Meet The World's First Ever Yogurt Made From Fungi
While South by Southwest (SXSW) is mostly known for tech, film, and music, a growing amount of food tech companies are showcasing their novel food products there too. I was lucky enough to get a private sampling of the world’s first ever fungi-based yogurt scheduled to hit the market later this year.
The company making this magic happen is called Nature’s Fynd and the sustainable fungi-based protein that they invented is a favorite of Bill Gates (among others who have invested: Bloomberg, Branson, & Gore, etc.), and became a "unicorn" with over a billion dollar valuation after their successful Series C in 2021.
Packed with protein and fiber and kind to the environment (requires 99% less land, emits 94% less greenhouse gasses, and uses 99% less water than beef at scale), Fy can be used in many delicious forms: from cream cheese, to chicken, to chocolate mousse – right now, their dairy-free cream cheese and meatless breakfast patties are on shelves in grocers like Whole Foods.
Most recently their ‘Fy’ went to space aboard a SpaceX mission. The SpaceX-25 launched with a briefcase full of nutritional fungi protein to test whether the organism can grow in microgravity and be a fresh food source for deep space travel. Check it out!