No Cows.™"

Dairy crafted Remilk's way is healthy and clean, with no cholesterol, lactose, hormones, and antibiotics – just 100% yum without the scum! It’s identical in taste, requires a fraction of the resources and is 100% cruelty-free.
Holy cow!

Formo - “Cheese. This Time Animal-Free.”

To keep our fondues gooey, forests healthy, cheese boards stinky and climate stable, it’s time to dump industrial dairy and start the path to a better food system.

Change Foods - maker of synbio cheese.

. . . by keeping the cows blissfully uninvolved, we can ensure our cheese contains all the good stuff and none of the nasties.

Yes to protein, calcium, and deliciousness. Hold the cholesterol, hormones and antibiotics.

10x less water. 100x less land. 5x less energy. 25x less feedstock.

Imagindairy - “Not all dairy is created equally.”

By combining our admiration for dairy, concern for the planet, and expertise in science, we’ve created dairy proteins that possess the same bold flavour, functionality, experience, mouthfeel, and nutrition as the cow-required dairy you’ve always known and enjoyed. Our animal-free dairy products are also lactose-free, growth hormone-free, and cholesterol-free.

New Culture - “Cow Cheese Without The Cow”

We love ‘em all, but for the-love-of-pizza we had to start with mozzarella. Our mozz has the same taste and stretch that you expect from your favorite pie, which is why we’re bringing our cheese to pizzerias first.

By the time it’s on your plate, it’s just as melty and creamy as the original. But it’s also animal-free, lactose-free, and planet-friendly. And above all, it makes a killer pizza.

Faux dairy where you don't expect it

Synbio milk is being used as an ingredient in food products produced by other companies and about which consumers are likely to be in the dark, as the following tweet by B. Maat shows.

Is fake milk truly equivalent to cow milk?

As Frontline News has shown, the claims made by manufacturers of lab-grown meat don't hold up, nor do the claims of environmentalists and government authorities promoting the use of EV cars.

Considering the magnitude of the synbio dairy industry, it is important to ask if the claims made by Bored Cow and other synbio dairy manufacturers are accurate. That will be the topic of our next article on synbio milk.

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