Solving the enigma of crafting a vegan cheese that appeals to the palates of cheese enthusiasts is as challenging as deciphering the Sphinx's riddle. Formo, a Berlin-based biotech firm, believes it has unlocked the secret using Koji, a microorganism that has been a cornerstone of Japanese cuisine for millennia, imparting a rich umami flavor to soy sauce, miso, and other staples. By fermenting Koji, Formo produces a protein-rich base for its dairy-free cheeses, a process that aligns with the company's mission to create sustainable cheese alternatives that minimize land use, water consumption, and greenhouse gas emissions, as compared to traditional dairy farming methods.

Raffael Wohlgensinger, the co-founder and CEO of Formo, embarked on this venture five years ago, driven by his passion for cheese and his disappointment with the existing vegan cheese options on the market. "As a Swiss national and a fervent cheese aficionado, I was disenchanted with the available alternatives," he expressed. Wohlgensinger is not the only one dissatisfied; the market has shown a preference for dairy-free milk alternatives, such as oat and almond milk, and plant-based or fungus-based meat substitutes like burgers. However, the enthusiasm has not extended to vegan cheeses, as noted by Carmen Masiá, an application scientist at Novonesis, a Danish biotech company specializing in the production of bacteria and enzymes for fermented foods like yogurt and cheese. According to the Plant Based Foods Association, while plant-based milk sales in the US increased by over 1% in 2023, plant-based cheese sales declined by 9%. Masiá, who has studied consumer trends in vegan cheese as part of her doctoral research, points out that common vegan cheese bases, such as coconut fat, lack the characteristic "cheesy" taste and texture. "It's essentially a block of fat, with a rubbery consistency that doesn't resemble dairy cheese," she explained. "Many vegans, vegetarians, and flexitarians claim they can't forgo cheese because it's so hard to replicate its flavor," she added. "The secret formula remains elusive."

Masiá suggests that current vegan cheeses generally fail to meet consumer expectations. "While oat milk is widely available and even non-vegans often choose it for its taste," she said, "there's no such shift in preference for cheese." Fermentation, the process of using bacteria, yeast, or other microorganisms to break down and transform food, offers a potential solution to enhance the quality of vegan cheeses. "Ultimately, if a product is sustainable and nutritious but lacks flavor, consumers won't purchase it," she stated.

Formo's cheeses appear to have struck a chord with consumers' taste buds. In September, the company raised $61 million in its latest funding round and announced plans to launch three varieties of cream cheese in over 2,000 stores across Germany and Austria. Wohlgensinger described the partnership with REWE, BILLA, and METRO supermarkets as a "monumental" achievement for Formo. He is now preparing for a broader rollout of Formo's products across Europe next year and in the US by 2026.

The secret to Formo's success lies in its unique fermentation process. The company introduces a strain of Koji fungus into a tank, enriches it with oxygen, and adds sugars and nutrients to cultivate proteins on a large scale. This method, which Formo calls "micro-fermentation," allows the proteins to be harvested and dried into a powder that forms the foundation of their products, including blue and feta-style cheeses. The Koji protein imparts a "creaminess" to Formo's cheeses that is difficult to achieve with plant proteins, which have a different structure and can often feel "grainy" in the mouth, according to Wohlgensinger. He also noted that the taste is a closer match to dairy-based cheese. "In products based on cashews or soy, you can taste the cashew or soy, and in those based on potato, you can taste the potato starch," he said. Wohlgensinger believes Formo is the pioneer in fermenting Koji for cheese production and hopes this method will become the industry standard.

Formo is also exploring a process known as precision fermentation, which employs genetically engineered microorganisms to produce proteins identical to the casein proteins found in animal milk. These proteins can help Formo's vegan cheeses achieve the taste, texture, and "meltability" of traditional cheese. "The stretchiness of mozzarella on pizza is largely due to the protein structure of casein," Wohlgensinger explained. Formo is working on obtaining regulatory approval for these cheeses in the US and Europe, a complex process due to the novelty of the production method.

"We're not aiming to put small-scale dairy farmers out of business—they will always be an essential part of a diverse and resilient food system," Wohlgensinger said. "However, there is a significant portion of the market that could be replaced by more efficient technology." Animal agriculture contributes to approximately 12% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions, according to the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization, making it a major contributor to climate change. Cows, in particular, have a substantial impact due to their methane production, a potent greenhouse gas.

Formo aims to reduce its retail prices below those of dairy-based cheeses as it scales up production. Currently, 100 grams of Formo's cream cheese product costs €1.59 ($1.68), which is €0.32 ($0.34) more expensive than the average price of dairy-based cream cheese, Wohlgensinger noted. However, the company must also contend with the deeply ingrained preferences of cheese connoisseurs. Dairy-based cheeses possess a unique "crave-ability" that has made it more challenging for dairy-free alternatives to compete, unlike plant-based milks, according to Julie Emmett, vice president of marketplace development at the Plant Based Foods Association. "You can't say milk is crave-able, but you can say meat is crave-able. Cheese is unique in that it's an indulgence," Emmett said. Masiá from Novonesis believes that fermentation could be the key for dairy-free cheese makers to infuse their products with the "cheesy notes" that consumers desire. An increasing number of food producers are requesting Novonesis' bacterial cultures to produce cheese through this process, she added. "People are starting to realize that microbes can assist us," she said.