Zero Cow Factory, India’s first animal-free dairy startup secures $4 Mn in Seed Funding
The company has developed a patented technology to produce dairy proteins such as casein & whey, without any animal being involved
Zero Cow Factory, a biotechnology company producing India’s first animal-free protein and dairy products using bioengineering microbes and precision fermentation, announced that it has raised $4 million (INR 32 crore) in a seed round. The round was co-led by Green Frontier Capital, GVFL and pi Ventures, with participation from Pascual Innoventures, the investment arm of a leading Spanish dairy group Calidad Pascual. With this funding, Zero Cow Factory will be able to accelerate its R&D efforts, scale up production capacity, and obtain regulatory approvals to hit the market.
Surat-based Zero Cow Factory was founded in 2021 by Sohil Kapadia and Parini Kapadia with the aim of revolutionising the dairy industry by producing sustainable animal-free milk proteins and dairy products. Their product is a new alternative to cow’s milk protein that replicates its taste, texture, nutrient profile, and appearance. The company has developed a patented technology to produce dairy proteins such as casein & whey, without any animal being involved. Zero Cow Factory is highly focused on animal-free casein production which is the most complex protein and hasn’t been commercialised by any company globally. The company’s first product is A2 Beta-casein which is also healthier as the A1 milk protein which causes indigestion is absent from their product. The aim is to be the first company to get global regulatory approval for this protein. This will be used to formulate various sustainable food and dairy products like cheese, yoghurt, ice cream, supplement powder etc. which are used across various industries like food, dairy, CPG, nutraceutical, and dietary supplements.
The company’s animal-free ‘Smart Protein’ is a healthy alternative to cow’s milk protein as it is free of lactose, antibiotics, growth hormones, cholesterol and saturated fat. Moreover, compared to conventional dairy farming, it is created through a more environmentally friendly process, with higher efficiency metrics. Their technology requires 99 per cent less land, 98 per cent less water, emits 84 per cent less CO2e, and consumes 65 per cent less energy. The company has already demonstrated proof of concept at the lab scale with a small bioreactor which is producing animal-free casein. With this funding round, they will accelerate work on building their pilot facility in Gujarat to be ready for commercial production. They are in discussions with multiple Fortune 500 companies across the CPG, dairy and nutraceutical sectors who have shown a keen interest to partner with the company to formulate various products using Zero Cow Factory’s milk proteins as ingredients while replacing milk in their supply chain.
“We are excited to partner with our investors’ outstanding setup and combine them with our talented team, which positions us uniquely to lead the way in building a global dairy 3.0 that is animal-free, sustainable, and scalable,” said Sohil Kapadia, Co-founder and CEO of Zero Cow Factory.
“We are developing a technology to reproduce milk proteins to craft real dairy products that are ethical, safe, delicious, and identical to cow milk but without any animal involved,” said Parini Kapadia, Co-founder and CSO of Zero Cow Factory.
The company has developed a patented technology