Startup links better vegan cheese to microbrewery techniques

Last week, I overheard someone in a pizza shop asking whether a slice was vegetarian or vegan. Presumably, they were trying to determine whether the pizza used vegan cheese, and when they were told it was, they decided to change their order.

Vegan cheese is still widely seen as an imperfect substitute for dairy cheese. The key missing ingredient is casein, a protein derived from mammalian milk that provides structure and gives cheese its characteristic melt and stretch.

Now, a startup called AuX Labs says it has found a way to produce casein without cows, potentially enabling vegan cheese that behaves much more like the traditional version. “Melt and stretch are non-negotiables,” said Ted Jin, co-founder and CEO of AuX Labs.

AuX Labs produces casein using bioreactors, but it is not the first company to attempt this approach. What differentiates the startup, it says, is a strategy that taps into an unexpected partner: struggling microbreweries.

Over the past few years, microbreweries have faced economic pressure. While the craft beer sector expanded significantly over the past two decades to nearly 10,000 breweries in the U.S., alcohol consumption has declined since the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Gallup data.

“I don’t want to disparage their existing business because I’m a big supporter of them as well,” Jin said, adding that “there is a lot of excess capacity in the system.”

AuX Labs says it has designed its microbial strains and fermentation process specifically for microbreweries. The arrangement is intended to benefit both sides: breweries gain an additional revenue stream, while AuX gains access to fermentation infrastructure without having to build its own facilities.

“When we talk about finding capital to build new infrastructure for fermentation and brewing proteins, I think the answer is there already,” said Jin, who previously worked at Procter & Gamble. “The challenge is how to use that capacity.”

To support the commercialisation of its vegan cheese technology, AuX Labs has raised $4 million, the company exclusively told. The round was led by NYA Ventures and Nàdarra Ventures, with participation from Bluestein Ventures, Builders VC, Congruent Ventures, and Verdex Capital.

At present, the company collaborates directly with breweries to ensure product quality. In the longer term, Jin envisions a model in which AuX provides ready-to-use kits, including microbes and detailed instructions, enabling breweries to operate more independently.

The goal is to build a network of facilities producing casein that is “biologically identical to the one found from animal protein,” Jin said. The key difference, he noted, would be environmental impact: dairy-free casein production could use significantly less land and water and generate around 90% lower greenhouse gas emissions.

The global cheese market is currently valued at around $165 billion, according to Mordor Intelligence, and casein is also widely used across the broader food industry as a stabiliser and emulsifier.

Jin added that AuX’s platform may eventually extend beyond a single protein, though he did not disclose additional product plans. For now, the company remains focused on food applications. “Maybe it sounds corny, but I just want to build a better food system for my kids,” Jin said.