Dive Brief:
- The Every Company’s animal-free egg protein will be added to a new bottled smoothie made by Pressed. The juice company’s Pressed Pineapple Greens Protein Smoothie will include ClearEgg, which is a tasteless, odorless, nearly colorless and highly soluble protein naturally found in small quantities in egg whites.
- The limited-time-offer smoothie will be available from select Pressed locations in Los Angeles and New York. The juice and snacking company said in a release that it plans to launch the ClearEgg protein smoothie in more locations next year.
- The Every Company, formerly known as Clara Foods, uses precision fermentation to make proteins that usually come from animals. It launched animal-free pepsin earlier this year, and is working on using the technology to make other functional proteins found in egg whites.
Dive Insight:
With this launch from Pressed, The Every Company is fortifying a smoothie with an ingredient that’s out of reach for companies working with egg.
The protein in ClearEgg is essentially a soluble nutritional ingredient that is said to enhance the health profile of whatever it’s added to. It is present in very small quantities in egg whites, meaning an animal-derived equivalent would be cost prohibitive. Arturo Elizondo, co-founder and CEO of The Every Company, told Food Dive last month that his company is working to replicate many of the proteins in egg whites. This one — the first the company is commercializing — can solve widespread issues with protein applications, but does not have an animal-derived substitute.
While the new Pressed smoothie has 10 grams of protein, that shouldn’t detract from the fruity taste or smooth mouthfeel of the beverage because it uses ClearEgg. Its ingredients include apple, pineapple, banana, spinach and avocado, with no added sugar and 40% of the recommended daily intake of vitamin C.
Of all the places that ClearEgg could make its first appearance, a natural juice product like this one is ideal. The Pressed line would appeal to consumers who are willing to pay a premium price for a natural and healthy drink. Due to its scientific complexity, ClearEgg is likely to be a pricier ingredient now, though Elizondo said a long-term goal is to get the proteins his company makes at parity or less expensive than those coming from eggs.
If ClearEgg can meet The Every Company’s descriptions, the smoothie consistency and product taste will be markedly different than previous iterations of protein-added beverages. In a statement, Elizondo said that with ClearEgg, manufacturers won’t need to add heavy vanilla or chocolate flavorings, and smoothies also won’t need to be at a milkshake-like consistency to hide the grittiness inherent in pea protein.
But the launch is small enough that it won’t overload the company’s current manufacturing pipeline, which is helped through a partnership with Ingredion. The ingredients giant became a major investor in The Every Company in 2019, and the companies formed a global partnership to develop, market and distribute highly functional ingredients to increase protein levels and lower costs without using products from animals.
Scaling is one of the largest current challenges for The Every Company, which has partnered with AB InBev’s ZX Ventures to develop a way to scale precision fermentation processes to levels similar to those produced in beer breweries. For now, Elizondo said last month, capacity is The Every Company’s biggest bottleneck.
