Three giant, iron figures rise from the waters of the Spree, standing directly opposite the Formo offices. They are the Molecule Men, thirty metres high, with their touching torsos representing the intersection of three proud Berlin districts.

As a Berlin autumn broke, Formo and Bitkom invited a range of voices to come together underneath these statues. We wanted to discuss evolving our food-system in evolving times.

We never made it to torso touching, but the event saw a mixing of different realities and priorities, offered by figures whose ideas and actions will shape the future of our food system, setting the scope for when and how changes are realised.

Our spree-side offices were honoured to host those representing stewards, sparks and filaments of food-system change: elected representatives, incumbent industry players, federal ministry bodies, climate scientists, and future-tech advocates all present, sharing their overview and perspective on where we are now, and where we need to go.

Dr. Ingo Stryck, Managing Director of Marketing at Wiesenhof,

Prof. Dr. Veronika von Messling, Head of Department for Life Sciences at the Federal Ministry of Education and Research,

Dr. Franziska Gaupp, Senior Scientist at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research & the Director of the Food Systems Economics Commission,

Andreas Schweikert, Division Manager of Digital Farming and Food Tech at Bitkom,

While Bitkom and Formo are longtime purveyors of dreams of digitalisation and dairy development, the evening offered a chance for these shiny visions to meet the very real and very earthy realities of those putting meat on the table, those answering to their constituents, and those responsible for shaping the priorities of a department sitting atop a country of eighty-million. A boggy political environment poses many challenges for those looking to rapidly offer protein solutions, with limited guidance so far extended to ease products’ journey to consumers. This evening showed both the complexity and possibilities for mutually supportive work into the future.

To that end, this was no VC love-in of back-patting and pitch decks, rather a stern examination of the realities, tradeoffs, and consternations of those being asked to fundamentally reimagine how a nation nourishes itself. While serving different stakeholders, all panelists saw fundamental flaws in our global food system and Germany’s backseat role in changing it, recognising roles for themselves and their organisations in pushing for reforms.

A holistic overview was most comprehensively provided by Dr. Gaupp, who outlined an analysis of the need and mechanics of food-system change while underlining that our current protein consumption far outstrips necessary boundaries. This bird’s eye view of our food-system was contrasted with the contributions of Dr. Stryck of Wiesenhof, who talked through the ground zero experiences of directly servicing Germany’s hunger for animal protein. Wiesenhof, a meat company with over 3 billion euros annual revenue, has surfed the West’s increasing appetite for protein, yet Dr. Stryck laid out how their business model has begun to account for the rise of the flexitarian consumer; a series of investments into alt-protein companies and an increasing focus on health products. Wiesenhof sees enduring consumer appeal for the cutting of animal-product consumption, with these recent company moves reflecting so, but he added that performance-parity and price-parity would be the most central hurdles for the world of alternative-proteins to overcome to realise true mainstream disruption. While a company responsible for the annual sale of millions of broiler chickens and an animal-free dairy company could seem like unnatural bedfellows, Wiesenhof serves a very real demand and has a very real capacity to influence how consumers eat, qualities that every alt-protein company should aspire to understand and, eventually, exercise. Their nuanced, pragmatic and real relationship with protein lovers made for a valuable addition to the panel, and close liaison and coordination with the incumbent industry be vital for the emerging alt-protein industry and those seeking to aid its political arrival.

Equally important to understand, with a view to both navigation and effective pressure campaigns are the inclinations and concerns of Germany’s political establishment. Overseeing a department with the capacity to ease the bumpy road of novel foods onto German markets, Prof. Dr. von Messling, who has been responsible for Germany’s bio-economy strategy, spelt out her understanding of the role of the bio-economy. She saw the primary function for Germany’s bio-economy strategy as ensuring food-security and increasing Germany’s capacity to diversify and innovate its supply of material inputs for industry. These goals should be faithfully served alongside other societal objectives such as consumer nutrition, biodiversity, and cultural values. Germany can be a leader here, and von Messling promised close liaison with the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection on their new Food Strategy document, which will highlight the enabling levers government can offer this burgeoning industry.

Insight into the competing priorities of government were also in Ms. Mayer’s panel contributions, whose Green Party coalition-partners see many upsides in the rise of alternative proteins, yet was reluctant to offer concrete means to bolster their arrival onto market. In the delicate game of public approval, enforced government measures were not deemed feasible by Mayer, who also saw scant opportunities for companies to circumnavigate the extensive European regulatory processes, while offering the possibilities for incremental improvements in the transparency, speed and digitalisation of the processes underpinning German food regulation.

