TORONTO — CULT Food Science Corp. shared the details and plans for its third and newest proprietary ingredient: Bmeaty™. The ingredient aims to serve as a palatant for cell-cultivated and meat-free pet foods and treats.

With consumer sustainability concerns driving various meat-free pet food and treat brands, many of these products run into palatability challenges, according to CULT. Bmeaty aims to address these challenges, providing meat-free pet treats and foods a meaty, umami flavor. Bmeaty is a blend of yeasts and contains about 40% protein. The ingredient is also a good source of B vitamins and dietary fiber, according to CULT, which can help support pet health.

The ingredient is made through primary fermentation and fractionation. Yeast is made in fermentation vats and then the yeast cell walls are fractionated using hydrolysis. The result is an extract, hydrolyzed yeast and a carrier yeast, which are all used to create Bmeaty.

“Feeding our cats and dogs healthy, environmentally positive diets can sometimes feel impossible,” said Joshua Errett, vice president of product development of CULT. “Bmeaty can help solve that challenge of meat-free, sustainable diets.”

Bmeaty joins CULT’s other suite of proprietary and patented ingredients including Bmmune®, a nutritional yeast combined with fermented proteins, and Bflora®, a probiotic designed to support gastrointestinal health.

CULT’s ingredients are currently available to pet food brands and will be included in several plant-based products that are set to release next year. The company is reportedly in advanced partnership discussions with pet food brands in North America and Europe.

The ingredients are also included in CULT’s Noochies! freeze-dried, high-protein pet food line.

“We are excited to unveil our latest ingredient Bmeaty which solves a key problem facing many pet food manufacturers,” said Mitchell Scott, chief executive officer of CULT. “This expands our ingredient portfolio and helps set us up for success as we scale out this new line of business.”

Read more about product development, ingredients and formulation.