Startup Wants Vegan Gelatin on Market in Five Years

Food & Wine recently profiled San Francisco startup Gelzen and its mission to create vegan gelatin. Using bacteria and yeast engineered to mimic the same gelatin produced in animal tissue, the company says it’s making an animal-free version of the real deal, not a plant-based substitution. Headed by co-founder and CEO Alex Lorestani, Gelzen aims to produce this new cruelty-free ingredient at a low enough cost that it competes with animal-based gelatin and at high enough levels for use in an array of industries, including food, medical, and cosmetic. Gelzen has secured support and funding from a new investment group called New Crop Capital that specializes in animal-free companies such as Memphis Meats and Miyoko’s Kitchen.