The moderating attitudes of government were on show here, and while companies like Formo might begrudge the hesitancy and short-termism of German political thinking, evenings like this one serve to calibrate all players in the space on what’s feasible, highlighting the gaps (sometimes necessary, sometimes not) between ambition and ability. Conversations such as these will no doubt serve as seminal in determining how we approach the evolution of our food system, and will likely swell in importance as technologies and societal attitudes carry the possibilities of alternative protein further and wider.

The Molecule Men would no doubt be proud of the balanced meeting of ideas that took place underneath them, but the one-way flow of the river they stand in might serve as better inspiration for those asking where our relationship with protein is heading, and how best they can serve this current.

Bitkom and Formo hosted a roundtable to discuss how to realise a fulfilling food future. Ministers, MPs, meat companies, scientists and technologists all had something to say.

Milk, Honey, Priorities - A Bitkom-Formo Roundtable Wrapup

Milk, Honey, Priorities

We’ve just secured the largest Series A FoodTech funding round in Europe, $50M. Stand by for progress, growth and CHEESE.

With a planet in crisis, a lot needs to change, and fast. Bruce Willis in a spaceship ain’t gonna cut it this time around.

The food system rates medium-to-highly on the fucked scale, clocking in a full third of Earth’s GHG emissions, scything down rainforests, exploiting workers, shooting up on antibiotics, and that’s before even mentioning the fluffy critters who are probably getting the roughest end of this ol’ deal.

Since 2019 Formo has been in the business of reimagining how and for whom the food system works. By making milk proteins using microorganisms instead of cows, we figured we could bust some of the most damaging elements of our relationship with food. Combining precision-fermentation made dairy proteins with artisanal, age-old techniques, we’re making unbelievably decadent cheese that will set the world on fire (in a good way).

That’s right — We’re talking real proteins, real cheese, unreal flavours: and all with no animals involved.

We get excited saying it and people get excited hearing it: we are as smug as anything to have secured $50M for our recent fundraising round: the largest ever European Series A food-tech deal.

This new funding will allow us to turbomegacharge our progress — pulling in more of the best brains around, move into a new Formo HQ, accelerate our research, get the world tasting our cheeses and build up capacity to produce proteins at serious scale. We are taking the dairy parlour of the future microscopic and then back up to a size that can get in the ring with industrial dairy, gloves off.

While it’s tempting to consider this truckload of fresh cash as a win in itself, it’s more important to reflect on what this money fundamentally represents: it’s trust in our rockstar team and the values we cherish, it’s recognition of our technological pacesetting, and fundamentally, belief that people everywhere are ready to make decisions every day that take us towards a better, more sustainable planet. Huge.

While dollar incentives haven’t always yielded optimal outcomes for the planet and its inhabitants, the power of money spent by each of us can foster a safer, fairer world. Money in the hands of the right communities and organisations, nurturing the right ideas and underpinned by solid morals can generate immense societal good. We are so happy that our investors see it this way, and see us as having the resolve, creed and borderline-problematic-obsession with cheese to undertake this mission.

We also recognize that technological breakthroughs will form just one aspect of the bundle of solutions needed to create a better food system. Next-gen burgers and cheese will not solve it all and we need political, business, consumer, technological and philosophical forces working in harmony to ensure a planet fit for the future. We have a role in stimulating each of these; partnering with our peers in the food community to prepare for the changes ahead, co-crafting responsible and equitable industry standards and policies with politicians, as well as introducing this new class of products to consumers. It all falls squarely into the remit of our startup, fearless and never unaware of the impact we can have on the world.

Earlier this year we set the ambitious target of replacing 10% of dairy products in Europe by 2030 using precision-fermentation. With this new investment, that goal — and the benefits to the climate, animal welfare, public health and the food system as a whole — feel closer than ever. There is much work to be done and many fantastic people who we can’t wait to join us on this journey, both inside and outside the company.

The time is now and we couldn’t be more excited about it.

Series A: A New Chapter for Cheese

Changing the world is a lot about knowing what other people think and a lot about knowing what other people want. For that reason, it’s a special feeling to take a cross-sectional slice of society and ask them about the things that matter most to you. Do my ideas about the world stack up outside the cozy confines of my head? Nothing like a nationally representative sanity check to provide some answers. 

My co-researcher Chris Bryant of the University of Bath and I just took a plunge into this realm, surveying 5,000 people from around the world on whether they would embrace precision fermentation made dairy. Is the world ready to milk microbes rather than cows? We dipped our toes to check the temperature.

While Formo is laser-focused on the science and logistics necessary to bring precision fermentation dairy into the mainstream, none of that happens without a populace who can see, taste and enthuse about the arrival of animal-free dairy.

