Checkerspot scales omega-7 via fermentation to end supply bottleneck sustainably

Checkerspot has achieved a “breakthrough” in scaling the production of palmitoleic acid (POA) oil using microalgae — up to 58% content produced sustainably. Nutrition Insight speaks with the biotechnology company to explore how this could benefit brands and near-term opportunities for new health areas. 

The method in Fermentation details how the new platform produces this omega-7 fatty acid, linked to health benefits like improved insulin sensitivity and skin hydration. POA is an omega-7 fatty acid produced naturally in the body. 

“This study demonstrates that microalgae fermentation can serve as a precise, scalable, and sustainable production platform for one of the most critical fatty acids in nutritional science,” says John Krzywicki, CEO, Checkerspot. 

“For the first time, there is a credible path to bringing omega-7 benefits to a much wider range of products and people, without the constraints of existing sources.”

The company points out that its method overcomes the agricultural scalability challenges seen when sourcing POA from traditional sources, such as macadamia nuts, sea buckthorn, and fish. The microalgae-based strain reached a 20.9 g/L of POA in 96 hours, which is noted to surpass previous records.

Closing the science gap

Casey Lippmeier, Checkerspot’s chief technology officer, explains how the microalgae platform brings new solutions for brands that want to work with omega-7s.

Casey Lippmeier, Checkerspot chief technology officer.“Until now, brands that wanted to formulate with omega-7 POA specifically were essentially working around a supply problem. Sea buckthorn and macadamia are real sources. There are some marine supply chains as well, but none of them were built for the volumes or consistency that commercial formulation requires.” 

“What our platform changes is simple — for the first time, you can specify POA as an ingredient the same way you’d specify any other, with predictable composition, reliable supply, and the ability to scale with your business,” he says. “The science on omega-7 POA has been ahead of the supply chain for years. This discovery is a meaningful step in closing that gap.” 

Concentrated, smaller supplements

With up to 58% POA in the oil, Lippmeier explains how that compares to existing sources when formulating foods or supplements.

“The key here is consistency. Take sea buckthorn oil. You can reach meaningful omega-7 POA levels, but that process comes with a lot of other things, a strong color, a distinct odor, and variability batch to batch that makes it genuinely difficult to formulate.”

“A minority of sea buckthorn oil capsules are standardized for POA, but typically at no greater than 30%,” he notes. “At 50% or higher, we’re delivering a more concentrated source in the same natural triglyceride form as you would find in other botanical oils with greater compositional consistency.”

Checkerspot’s microalgae platform delivers 58% POA omega-7 oil, solving supply bottlenecks for metabolic and skin health formulations.Lippmeier adds that for supplement manufacturers, this concentration means supplement capsules can be made smaller for larger doses, thereby increasing their consumption. In food and personal care, it enables more flexibility for other ingredients in the matrix.

Metabolic health opportunities

Research has evidenced POA to improve insulin sensitivity and reduce hepatic lipid accumulation, which is an excessive buildup of lipids in liver cells. 

“Metabolic health is where we think the longer-term opportunity is largest,” notes Lippmeier. “The insulin sensitivity and hepatic lipid data are compelling, and as GLP-1 conversations expand consumer awareness of metabolic function, ingredients with credible mechanisms in that space are going to matter more.” 

Other benefits include the modulation of inflammatory signaling, LDL-cholesterol reduction, and benefits for cardiovascular health. 

For skin health, Checkerspot notes literature that shows POA boosts epidermal barrier function, membrane organization, and innate antimicrobial defense. Clinical trials have also shown improvements in skin hydration, elasticity, barrier integrity, and wrinkle parameters when the fatty acid is supplemented.

“The benefits of omega-7 POA for skin health are well supported by the science, and you’re seeing consumer demand as a response,” adds Lippmeier.

Gaining consumer trust

According to Lippmeier, scientific principles on fermentation-based methods are trusted, and the company is implementing them at advanced levels. Since most consumers want to know how omega-7 POA can help their health, it is best to lead with benefits, and the science on the fatty acid is clear and growing.

“Fermentation-based lipids are not as new as one might think. The ‘microalgae omega-3’ story is nearly three decades old now, having been the first mass-market product of its kind,” points out Lippmeier. 

“This oil has been offered in supplements for just as long and as a food fortification for infant formula and grocery store milk for nearly as long. But more generally speaking, humans have been fermenting things for tens of thousands of years.”