Rich Kelleman, co-founder and CEO of Bond Pet Foods, holds the heritage hen from which a biopsy was taken to use the bird's DNA sequence to create a blueprint for developing protein for pet food that will be made without harming animals. (Courtesy photo / Bond Pet Foods)
A hen from a farm in Lindsborg, Kan., is helping Boulder-based Bond Pet Foods move closer to developing a lab-made protein for pets.
Bond Pet Foods' science team recently took a "harmless" biopsy from a heritage hen to use the bird's DNA sequence as the blueprint for protein development, said Rich Kelleman, co-founder and CEO of the company. (A heritage chicken is hatched from a heritage egg sired by an American Poultry Association Standard Breed established prior to the mid-20th century, according to The Livestock Conservancy.)
A few months ago the startup, which aims to make nutritionally superior pet food with proteins obtained without harming animals, became a finalist for the Purina Pet Care Innovation Prize.
The program provided financial support, mentorship and access to resources and industry networks, Kelleman said. Though the Boulder startup didn't win the final pitch contest last month at the Global Pet Expo in Orlando, Fla., it developed an ongoing relationship with Purina and other winners in the network, he said.
"We probably didn't win because we didn't have some thing physical or tangible that people could taste or try," Kelleman said.
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Bond Pet Foods plans to introduce a dog treat with pure microbial protein in the latter part of the year, Kelleman said. It might take a few years to fully optimize the technology and work through the regulatory environment, but the company is geared up to educate the public about the process of making protein through fermentation, he said.
The hen's DNA will be mixed in a fermenter with microbes allowing for the meat proteins to grow, Kelleman said. The process and technology is pretty well known, but Bond Pet Foods is reassembling the process to develop chicken protein in a lab setting, he said.
Kelleman's company is fine-tuning the process to eventually be able to develop protein from fish, turkey and beef in labs in a much more efficient and controlled manner. It is a sustainable method that would put an end to the slaughter of animals for making pet foods and has a much smaller environmental footprint, he said.
More than 180 million dogs and cats consume about 25 percent of all animal-derived calories annually in the United States, according to a Washington Post story published in August 2017.
The Post story was based on research done by Gregory S. Okin, a professor from the University of California, Los Angeles, who studied the environmental impacts of food consumption by dogs and cats .
Kelleman said he is encouraged by the movement for food transparency, particularly people's desire to know the source of food they eat. The ongoing "humanization" of pets means consumers increasingly will look at the source of pet foods as well.
In the United States in 2018 pet food was estimated to be a $33 billion industry.
Bond Pet Foods is using cutting-edge, sustainable technology in the pet space, and its desire for a long-term sustainable ingredient with a more sustainable footprint jells with Purina's mission, said David Narkiewicz, business development officer and co-founder of Purina's 9 Square Ventures Division that is involved with the Purina Pet Care Innovation Prize.
Kelleman is a passionate entrepreneur with a clear vision and a talented team, Narkiewicz said. Kelleman's biggest challenge will be to "build a category" in the pet food space, he said. Also, he needs to stay focused while he works through regulatory complexities, particularly related to the safety and quality of the ingredients for pet foods, Narkiewicz said.
Pratik Joshi: 303-684-5310, pjoshi@dailycamera.com
