Japan’s Umami United & Tokyo Denki University to Recreate Egg Proteins with Plants
Japanese vegan egg producer Umami United has partnered with the Tokyo Denki University on a research project to recreate the functionality of eggs with plant-based ingredients.
Whether it’s okonomiyaki or soufflé pancakes, some of Japan’s most popular egg dishes could be under threat due to a global supply crisis.
To bridge that gap, local startup Umami United has teamed up with Tokyo Denki University on a research initiative to scientifically reconstruct the functionality of egg proteins with plant-based ingredients.
“Reproducing egg functionality using plant-based ingredients remains a major technological challenge that has not yet been fully realised globally,” says Hiroto Yamazaki, CEO of Umami United.
Through the joint research programme, the two entities “aim to scientifically elucidate egg functionality and deliver new options to the global food industry as a food technology originating from Japan”.
Combining egg functionality research with plant-based tech
Globally, a third of all chicken eggs are used for food manufacturing, appearing in everything from baked goods and confectionery to processed foods and protein bars.
They’re revered for their ability to foam, gel, bind and emulsify, as well as provide structural and physical properties that underpin product quality and manufacturing. Eggs aid in thermal coagulation, water and shape retention, as well as flavour enhancement, while being an excellent source of protein. According to Umami United, they effectively serve as a “foundational infrastructure of the global food system”.
“Eggs exhibit excellent properties such as heat-induced coagulation, foaming, and emulsification, making them widely used in processed foods, confectionery, bakery products, and meat processing. These functionalities are primarily derived from egg proteins,” says Prof Akihiro Handa from the university’s Department of Life Science.
It’s his namesake lab that’s collaborating with Umami United, building on his extensive research on the physiochemical properties of egg proteins. The startup will leverage its technological capabilities to produce plant-based ingredients and develop advanced processes that more closely replicate eggs’ multifunctionality.
The project’s scope primarily entails the development of manufacturing processes for vegan egg alternatives, and research on the functional properties of plant-based ingredients and their impact on food quality when incorporated into food products.
“By leveraging our expertise in controlling the physicochemical properties of egg proteins, we aim to develop manufacturing technologies and applications for plant-based protein products that can be appreciated by people around the world,” says Handa.
Umami United targets global egg market
The last couple of years have seen a wave of companies emerge with more resilient and sustainable solutions to the egg crisis, as the global supply has been decimated by new outbreaks of avian flu and Newcastle disease. Hundreds of millions of chickens have been culled across the world, just as demand for eggs has continued to increase.
This caused egg prices to reach a decade-long high in Europe last year, and break all-time records in the US – at one point, eggs were going for $1 each in some American cities.
Umami United aims to apply egg functionality to plant-based foods to expand sustainable food options. And by collaborating with Tokyo Denki University, it hopes to boost the domestic food tech workforce by helping develop the next generation of researchers and professionals in the space.
The startup already sells its egg alternative to foodservice operators internationally, and has raised over $3.6M in capital, with the latest funds coming from a $2M Series A round last October, which it said it would use to deepen R&D, expand capacity, and accelerate international expansion, with a focus on North America.
In a LinkedIn post, Yamazaki called the partnership a “critical step towards building a more stable and scalable food system – beyond traditional egg dependency”.
The company is taking its approach global. “We are actively working with food manufacturers worldwide – especially in bakery and confectionery – who are facing challenges with egg supply, cost, and formulation.”
Many food tech startups are leveraging fermentation to crack the egg market. Revyve produces an egg-replacing yeast protein; Spain’s MOA Foodtech has introduced a fermentation-derived ingredient to reduce egg use across various applications; and France’s The Very Food Co makes a powdered aquafaba for foodservice and industrial manufacturing.
Meanwhile, The Every Company and Onego Bio both use precision fermentation to produce recombinant egg proteins – the former’s ingredient is already in products stocked at large US retailers and available as a powder online, and the latter just signed a deal with Mexican giant Sigma Foods to explore product applications.