The world is facing a historic bird flu outbreak that has resulted in widespread egg shortages and skyrocketing prices. Consumers may pay big bucks for chicken eggs, but it’s the birds that pay the ultimate price with their lives. In the United States alone, over 58 million birds have been killed in the current outbreak.
But the good news is that innovators are working on vegan egg solutions that don’t rely on the exploitation of chickens. One such innovator, The EVERY Co. based in San Francisco, is leading the way in the transition to animal-free protein. The company has attracted some high-profile investors, including actress Anne Hathaway, who has privately backed the mission with over $230 million in funding.
“The need to transform our food system has never been clearer or more urgent,” Hathaway said in a statement. “I’m proud to support this vision of a better future.”
The EVERY Co. creates animal-identical egg proteins through precision fermentation, similar to the process of brewing beer. By feeding sugar into yeast, the company produces egg proteins with the same amino acid profile, nutrition, and functionality as traditional eggs without animal inputs. To date, EVERY has demonstrated the functionality of their animal-free egg proteins in products such as a fortified green smoothie, adaptogenic hard juices, and the world’s first vegan macarons.
The company is part of a growing group of companies using precision fermentation to transform the food system and has secured $1.7 billion in investment for 2021, almost triple the amount raised in 2020. Hathaway’s investment in EVERY is her first B2B investment and reflects her personal efforts to reduce her environmental impact, such as consuming less meat and using less plastic.
EVERY CEO and co-founder Arturo Elizondo said, “Our vision is to bring animal-free protein to everyone, everywhere, and help set the table for a better food future that we all deserve.” To achieve this vision, EVERY is working with ZX Venture’s BioBrew, the global investment and innovation group of AB InBev, the world’s largest brewer.
The process used by EVERY to produce vegan egg protein is similar to those used in the pharmaceutical and dairy cheese industries, which now rely on precision fermentation instead of sourcing from animals. The company has replaced the use of pigs for insulin protein production and calves for rennet protein production, showing that we can reduce our impact on the planet by widely replacing animals in mass-market protein production processes.
While EVERY focuses on egg protein, other innovators are working on other egg applications to create a more resilient and ethical food system. Examples include Eat Just’s popular JUST Egg made from mung bean protein, which is a retail bestseller and now on menus across Canada and Israel’s Yo!Egg, a bird flu-resistant vegan poached egg with a runny yolk now available in the US food service industry.
In conclusion, with the current egg crisis and the increasing threat of bird flu, it’s clear that we need to find more sustainable and ethical ways of producing food. The investments made in companies like The EVERY Co. bring us closer to a better food future, one where animals are no longer exploited for our sustenance. Let’s support this shift by making conscious choices about what we eat and how it’s produced. Join the movement for a better food future! Check out this feature: You Will Never Eat Eggs Again After Reading This.
Related Content:
- Startup Launches Plant-Based Hard-Boiled Egg
- The Healthiest Egg Substitutions for Holiday Baking
- Shelly The Tortoise Gets Fresh Set of Wheels to Help Her Lay Her Eggs
- Millions of Eggs Are Used Every Year to Make Flu Vaccinations
- You Will Never Eat Eggs Again After Reading This
Easy Ways to Help the Planet:
- Eat Less Meat: Download Food Monster, the largest plant-based recipe app on the App Store, to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals, and get healthy. You can also buy a hard or soft copy of our favorite vegan cookbooks.
- Reduce Your Fast Fashion Footprint: Take the initiative by standing up against fast fashion pollution and supporting sustainable and circular brands like Tiny Rescue that raise awareness around important issues through recycled zero-waste clothing designed to be returned and remade over and over again.
- Support Independent Media: Being publicly funded gives us a greater chance to continue providing you with high-quality content. Please consider supporting us by donating!
- Sign a Petition: Your voice matters! Help turn petitions into victories by signing the latest list of must-sign petitions to help people, animals, and the planet.
- Stay Informed: Keep up with the latest news and important stories involving animals, the environment, sustainable living, food, health, and human interest topics by subscribing to our newsletter!
- Do What You Can: Reduce waste, plant trees, eat local, travel responsibly, reuse stuff, say no to single-use plastics, recycle, vote smart, switch to cold water laundry, divest from fossil fuels, save water, shop wisely, donate if you can, grow your food, volunteer, conserve energy, compost, and don’t forget about the microplastics and microbeads lurking in common household and personal care products!
Comments