By Agroempresario.com

Alpine Bio, a pioneering molecular farming startup focused on engineering plants to produce animal proteins in a more sustainable and efficient way, has successfully harvested its first large-scale crop of soybeans engineered to contain casein proteins in Nebraska.

“This achievement represents the culmination of seven years of research and development, reaching the point where both the science and economics align,” explains founder and CEO Magi Richani, a civil engineer who transitioned from a career in project management at Shell to establish her own company.

Richani highlights the importance of scaling up the technology effectively across the entire supply chain. “While microbes can be engineered to produce casein protein via precision fermentation, the molecular farming approach offers significant cost advantages, especially with lower capital and operational expenses. We can also tap into existing infrastructure, making it a more scalable and economically viable solution,” she adds.

Alpine Bio aims to address the challenges of replicating casein, the protein responsible for the melt and stretch qualities of dairy cheese, which many plant-based cheese companies have struggled with. “These companies have spent significant resources trying to develop plant-based cheeses that can mimic real cheese, but many have realized they cannot achieve the desired result without [animal-free] casein. That’s where we come in, providing a cost-effective solution.”

In the coming year, Alpine Bio plans to focus on securing key partnerships with customers that could lead to multimillion-dollar contracts, rather than distributing large quantities of samples. “Our priority now is locking in partnerships, working closely with strategic players across the supply chain, and accelerating the scale-up of production,” says Richani. “Of course, securing offtake agreements is critical. Once these agreements are in place, obtaining loans for further expansion becomes easier, reducing our reliance on equity funding.”

Although Alpine Bio had originally considered launching a consumer brand, Nobell Foods, to showcase its technology, Richani explains that the company is now focusing on a B2B model. “This is the most capital-efficient route. However, we still recognize the value of the Nobell brand, and may partner with another company to launch it.”

Alpine Bio is also committed to ensuring safe allergen management in its molecular farming process. “We are growing milk protein (casein) in soybeans, which poses allergen risks. To address this, we’ve developed a closed-loop system that tracks and traces all materials using GPS, ensuring everything is handled safely,” says Richani. The company is also testing innovative geofencing technology and visual markers to prevent contamination, ensuring the safety and integrity of the process.

Alpine Bio’s casein-producing soybeans can produce all four casein proteins found in cow’s milk, which are essential for creating cheese that melts and stretches. However, Richani emphasizes that producing a range of caseins isn’t always necessary. “We’ve been working on isolating individual caseins and testing different combinations to see which ones offer the best functionality for various applications.”

Richani adds that soybean was chosen as the crop for molecular farming due to its economic viability. “Soy is a commodity crop, optimized for protein production, and with 90 million acres grown annually in the U.S., it provides an abundant, established infrastructure for processing.”

Alpine Bio has designed its production process to fit seamlessly into traditional soy protein purification methods. The first steps include removing oil, followed by separating carbohydrates from protein, and then isolating the soy protein and casein protein fractions. While the company currently works with smaller-scale plants due to their flexibility, it plans to eventually integrate its technology into larger soybean processing plants.

The casein protein stream may contain small amounts of soy protein, and vice versa, but Richani points out that this doesn’t limit their market potential. “Many products already contain both dairy and soy, so we don’t see it as an issue,” she explains. The company is currently in the GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) process for both the soy and casein protein fractions.

What is Molecular Farming? Molecular farming involves genetically engineered plants that produce specific high-value ingredients, such as vaccines or dairy proteins, which they wouldn’t normally produce. The technology employs various methods, including transgenic crops, where foreign DNA is inserted into the plant’s genome to enable protein production, and transient expression systems, where the plant produces the target protein temporarily.

Alpine Bio’s success marks a key milestone in the future of sustainable protein production and showcases the potential of molecular farming to revolutionize the food industry.