It’s for that reason that we put equal emphasis on understanding how to harmonise what people cherish about food today with the possibilities of food tomorrow. How does the vision of dairy without animals work for as many of earth’s inhabitants as possible?

Publishing our findings in a peer-reviewed journal was a thermometer reading of this question and showed some really interesting things about the way forward for a food system leaning less heavily on animals. I saw three main takeaways in the data about the state of play for companies looking to recreate animal products.

1.	People are ready to roll when it comes to precision fermentation made dairy. 

After laying out the process of copying cow DNA into microorganisms that underpins precision fermentation, a strong majority of people across all surveyed countries were ready not just to try, but also buy precision fermentation made dairy cheese, with an average of over 70% claiming that they’d be definitely or probably likely to buy. Demand will not be a limiting factor for these products and it should, thus, be full steam ahead to create the infrastructure and supply chains necessary to deliver these proteins at scale.

2. 	Flexitarians will be key in taking these products mainstream.

We’ve spent more time thinking about cheese than you’d believe and it turns out lots of different types of consumers purchase cheese: it’s been clear from the beginning we wouldn’t be making cheese products with one niche group in mind, rather catering to a spread of cheese desires. However, seeing how strongly flexitarianism predicted enthusiasm for precision fermentation dairy cheese, it looks likely this group will chaperone precision fermentation derived dairy into the mainstream. It’s tremendously promising that these consumers ‘get this product’ and are ready to embrace it, especially given the well-documented increases in flexitarianism.

Of all variables examined, the strongest predictor of willingness to purchase animal-free dairy cheese was the current level of cheese consumption. People don’t want cheese reinvented, don’t want self-driving cheese, don’t want Jar Jar Binks cheese - as a product, classic cheese makes people happy. The people currently eating the most cheese were the ones most excited about precision fermentation for dairy products. This suggests to me that, much like Impossible Food’s unapologetic ‘We Are Meat’ adverts, precision fermentation companies need to make no apologies about being real, decadent cheese. Own it, love it, showcase it - the consumers will follow.

On reflection, this piece of research was an initial gauge of how consumers will respond to animal-free dairy cheese in five different countries. It showed that once consumers understand animal-free dairy and the basics of precision fermentation, they are ready to embrace it heartily. The logical next step for companies like ours is to invest the energy and conscientiousness into expanding the breadth of people who understand the possibilities of precision fermentation, converting them to animal-free dairy cheese buyers and advocates for reducing our reliance on industrial animal agriculture.

Transparently and accessibly communicating precision-fermentation to consumers is crucial, as well as the combined research around it. I’m not unaware of the optics of precision fermentation companies publishing research into consumer acceptance of precision fermentation derived products, hence why having our research peer-reviewed and open access was so important, as well as collaborating with a fantastic research institution, the University of Bath. We need to continue in the same transparent and collaborative manner as we start to tell the story of precision fermentation to the wider world, doing so with respect, honesty and enthusiasm.

Oscar Zollman Thomas is Business Analyst at Formo and Co-Author of: Zollman Thomas, O. M. & Bryant, C. J. (2021). Don’t Have a Cow Man: Consumer Acceptance of Animal-Free Dairy Products in Five Countries.

If you could hear 5,000 peoples opinions at once? Ask them about cheese.

Over the past two years, you may have known us as LegenDairy Foods, a biotechnology company who uses precision fermentation to create sustainable dairy products from microorganisms.

But from today you’ll be seeing a different side to us — a new name, a beautiful logo, mouthwatering imagery — because today marks the start of the exciting next chapter in our story.

We’re now Formo — the future dairy from Berlin.

As a team, we have always shared an amazing ambition and understanding of what we want to achieve — to bring irresistible change to the food system; to create sustainable products people will fall in love with; to marry our belief in great science to solve important problems, with our insatiable appetites — but to create the change we desire, we have to be able to share that vision as clearly and confidently outwards as inwards.

We want cheese-lovers everywhere to champion what we’re trying to do, to become a part of our cause.

...confronting ourselves as a team to shape a new shared narrative which embodies the spirit and strategy of the business.

The rebranding process is about more than just picking new fonts: it has been about re-engaging with the essence of who we truly are; why we’re here; what bonds us so closely together; and what that means for finding our own place in the world.

For the last few months we’ve been working as a team with creative studio forpeople in Amsterdam to reach the sharp end of these questions.

It has meant grappling and dissecting; tough conversations and tougher decisions; confronting ourselves as a team to shape a new shared narrative which embodies the spirit and strategy of the business. 

We’ve set ourselves a mission: to bring the future of food to life through science, cheese, and conversation. 

