Precision fat gets GRAS
A US food‑biotech secured GRAS status in January 2026 for a precision‑fermented 'designer' fat now entering bakery, confectionery and plant‑based meat formulations — a practical boost for product taste and texture in next‑gen plant foods []. Expect faster product rollouts and better sensory parity with animal fats as companies integrate this ingredient.
Swedish startup Melt&Marble announced it self‑affirmed GRAS for its MeltyMarble precision‑fermented fat on March 12, 2026. (foodbev.com) The company secured an INCI listing for its personal‑care lipid Marble7 as r‑Saccharomyces Butter on March 11, 2026. (personalcaremagazine.com) Melt&Marble closed a €7.3 million Series A on December 8, 2025 led by Industrifonden, with strategic participation from the EIC Fund, Beiersdorf and Valio, taking total recent financing to roughly €10M including grants. (meltandmarble.com) A formal collaboration with Valio to co‑develop products was announced January 30, 2025, following demo‑scale fermentation work and an EU EIC grant that supported scale‑up. (dairybusinessmea.com) CEO Anastasia Krivoruchko said Melt&Marble will now pursue a FDA “no questions” letter as the next regulatory milestone, emphasizing that the current GRAS is a company‑led determination. (foodbev.com) The firm reports pre‑commercial production at “tens of thousands of liters” and plans to meet early commercial demand via an existing contract manufacturer to keep scale‑up capex light for initial 1–2 years of sales. (foodingredientsfirst.com)
