California Performance Co. introduces world’s first non-animal whey protein to US, Hong Kong and Singapore markets

02 Feb 2022 --- Sustainable sports nutrition brand, California Performance Co. has unveiled V-Whey dairy protein powder to improve workout performance. Thanks to microflora technology, it is made from real dairy but without animal ingredients.

“Compared with plant-based protein, V-Whey is actually whey protein, just made through fermentation, not animals. Because our non-animal whey protein is bioidentical to whey protein from cows, it has a better amino acid profile and a higher protein content than plant-based protein,” Paul Kollesof, founder and general manager of California Performance Co. tells FoodIngredientsFirst.

The dairy protein comes in chocolate brownie, mixed berry and vanilla sundae flavors. 

Sports nutrition upgradeV-Whey has a higher protein content than similar protein powders on the market.
V-Whey is the first product from California Performance Co. which launched globally in 2021 and is available in the US, Singapore and Hong Kong. 

California Performance Co. is the third brand from The Urgent Company, a CPG company that creates sustainable products. V-Whey is its first product and is available exclusively online.

“V-Whey is a ready-to-mix protein powder made with animal-free whey protein, which means that it is vegan friendly while still delivering the nutritional benefits of whey protein, and is lactose-free, soy-free, gluten-free, and hormone-free,” explains Kollesof. 

In addition to having up to 23 g of complete protein per serving, V-Whey has up to 5 g of naturally-occurring branched-chain amino acids (BCAA), three essential amino acids that help support protein synthesis per serving.Whey protein can serve as a high protein sports nutrition supplement.

In general, whey protein is a complete protein source that provides the essential amino acids the body needs, promoting muscle growth and recovery while supporting a healthy immune system. 

Whey protein without the cow
V-Whey is made from Perfect Day’s animal-free, dairy protein. To produce real milk protein the team teaches tiny organisms, “microflora” to create the milk protein by giving the digital version of the milk-making genetic blueprint of a cow to the flora.

Flora needs a food source, just as cows do, so they are fed with simple plant sugars. Then fermentation is used to allow the flora to convert the sugars into milk protein.

Perfect Day’s animal-free whey protein delivers whey’s complete nutritional benefits with a lower environmental footprint as it is made with protein that generates up to 97% fewer greenhouse gas emissions than conventional production methods.

As a result, V-Whey is identical to the protein in cow’s milk and is approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). 

V-Whey’s non-animal whey protein creates up to 97% fewer greenhouse (GHG) gas emissions and uses up to 99% less water and up to 60% less non-renewable energy, the company claims.

The company adds a “contains milk allergen” declaration to the front and back of its . 

In the same category, Synergy Flavours launched 4PROTEIN, a flavor solution designed to optimize the taste performance of whey protein products.

By Inga de Jong