It’s our goal to bring about much-needed change in a food system out-of-balance; to champion new approaches to making delicious dairy products through a mix of science and tradition; and to involve people everywhere in the question of “what should our food system look like going forward?”

We made sense of the behaviours we all share, which guide how we act as a team and as individuals (from choosing a name, to choosing a flask!), these are the DNA of Formo:

We Live the Science — embracing the positive possibilities of scientific practice and advanced technology in dairy.

We Remix the Heritage— finding new ways to celebrate the tradition of millenia of cheese-makers.

We Show Love to The World— demonstrating best practice in responsible food-making and business practices.

We Evolve Without Fear— challenging convention and approaching the future with courage and confidence.

The challenge then became to create a kit of parts which helped us to express this DNA with clarity and poise, each element measured and tested against these ideas.

Take our name, Formo, for example: It’s the latin translation of ‘i mold, i form’.

When the Romans expanded their connections in Europe and beyond, their soft caseus didn’t travel well, so they set about innovating to create a new format of cheese which would hold its taste and flavour. They called this new cheese formaticum — meaning formed.

To us, the name Formo represents the millennia of cheese-making heritage, the science of dairy innovation, sharing and demonstrating ideas to the world, and boldly pushing into new territory.

We carried this DNA throughout every detail of our visual identity, mixing ideas of science and tradition with honesty and courage.

Our stamps are riffs on the artisan markings on Parmigiano-Reggiano wheels; our colours are derived from different blends of cheese, and lab microscopy; our photography looks to accentuate the excitement of scientific discovery, as well as the creamy indulgence of beautiful animal-free dairy.

So yes, you might see us looking a little different — moving around Berlin with our black jumpers promising a mellow, creamy, oozing, crumbling future of animal-free dairy — but for us the rebrand means reconnecting to who we were all along , and giving ourselves the best footing to take the next big step in the Formo journey.

Our founders Raffael Wohlgensinger and Dr. Britta Winterberg share the story of why and how LegenDairy Foods decided to rebrand to Formo.

From our Founders

A Note From our Founders

Cultivated cheese company LegenDairy Foods rebrands as Formo.

Leader in European precision fermentation launches consumer-facing brand
•
Growing team of experienced scientists and business executives
•
New website live now

Berlin, April 21, 2021 – Cultivated dairy company Legendairy Foods today announces its rebranding to Formo as a consumer-facing brand, at the forefront of the future of cultivated dairy. Formo is the leading European player in the precision fermentation space, focusing on animal-free dairy products. 

With the new brand, Formo will bring the future of food to life through science, cheese, and conversation. Formo is the Latin word for ‘I mold, I form’ and the historical origin of the word is closely connected to the tradition of the ancient Romans improving cheese through new technology. The new website of Formo, on which the company also introduces its growing team of scientists and business executives, can be found here.

Formo uses microorganisms instead of cows to produce their animal-free milk proteins. Initially, selected microorganisms are encoded with milk protein DNA sequences. These cells then grow in a fermenter until enough protein has been produced to be harvested. The milk proteins are then combined with plant-based fats and carbohydrates to create the base for the cheesemaking process. In the traditional way, fermentation, enzymes, or heat are then used to coagulate the product into curd. From there, the Formo artisans can cover the whole spectrum of cheeses. The product can be packaged right away as fresh cheese, or ripened to create strong, unique flavors.

“We started with LegenDairy Foods as a brand to establish ourselves in the precision fermentation space. With the best talent on board and our first validated prototypes, it is the right time for us to launch a protectable consumer brand. Our new brand communicates our vision and values: changing the food system through delicious animal-free products”, said Raffael Wohlgensinger, Formo founder and CEO.

“Our team wants to make the best of European cheese culture enjoyable to the whole world. We pioneer new ways of making the hedonistic cheese products we all love, but with better, more sustainable technology and a good conscience. Formo represents our ambition to remix the heritage by combining tradition with breakthrough science.”, said Dr. Britta Winterberg, Formo founder and CSO.

Alongside the rebranding, the company is working towards bringing the first products to the consumer. Later this year, Formo is planning to host an exclusive product demonstration event in collaboration with a Michelin star chef. In addition, the team is going to release a consumer acceptance study on cultivated dairy products in the near future.

“After 6 months of close collaboration with creative studio forpeople in Amsterdam, we feel like we have nailed a name and identity that is distinctive, memorable, and most importantly adaptable”, said Roman Plewka, Formo CFO. “We identify ourselves as a purpose-driven company, and the Formo brand allows us to move beyond traditional dairy in the future as well.”

