A local biotechnology start-up, TurtleTree Labs, has successfully devised a method to produce milk in the lab, without the need for any animals like cows.

Top prize in international challenge

The start-up previously raised US$3.2 million (S$4.46 million) in funding from international investors for this project.

Now, their invention has impressed judges enough to be awarded the top cash prize of US$500,000 (S$678,000) at the Entrepreneurship World Cup 2020.

The competition saw TurtleTree Labs beating out 175,000 participants from 200 countries.

Co-founder Lin Fengru, 32, said "We're proud to represent Singapore on the world stage."

"Winning this competition highlights the importance of sustainable food production, and the support from the community around such technologies," she added.

Lin said the prize money would go into research, such as finding new ways to extract biologically active components in milk that have health benefits, Times of India reported.

According to The Straits Times, this is the first time a Singapore start-up has won the top prize in this challenge.

"Clean milk"

TurtleTree Labs, founded in 2019, uses cell-based methods to make lab-grown milk which has the same taste and composition as milk made from mammals.

To do this, cells are extracted from the milk of mammals, such as cows or humans. These cells are then exposed to a special formula which causes them to lactate.

The final product is milk, which is obtained through a filtration process.

TurtleTree Labs' milk will apparently be 95 per cent less resource consumptive as well.

Dubbed as "clean milk", TurtleTree Labs believe this could provide the solution to various environmental issues.

Not only does lab-grown milk require less energy, water and intensive land usage, but the start-up also states that their milk is produced ethically as well, as compared to conventional industrial dairy processes.

Currently, cattle farming produces 37 per cent of methane emissions — a greenhouse gas which contributes to global warming.

No more contaminants

Another issue that TurtleTree Labs' milk solves is the problem of contaminants in traditional milk.

Veterinary treatment of dairy cows often involves using antibiotics to reduce inflammation or infection of the mammary gland and udder tissue.

This leads to the residues of these drugs to be present in milk and this inhibits fermentation of dairy products, such as cheese and yoghurt.

Additionally, milk alternatives, such as those from plants, are not similar to cow's milk in terms of protein and potassium.

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