CULT Food Science Corp, an investment platform that focuses on clean, lab-grown food, revealed that its portfolio company, Fiction Foods LLC has provided significant operational updates and manufacturing guidance for the first half of 2022 related to its novel cellular agriculture product pipeline.
To date, Fiction Foods has completed bench-scale formulation and prototyping work for its flagship food product known as "Performance Scramble," a nutrient-rich and cell-based formula to be consumed in place of a chicken egg.
In November 2021, CULT led the seed round of financing for Fiction Foods, which is an intelligent food design company founded by Brendan Brazier, co-founder of plant-based food pioneer Vega.
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Fiction Foods aims to reinvent the way that nutrient-dense protein is produced, by doing it in a more efficient manner while doing less harm to the environment. Vega was acquired in 2015 by WhiteWave Foods Company for US$550 million, representing one of the most successful cash exits in the nascent years of the plant-based industry. Brazier also co-developed Beyond Meat's "Beast Burger", which launched as Beyond Meat's first burger in 2015.
Brazier’s Fiction Foods has now completed bench-scale formulation and prototyping work for "Performance Scramble," a nutrient-rich liquid that is designed to enhance mental and physical performance. According to the company, the Performance Scramble replaces a chicken egg so conventional applications include “all typical uses of chicken eggs.”
However, the functional nutrition delivered by Performance Scramble is superior to that of a chicken egg and it is expected to be produced at a fraction of the environmental cost.
In a statement Fiction Foods founder Brazier said: "Creating a nutrient-dense, versatile liquid that can be used in place of a chicken egg has long been an objective of mine.”
“We are working hard so that Performance Scramble will be used to bolster mental and physical performance far beyond that of a chicken egg's nutritional capability, while leaving the chicken alone. It's not a fake egg, but a whole new culinary experience, that is made from a signal-cell organism called euglena that contains animal-like and high-quality protein, but without the animal," he added.
Some of the nutrient optimizations of Fiction Foods' Performance Scramble include:
- 15% more animal-quality protein than a chicken egg;
- More DHA omega-3 than salmon, which can promote long-term brain health;
- More zinc than oysters, which can promote optimal metabolic function;
- More probiotics than yogurt, which can promote healthy intestinal flora;
- More antioxidants than blueberries, to help combat free radicals produced from exercise/exertion;
- MCT-oil, which can promote enhanced cognitive performance; and,
- Beta glucan, to help boost the immune system.
Fiction Foods also reported that it is in the process of finalizing long-term ingredient supply and manufacturing agreements ahead of the commercial launch of Performance Scramble in the third quarter of 2022.
In addition, Fiction Foods has recently unveiled its brand and new company website.
“CULT applauds the accelerated product development timeline out of the Fiction Foods camp," said Lejjy Gafour, President of CULT. "Their inaugural product, the aptly-named Performance Scramble, has been designed to drive human potential while providing an offset for its environmental footprint. The Performance Scramble prototype is a testament to Brendan's lifelong pursuit to improve both human health and the environment."
Contact the author Uttara Choudhury at uttara@proactiveinvestors.com
Follow her on Twitter: @UttaraProactive