Forpeople Creative Director Patrick Niall says, “The concept at the heart of the identity is the heritage of innovation and evolution in cheesemaking. From the name Formo to the stamps and symbols from artisanal craftsmen, the strategy was to identify a language to celebrate the next evolution of deliciously high-tech dairy.”

About Formo
Formo is a food biotech company on a mission to bring the next generation of sustainable, healthy, and equitable dairy products to consumers. Formo, formerly known as LegenDairy Foods, is Europe's first cellular agriculture company developing cultivated dairy products - that is dairy which is based on real, animal-free milk proteins produced using precision fermentation. The startup was founded by Raffael Wohlgensinger and Dr. Britta Winterberg to create a more sustainable and ethical food system where change is not initiated through consumer sacrifice but rather through hedonistic products that are deliciously high-tech.

For more information and interview requests, please contact:
press@formo.bio
+49 176 66880458
High-Resolution Images are available in Formo’s press kit here

Cultivated Cheese Company LegenDairy Foods Rebrands as Formo

Meet Formo

We've rebranded, meet Formo.

I joined Formo because of my strong belief in the mission and ability of the team to create a better world by bringing the future of food to life — to look at how we might use our collective skills, courage and creativity to solve some of the most real and present problems facing humanity.

To me, the single biggest factor impacting human life on earth today is food. What we eat (and the entire system around it) affects the planet, environment, animals, society, and also our health.

However you look at it, the food system is one of the most fundamental effectors of our quality of life and measure of stability. It nourishes each of us every day: providing enjoyment, connection, indulgence and adventure, but also nutrition, sustenance, fuel, survival. It is omnipresent when we talk about health, wellbeing, and culture.

However you look at it, the food system is one of the most fundamental effectors of our quality of life and measure of stability.

But for such a crucial backbone of shared society, it is so often fatally out of balance.

High quality food isn’t available everywhere or to everyone; industrialising the food system has led to massive environmental damage (through carbon emissions, deforestation, nitrate run-offs), and increased waste at all parts of the journey from farm to plate. Animal-based aspects of the industrialised food-system also raise troubling practices from an animal welfare perspective including antibiotic overuse, poor living conditions, and unsavoury practices.

Ultimately, we are harming our own health with this system — from consumption of plastic, hormones, antibiotics, cholesterol, and nitrates in our food to an imbalance in diet due to over-consumption of animal-based products.

So if this food system can be so damaging, why don’t we just stop eating dairy?

So if this food system can be so damaging, why don’t we just stop eating dairy? Why is the consumption of animal-based products increasing as a whole? It is because we aren’t uniquely rational beings: we form strong memories, bonds, emotions with eating. It’s the feeling of hedonism and indulgence, consolation or comfort which keep us coming back. It’s the smell, the texture, the taste.

At the moment, we don’t believe there is a perfect product which balances environmental and social footprint with emotion and hedonism. That’s where we come in.

We call ourselves the Future Dairy from Berlin, and we’re here to bring the future of food to life through science, cheese and conversation.

The core of our practice is to produce dairy products people will try, recognise, and fall in love with — but in a new and superior way. A way that leverages advances in technology to be more sustainable, more delicious, and more healthy.

An advantage of the way in which we create products (through precision fermentation, instead of raising cows) is that we can create a whole new space and a new generation of products which challenge expectations of what we all understand by ‘dairy products’.

We could avoid allergies, improve nutritional value, personalise completely, and create delicious cheese alternatives anywhere on the planet without the need for intensive cattle cultivation. We can innovate totally new cheeses, enhance characteristics of the flavours and qualities we know and love, and improve the accessibility of high quality protein and nutrition for everyone, sustainably.

Beyond just creating deliciously high-tech cheeses, we also need to move the conversation around food systems forward...

Beyond just creating deliciously high-tech cheeses, we also need to move the conversation around food systems forward — to keep the topic at front-of-mind, have a role in shaping better policy and improving public perception of a new food creation system, as well as how that vision can result in a happier and healthier world.

It’s a bold vision, but how do we make it real?

To deliver on that promise at speed (and so that we can start to quantify and track the change we’re making) we’ve given ourselves an ambitious target to meet: we want to replace 10% of Dairy products in Europe by 2030.

Replacing that 10% of Dairy with Formo’s vegan products could mean happier cows, more forest preserved, fewer CO₂ emissions, a healthier alternative; while still retaining the indulgence, emotion, memories and experience of traditional dairy.

We see it as fermenting a happier and healthier planet, and that’s what it means to be Formo,  The Future Dairy from Berlin.

Roman Plewka is CFO at Formo (formerly LegenDairy Foods) and this article is one part of a series exploring the future of dairy through the lens of Formo's DNA.

