C16 Biosciences enters food ingredients market with precision-fermented cocoa butter equivalent

C16 Biosciences is entering the food ingredients market with Palmless Cocoa Butter Equivalent. The precision-fermented ingredient is designed to help chocolate manufacturers address supply volatility, price uncertainty, and performance variability. 

The launch marks the first food application for the company’s Palmless platform. “Cocoa butter is fundamental in making chocolate a luxurious experience: it’s responsible for the perfect snap on the first bite, the reason chocolate melts exactly at body temperature, and it leaves [a] smooth aftertaste,” says Shara Ticku, founder and CEO of C16 Biosciences. 

“We brought all those sensorial properties to life, but from fermentation rather than industrial agriculture. Our process delivers products more consistently and more on-spec to the needs of chocolate makers.”

Overcoming inconsistencies

Palmless Cocoa Butter Equivalent marks C16’s entry into edible fats and oils. The product is a next-generation cocoa butter equivalent that is said to overcome three challenges that have long troubled the chocolate industry: performance variability, supply risk, and price unpredictability.

C16 says it produces a more consistent fat profile and more predictable crystallization behavior than found in conventional cocoa butter.

Cocoa butter is an essential component of dark, milk, and white chocolate. However, the fat can behave differently depending on the cocoa beans’ growing region, the season, and harvest conditions.

C16 explains that these discrepancies create challenges for chocolate manufacturers. These include tempering curves that require constant recalibration, bloom that compromises shelf life and appearance, and structural defects that cause cracking and breaking during production.

Stable supply and pricing

The biotechnology and climate-tech start-up’s fermentation-based product is said to deliver a more consistent fat profile and more predictable crystallization behavior than conventional cocoa butter.

“Fermentation has long played a critical role in developing the flavor precursors in chocolate,” says Ticku. “Now it’s a critical step in developing sensorial performance and functionality, too.”

C16 says that because the ingredient is decoupled from cocoa agriculture, it can provide a consistent supply and stable pricing, turning sustainability into a commercial advantage.

Cocoa prices have eased from their 2024 record highs but remain volatile.

In response, Mondelēz International reportedly produced the world’s first milk chocolate bars made with cultivated cocoa butter this spring. The bars were developed by Celleste Bio using its cell-suspension culture technology.

Meanwhile, specialty fats supplier AAK launched a cocoa butter equivalent designed to tackle one of the confectionery industry’s growing production challenges: maintaining efficient enrobing performance, as manufacturers increase their use of cocoa butter alternatives.

Earlier this month, a study suggested that fats produced by fermenting food and agricultural waste could soon become viable alternatives to conventional fats used across the food industry, including cocoa butter, palm oil, and animal-derived fats.