The first edition of Mylkcubator, the incubation program launched by Pascual Innoventures in collaboration with Eatable Adventures, has held its eagerly anticipated Demo Day event showcasing the advances of the first cohort of startups, at its headquarters in Manoteras, Madrid.
The program not only showcased pioneering dairy projects around the world but also laid the foundation for a new path of development and innovation for the industry to face some of its greatest challenges.
As a culmination of the six-month incubation program, the participating startups presented their final pitches, paving the way for future funding rounds that will allow them to pursue their innovative development and research:
- De Novo Dairy, a startup based in South Africa with a mission to create the future of nutrition, the company uses precise fermentation technology to produce animal-free dairy proteins that provide the same sensory experience and nutrition as traditional dairy counterparts. De Novo Dairy is currently developing high-value proteins for the dairy industry.
- Spanish startup Real Deal Milk develops casein and whey proteins through precision fermentation technologies with the same functional properties as traditional dairy components, with the aim to produce dairy substitutes equivalent to traditional dairy.
- Using bioengineering & microbial fermentation, Zero Cow Factory is reinventing dairy ingredients with India’s first milk and milk products (certainly the world’s first A2 milk protein) using bioengineering the microbes & microbial fermentation. The Zero Cow team is developing a proprietary technique to recreate milk proteins to develop real dairy products that are ethical, safe, delicious, and identical to cow milk.
- Pure™ Mammary Factors based in the USA are accelerating the state of the art in cell-cultured dairy by crashing the cost of production by the development of growth factors used in culture media. The startup aims to make cell-cultured human milk affordable and accessible by selling food-grade off-the-shelf growth factors around the world.
Pascual Innoventures is committed to driving innovation to create a more sustainable future for all, anticipating the current trends that will shape the foods of the future. Due to the success of the first edition of Mylkcubator, Pascual Innoventures has already announced the call for the second edition of the program.
According to Sejal Ravji, director of Pascual Innoventures, “the success of the Mylkcubator Demo Day not only reaffirms the great response this program has had in the sector worldwide but also confirms what we at Innoventures already knew, in order to develop the dairy products of the future we have to continue to invest in transformational innovation and ambitious technological projects, as is the case with the four startups that have been working with us since the start of Mylkcubator six months ago”.
Furthermore, according to Jose Luis Cabañero, founder and CEO of Eatable Adventures, “In the coming years, we expect to see increased innovation in the alternative protein space, with breakthroughs in cellular agriculture and precision fermentation technologies. Mylkcubator is a pioneering global program that is and will continue to be at the forefront of developing the dairy of the future.”
About Pascual
Pascual is a family-owned business established in Spain in 1969 that operates primarily in the food and beverage sector through Pascual and its subsidiary companies. Pascual has a range of over 200 products, 6 production plants, 27 local offices, and over 2,000 employees across 63 countries in which it operates. The primary activity is the manufacturing of dairy products, juices, natural mineral water, coffee, and plant-based beverages. Since 2008, Pascual’s portfolio has been complemented with other value-added products, through agreements and distribution partnerships with international companies such as Mondelez, Idilia Foods, Kellogg’s, and Heinz.
About Pascual Innoventures
Pascual Innoventures is the open innovation arm of Pascual, immersing itself in the entrepreneurial ecosystem to create alliances with startups and other players in the ecosystem who share the same philosophy: anticipating global food needs and giving back to society. For Pascual Innoventures, this philosophy is fundamental, a culture that begins with the premise of creating value wherever they can in this world. It is about giving the consumer a memorable experience and, at the same time, contributing to the survival of our beautiful planet.
About Eatable Adventures
Eatable Adventures is one of the main global foodtech accelerators, with more than 25 programs launched, and a deal flow of 2,400 foodtech startups analyzed each year. Eatable Adventures detects, promotes, and invests in the most disruptive startups that promise a relevant impact in the agri-food value chain, through successful collaboration models with corporations in the food industry, showing innovation opportunities, in line with their strategic challenges and business. Eatable Adventures has launched its first venture capital fund: Eatable Evolution Fund I FCR, a €50 million vehicle that will invest in seed-stage and Series A Foodtech startups, in Europe and Latam.