CFO Roman Plewka shares his experiences on culture at Formo (formerly LegenDairy Foods).

The Future Dairy from Berlin — Roman Plewka

The Future Dairy from Berlin

The main reason cheese came into existence was for the storage of milk. This highly nutritious, valuable animal product began to be exploited to great effect by ancient humans, but it was also very sensitive to spoiling. 

The answer? Ripening and fermenting as a means of preservation, or, in other words, cheese making.

Over thousands of years, different cultures have been innovating this product. Today, almost all cultures that enjoy dairy have their own cheeses, with their own properties, profiles, and values. Their results represent the people and culture behind the cheese.

For something that started out as very functional, cheese is now considered by most people as a pleasure. And thanks to generations of development, the cultural heritage of cheese is incredibly rich and diverse, with thousands of wildly different cheeses hailing from all corners of the world. Despite originating from the same place, a roquefort barely compares to a camembert, and mozzarella couldn’t be more different to cottage cheese. 

This pleasure element of cheese can also be described as hedonism—which is a very culturally specific concept. What’s considered hedonistic in Chinese culture is very different from Spanish, and so on. There are different attributes of a food product that contribute to its hedonism, too. 

How do we deliver the hedonism that comes from thousands of years of innovation and cultural development, with a completely new product?

In Europe, hedonism in cheese is connected to creaminess and the specific flavour experience. And the diversity of taste that cheese can achieve is mostly thanks to the ripening and fermentation process. For me, Saint-Marcellin is one of my favourite cheeses from my time living in France. It is incredibly creamy, and its high fat content causes it to melt at room temperature. I’m also deeply connected to manchego because of my Spanish heritage—both very different, both triggering strong memories and emotions.

At Formo, this is where one of our main challenges presents itself: how do we deliver the hedonism that comes from thousands of years of innovation and cultural development, with a completely new product? 

It’s the same song, but a new interpretation which brings it up to date with current culture.

In terms of its lifecycle, veganism is barely an infant when compared to omnivorous diets. This difference prevents us from shortcutting the heritage, and even with modern technology, it would still take hundreds of years to develop new cultures and meaning around vegan products. But we don’t plan on starting from zero. We’re remixing what’s already there. 

We love cheese, and we know that asking people to stop eating it would put a lot of cultural collateral into danger—akin to saying that hundreds of years of heritage are no longer viable. Instead, we’re looking to blend these traditional, time-honoured processes into our products. Through cellular agriculture, we’re trying to create the same kind of curd you’d find in camembert, minus the cow.

When we talk about remixing the heritage, we do so because the way our vegan cheese alternative is made isn’t fundamentally different—it’s the same song, but a new interpretation which brings it up to date with current culture.

We want to maintain the vibrant culture, art, and richness of the makers. Once we’ve made our vegan curd, the next steps we place respectfully in the hands of master cheese makers.

By working with artisans and cheese masters, it’s our belief that they’ll find our proteins just as workable as traditional curds. And as the technology advances, it’s our vision that cheese makers will be able to specify desirable attributes for new cheeses, which we’ll gladly deliver—cultural heritage safely intact.

Cheese masters today invent cheeses constantly. The heritage isn’t standing still, because the culture isn’t standing still. They create new cheeses inspired by traditional cheeses, and we hope that together we can bring new types of vegan cheese alternatives to the table which everyone can enjoy, vegan or otherwise. 

Dr. Javier Romero is Head of Innovation at Formo (formerly Legendairy Foods) and this article is one part of a series exploring the future of dairy through the lens of Formo's DNA.

Head of Innovation Dr. Javier Romero shares his experiences on culture at Formo (formerly LegenDairy Foods).

We Remix the Heritage

Throughout my career I’ve been enticed by the challenge of using science to make the most of plant-based agriculture, all with a focus on sustainability.

Like most people my age, I grew up with the idea that milk is good for you. But it wasn’t until I began to look into its production that I realised we needed to make a change. 

Unfortunately, the demand for dairy today has placed a pressure on production that far outstrips the benefits this animal product brings. From climate change to animal ethics, industrial livestock farming—at the scale it currently operates—is not sustainable. 

At Formo, the products we’re pioneering result in far less CO₂ production, we use less water, and we also use a fraction of the land mass that’s required to rear cows for milk.

At Formo, the products we’re pioneering result in far less CO₂ production, we use less water, and we also use a fraction of the land mass that’s required to rear cows for milk. The energy efficiency we achieve through our fermentation process far outstrips that of the traditional farming process, too. 

