On the heels of its first product launch, US startup Savor plans to ride the alternative fats momentum with big plans for its carbon-derived butter.
In early September, hundreds of Americans lined up at the patisserie of San Francisco’s Michelin-starred outpost, One65, to try the world’s first desserts made from animal- and plant-free butter.
Visitors got a taste of bonbons and cookies made from Savor’s novel fat, which is made from a thermochemical process involving point-captured carbon dioxide, green hydrogen, and methane.
The Californian startup had unveiled its agriculture-free butter earlier this year, lining up launches with several establishments. The first, at One65, was a roaring success.
“The consumer reaction from those who’ve tried our bonbons made in partnership with One65 has been overwhelmingly positive and incredibly encouraging for our team,” Savor co-founder and CEO Kathleen Alexander tells Green Queen.
“We exhausted our supply of bonbon samples within the first hour. One65 also reported selling hundreds of bonbons within the first few hours of them going on sale in their display case,” she says.
The reactions were similar both at One65’s patisserie and during several events at Climate Week NYC, including a pop-up at a United Airlines airport Club and sampling experiences hosted by Food Tank, Rainforest Alliance and Regen House.
“People in each of these settings have said they can’t tell the difference from conventional butter-based confections, which is exactly what we hoped for,” says Alexander.
The response has led Savor to make three flavours of the vegan bonbons available for sale in the US. The Butter Ganache Dark Chocolate, Earl Grey Milk Chocolate, and Raspberry Dark Chocolate can be found at One65 for $3.75 a pop, and online on Savor’s website as part of a six-pack for the holiday period for $22.50.
Savor butter takes shape in croutons and croissants
Founded in 2022 by Alexander and Ian McKay, Savor transforms gases into carbon chains called lkanes, which are turned into fatty acids through a controlled combination of temperature and pressure.
The fatty aids are then purified and assembled to produce high-quality short-, medium- and long-chain triglycerides (SMLCT) to replace conventional fats in a variety of food applications.
These lipids are “chemically identical” to conventional fats, just in varying concentrations. The main ingredients in Savor’s butter are MLCT oil and its dairy fat formulation, which are complemented with water, sea salt, sunflower lecithin, natural flavour and beta carotene.
In March, Savor announced collaborations with Michelin-starred eatery SingleThread and beloved establishment Jane the Bakery in San Francisco. “Both partnerships, while in the early stages, are going incredibly well and really showcase the versatility of our milkfat across different culinary applications,” says Alexander.
“Chef Kyle Connaughton and the team at SingleThread received their first shipment of Savor butter this month, and they’ve enjoyed working with it in the kitchen to design truly memorable dishes. It’s currently being served in a herbed croute paired with bread that accompanies a new dish: an homage to their Cioppino made with all-California seafood and peppers from their farm.
“They’re also working on integrating it through specific swaps in dishes that traditionally use butter, particularly focusing on providing dairy-free and vegan guests with the same exceptional dining experience.”
Jane the Bakery, owned by Amanda Michael, created croissants with Savor’s butter for a pop-up event at SF Climate Week this spring. “We gave away hundreds of samples and people absolutely loved how buttery and flaky they were – exactly the response you want for croissants. We’re working together to get croissants made with our butter on Jane’s regular menu in early 2026,” reveals Alexander.
Could Savor’s butter appear in supermarkets?
Outside the foodservice world, Savor is in talks with CPG companies, too. While partnership details remain under wraps, Savor has participated in Mondelēz International’s CoLab Tech Accelerator Program, and was selected in the Upfield Innovation Challenge through Future Food-Tech (FFT).
“We also co-created a first-of-its-kind whipped topping with Alamance Foods to demonstrate how quickly our fat can be integrated into existing manufacturing processes. That product was sampled for the first time by attendees at FFT’s Chicago summit,” says Alexander.
“Participating in each of these projects has helped validate our approach, showing that established food companies see the potential for our ingredients to help them meet sustainability goals and consumer demand with high-quality product formulations.”
Savor expects to announce more collaborations once it scales up production. What kind of products could its carbon-based fats be part of? “The most likely scenario is that consumers will see other brands’ products on supermarket shelves that use our fats as key functional ingredients,” its CEO notes.
“Our business model is focused on being the ingredient supplier that enables food companies to create more sustainable versions of the products people already love – whether that’s baked goods, confections, spreads, or prepared foods.
