Konica Minolta, a Japanese technology company, is working with Swiss company Planetary, to utilize artificial intelligence (AI) with advanced camera-based sensing technology to enhance the production of precision fermentation-derived ingredients. This includes proteins that are equivalent to dairy, which are pivotal for the creation of alternative dairy products. The innovative approach aims to refine the quality attributes of the final products and optimize the control of fermentation processes. This technology has the potential to lead to significant improvements in the production of alternative dairy, making it more cost-effective and sustainable
The partnership between Konica Minolta and Planetary aims to reduce the production cost of fermented proteins, and to make these proteins, including those that mimic dairy, eggs, fats, and mycoproteins, competitive with the prices of similar commodity products currently available in the market. By employing Konica Minolta’s cutting-edge image-sensing technology and data-driven bioprocesses, the collaboration seeks to develop and implement new real-time monitoring and control operations. Leveraging the data collected through AI, the technologies can be further optimized to decrease the number of lost batches and achieve a reduction of 20-30% in the cost of goods sold (COGS), thereby narrowing the cost margin between traditional dairy and alternative dairy products.