We need plant material to feed the protein growth in our fermenters, so farming will always be a crucial element to our process. The main difference is, we’re cutting out the cows. In short, we can produce more food with less resources, and ultimately, that really demonstrates love for the planet. 

We also try to look critically at every step in our production process to see where we can improve. Whether that’s through reusable glass equipment in our laboratory or avoiding paper and single-use items elsewhere, we’re making sure that our journey and products are equally concerned with having as small an impact on the world as possible. 

Two litres of milk can’t cost €1 without real consequences... but when you’re armed with information, your value proposition changes.

Often, when people are first confronted with the idea of making cheese in a laboratory setting using fermenters, they see it as ‘artificial’. But when you break it down, what we’re doing is incredibly natural. From sourdough to sauerkraut, fermentation has been used for thousands of years to produce food—all we’re doing is reapplying this ancient technology to produce proteins. 

When it comes to production processes, we believe transparency is key. Without it, it’s harder for people to feel informed when making decisions. If a customer sees a product for a low price, that monetary value will often supersede any moral, ethical, or environmental costs likely incurred along the way to reach such a low price. Two litres of milk can’t cost €1 without real consequences. 

But when you’re armed with information, your value proposition changes. Your decisions no longer centre around the change in your pocket, but the change your choices can help to make in the world. It’s our hope that, through a commitment to honesty, we can encourage others to join us on this journey of creating products that honour our responsibility to our planet and its finite resources. 

That’s what it really means to show love to the world.

Dr. Britta Winterberg is Co-Founder and CSO at Formo (formerly Legendairy Foods) and this article is one part of a series exploring the future of dairy through the lens of Formo's DNA.

Co-Founder & CSO Dr. Britta Winterberg shares her experiences on culture at Formo (formerly LegenDairy Foods).

We Show Love for The World

Science, at its most basic, brings forth new understanding and value. Challenging, difficult, exciting and rewarding: it’s perhaps one of the most powerful tools we have at our disposal to continually improve society—by framing up big problems, and working to discover solutions. 

So what’s the problem we’re turning our lens to? And where’s the gap in knowledge we’re yearning to fill? 

It’s a dairy industry which is currently on an unsustainable track, as well as a wider food system with similar issues. The problem is being unfairly placed on the shoulders of cheese-lovers everywhere, without any clear resolution—and if we want to shape real change, we need to focus on providing real solutions for everyone.

If we want to shape real change, we need to focus on providing real solutions for everyone.

For many people, there is a disconnect between science and food. Traditional dairy foods are easy to understand, and the journey from farm to plate is relatable. But what if you remove animals (and their carbon emissions, land use, and water use) from that story? 

I grew up on a farm, and that’s how I first got involved in food and dairy science. Seeing plant-based alternatives to milk at the beginning of my career showed me some of the limitations of this approach early on, and I realised that a different route was needed to fill the gap that’s left when we remove animals from the equation. From taste to nutrition, these novel products—especially for those who are used to consuming animal products—could not serve as a substitute. 

We use science as a vehicle to investigate and develop new processes which could deliver more efficient, more sustainable and cleaner products for people’s health and wellbeing. This could mean identifying a new way to stabilise and nurture yeast cells to create casein instead of CO2, or discovering a new process to arrange amino acids.

At Formo, it can be hard to tell where the science ends and where the culinary side begins...

At Formo, it can be hard to tell where the science ends and where the culinary side begins—that attitude runs right through the business. Our co-founder, Raffa, always talks about Swiss fondue and how the smell instantly transports him home to childhood moments around the fire with family and friends. Food is essential for all of us, it’s our everyday companion. We all build strong memories around what we eat, how we make it— celebration, pleasure, indulging ourselves, or the happiness of making a meal with others. For us it’s also our work, that’s why it’s so easy to feel passionate about what we do. 

Research is based on the same ethical values that apply in everyday life, including honesty, objectivity, openness, trustworthiness and respect for others.

Trust is the foundation of scientific research. Scientists trust in the results generated by others and the society trusts that the results of research reflect an honest attempt to describe the world accurately and without bias. Science is a cumulative enterprise in which new research builds on previous results— which is especially important for a small company like us.

We just started a big project with three universities, and I’m really excited to have all those experts on board. And not just for the shared expertise, but for the sense of recognition that comes with their willingness to work with us and embrace our direction. 

It might sound futuristic, but that future represents a healthier, happier, and kinder world for all.

Conversation is how we get people energised about collaboration. By being clear and open with why we’re doing what we are, and how, we can get other people as excited as we are. But it’s a dialogue, and we want people to challenge us before they trust us—it’s our role to move forward the discussion around science in food. 

