Anne Hathaway-Backed Company Receives US Patent For Precision-Fermented Eggs

A food tech company backed by actor Anne Hathaway has just received a foundational patent for its vegan egg product.

San Francisco-based EVERY uses precision fermentation to brew its liquid egg white without the need for chickens. The patent covers any ingredient composition for food products that incorporate recombinant ovalbumin (the primary protein found in egg whites) combined with one other ingredient. Ovalbumin makes up 54 percent of egg white protein and is responsible for its gelling, foaming, and binding abilities.

Ovalbumin is the protein found in EVERY’s B2B egg white replacement product, as well as the EVERY Egg, which is served at 3-Michelin-star plant-based restaurant Eleven Madison Park in New York. EVERY also recently announced multinational partnerships with Unilever, Grupo Nutresa, and Grupo Palacios, and it will soon enter the mass market.

A box of products made from EVERY vegan egg — EVERY EVERY described the patent as a “major milestone”

“This patent is a major milestone for EVERY, given the nature of ovalbumin as a functionality powerhouse,” said EVERY Co-Founder and CEO Arturo Elizondo in a statement. He added that the patent is a “culmination of nearly a decade’s worth of research and solidifies our position as a leader in the space.”

Anne Hathaway backs EVERY

The news comes almost two years after it was announced that Hathaway had invested an undisclosed amount in the company. Following her investment, EVERY had raised a total of USD $230 million, as of February 2023.

“The need to transform our food system has never been clearer or more urgent,” Hathaway said in a statement at the time. “An important piece of the puzzle is in nature-equivalent animal proteins, such as those EVERY has been developing. I’m proud to back this vision of a better future.”