There has been quite a bit of buzz in recent years about lab-grown meat (or “clean meat”) companies, such as Memphis Meats, Super Meat, and Mosa Meats, but what about cellular agriculture for … milk? Enter Berkeley-based startup Perfect Day, who hope to bring their animal-free dairy proteins to the market soon!

Founded in 2014 by Ryan Pandya and Perumal Gandhi, Perfect Day recently completed their $24.7 million Series A round funding, led by Temasek. Other investors included Horizons Ventures, Continental Grain (USA), Iconiq Capital (USA), Lion Ventures, and Verus International.

Now, with a new patent secured and this recent round of funding, Perfect Day plans to scale-up their efforts by growing their team within their 17,000 square foot facility and working on commercializing their product.

“This round brings us closer to our goal: to provide dairy for everyone in a sustainable way. Thanks to the commitment and trust of our investors, we are in a better position than ever before to achieve the impact that motivates us,” said Ryan Pandya, co-founder and CEO of Perfect Day.

And how do they create their cruelty-free milk product using cellular agriculture, you ask? Perfect Day uses gene sequencing and 3D printing to make dairy proteins … without cows. Using yeast and age-old fermentation techniques, the company can make the same dairy proteins (casein and whey) found in conventional milk. Appropriately, Perfect Day often describes themselves as dairy meets craft brewing.

Perfect Day is free of hormones, antibiotics, steroids, and cholesterol and will be able to give consumers, who have animal, health or environmental concerns, a healthier and sustainable option to milk. With conventional organic milk sales slipping and consumers opting for plant-based options because they think they are healthier, Perfect Day will no doubt disrupt the dairy industry!

Follow Perfect Day on Facebook to stay up to date on all of their exciting progress!

To learn more about the environmental impact of our food choices as well as trends and developments in the plant-based food space, check out our podcast #EatForThePlanet with Nil Zacharias.

Lead Image Source: Perfect Day/Facebook