Science has always played an important role in making exciting visions of the future tangible, and we’re energised by sharing our view on the next evolution of food. First we had milk, a ready-made mixture with many ingredients which you have to take in its entirety. But our process means we can break things down to the basic building blocks (the single milk proteins), enabling us to develop completely new solutions. Our never-ending cycle of curiosity keeps challenging us to find new ways of leading major change in the food system, through pioneering new processes and products.

From allergen-free products for one person, to personalised amino acid profiles for another, this kind of customisation is the next step in food production. It might sound futuristic, but that future represents a healthier, happier, and kinder world for all.

It’s an exciting journey ahead of us, and by solving big problems through honest, creative, and direct investigation, we’re committed to bringing the future of food to life. 

Dr. Sandra Wilde is Head of Food Science at Formo (formerly Legendairy Foods) and this article is one part of a series exploring the future of dairy through the lens of Formo's DNA.

Head of Food Science Dr. Sandra Wilde shares her experiences on culture at Formo (formerly LegenDairy Foods).

We Live the Science

Formo, for me, was really born out of courage. I’d worked, and studied, but never quite found the job which helped me bring my personal values totally into my work life to create a big impact. 

I’ve been plant-based for years—not because I don’t enjoy cheese, or steak, I totally do—but because sustainability is really important to me, and I’ve been searching for a way to put that boldly into action. 

This is where courage comes in. It takes courage to dedicate yourself totally to what you care about and stand up for what you believe in. You’re constantly surrounded by the thoughts of “am I old enough to do this? Am I experienced enough? Is now the right time?”, there’s so many deterrents and moments where you self-censor.

I found myself able to overcome this fear, and find the bravery through the people around me. That’s exactly the environment I want us to live at Formo, where we can give each other the courage and confidence to overcome our fears to shape something new, and put our passions confidently into the work we do. 

This is super-important when we consider the mission we’ve set and the industry we are in: bringing the future of food to life.

Whether we’re talking about countries or companies, currencies or marriage, so many things that define our lives are man made or socially constructed. The challenge we face at Formo—and why I think what we’re doing is courageous—is to break down one of the biggest social constructs in existence: that we need animals to produce animal products. 

We want to lead this transformation with confidence, and treat this positive future of the food system as something people will want to be a part of.

We have domesticated animals for thousands of years to produce products for us. But due to an unsustainable global demand, the food system that developed around animals is completely detached from what people intended. Going against the belief that we need animals for food is the most challenging thing about what we do.

But we’re not out to start a revolution, we’re simply looking to evolve what’s already there.

Instead of animals having to sustain energy-consuming bodies and functions to produce proteins for us, we’re taking microorganisms that are perfectly designed to do the same job, just more efficiently. You could say it’s the same domestication, only we’re doing it in a fermenter, not a field. 

We want to lead this transformation with confidence, and treat this positive future of the food system as something people will want to be a part of, not inherently scared of. If we can create great products, and communicate them well, there’s nothing to be afraid of.

One idea we keep with us is the idea of evolution, and what it means to be a young company, working in an emerging sector, in a rapidly changing world. 

Science and technology move forward in a mix of predictability and great leaps, and we need to keep an open mind, being responsive enough to accommodate new processes, discoveries and changes in perception.

It starts with investors, and ends with cheese-lovers, but it’s also a collaboration with ‘competitors’. We’re shaping this environment together.

We do that by working with others to make the vision a reality, it’s a 360° project.

It starts with investors, and ends with cheese-lovers, but it’s also a collaboration with ‘competitors’. We’re shaping this environment together. We work with governments, and food regulators (subsidising the ‘old economy’, unlocking public money for food system advancement), NGOs and media (Do we get fair coverage? Are we top of mind for people who consume media?).

It’s also the suppliers and biotech as much as traditional agriculture and big food. It’s a whole ecosystem that needs to be onboard. Someone needs to produce nutrients. We need to convince everyone. We need to reach a critical mass of believers, and once that happens, there’s no boundaries to what you can do. The technology and capital is there. 

We give them the energy to be a part by sharing our vision of the future fearlessly, and their role within making it possible through this evolution in thinking and making.

That’s what it really means to evolve without fear — to maintain a bold, confident vision, including others in the project,  and being powered by the passion and courage to really make change happen.

Raffael Wohlgensinger is Co-Founder and CEO at Formo (formerly Legendairy Foods) and this article is one part of a series exploring the future of dairy through the lens of Formo's DNA.

Co-Founder & CEO Raffael Wohlgensinger shares his experiences on culture at Formo (formerly LegenDairy Foods).

We Evolve Without Fear — Raffael Wohlgensinger

We Evolve without Fear

The latest thoughts bubbling away in our fermentor...