“We think there’s much more impact in powering hundreds of different products across multiple categories than trying to compete directly in the crowded butter aisle.
“As for a Savor-branded butter specifically… never say never, but that’s not where we’re focusing our energy right now.”
Why sustainable fats are everywhere right now
Savor’s launch comes during a breakthrough year for alternative fat companies. Whether it’s precision-fermented meat fats being approved for sale in the US, startups securing funding for palm oil alternatives, or companies unveiling cell-based dairy fats, this space is sizzling.
Alexander feels the food industry is at an inflexion point, as manufacturers look for ways to safeguard their supply chains from future disruptions and speed up their adoption of sustainable fats and oils. “These same companies are seeking new ways to reduce their environmental footprint, and consumers are increasingly interested in seeing them take these actions,” she suggests.
“We know the real pain lives in supply chain fragility and that certain consumer targets have strong values associated with sustainability, but it is almost never the first purchase driver.
“What’s really exciting is the scalability of our technology and process. We’ve ramped up production from very small-scale demonstrations of what we can do to our first phase of commercial production in a relatively short period of time.
While we’re still in the early stages, we have a path to grow production in a timeline that would have previously been thought to be impossible. Our fats can match the functionality, flavour and mouthfeel of conventional fats, so our partners don’t have to compromise, and neither do the consumers who will enjoy the finished products.”
Fats have a ‘clearer value proposition’ than alternative proteins
Alexander says the tide on this burgeoning industry hasn’t fully turned yet, though the “momentum is undeniable”. That’s in stark contrast to the alternative protein sector, which has lost some steam as investors and consumers retreat.
Alexander explains that fats face fewer perception hurdles because when people think about plant-based meat, they’re often comparing it directly to a beloved experience, such as a juicy burger.
“With fats, we’re talking about an ingredient that’s typically invisible to the consumer. People don’t sit down to eat fat. They enjoy what fat imparts on cookies, pastries, or sauces where the fat is seamlessly integrated,” she says.
“If our butter delivers the same rich mouthfeel and functionality in a croissant, for example, consumers have the end product they expect without needing to think much about the underlying ingredient innovation. And our fats definitely do pass the ‘can it croissant?’ test.
“From a stakeholder perspective, the value proposition is often clearer with alt-fats. Food manufacturers can achieve significant sustainability improvements and supply chain resilience without asking consumers to accept a fundamentally different eating experience. It’s innovation that works behind the scenes to deliver the products people already love, just made in a better way.”
Capacity expansion is a key focus ahead of GRAS notice
Savor self-affirmed its butter as Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) last year, clearing the way for the product’s market entry. This was “supported by extensive scientific evidence and two formal consultation meetings with the Food and Drug Administration”, says Alexander.
However, things are changing fast. Under the directive of health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, the FDA will likely scrap this provision next year, mandating companies to submit a GRAS notice and wait for a ‘no questions’ letter from the agency before selling new ingredients.
“We’re preparing our next submission to secure the FDA’s official ‘no questions’ letter, which we anticipate will be in late 2026 or early 2027,” Alexander notes.
The FDA’s change will not affect ingredients already self-determined as GRAS today. However, it is likely to spur food tech startups into action to get ahead of any further regulatory uncertainties under a chaotic administration.
“Our approach to food safety and regulatory compliance has always been grounded in rigorous science and transparency, regardless of who’s leading the federal agencies,” says Alexander. “If anything, the current focus on food ingredient scrutiny reinforces the importance of having robust safety data and clear regulatory pathways, which is exactly what we’ve been building from day one.”
Right now, Savor’s main focus is on expanding capacity. “Over the past 12 months, the biggest change has been not just in what we can make, but in how deeply we now understand the latitude of our platform,” she says.
“We launched our butter as the first proof of concept. It is a familiar, nostalgic format that everyone can connect with. That early success unlocked other opportunities for our platform, and we’ll be sharing more on that soon. What we’re building isn’t about one product. It’s about building an entirely new toolkit for food manufacturers’ R&D teams.”
Savor raising Series B to build a 10,000-tonne facility
Alexander earmarks 2026 as a “pivotal year” for Savor, with an eye on “scaling up production and really nailing our early restaurant and bakery partnerships”.
The company is pursuing a 100-fold expansion in capacity of its 25,000 sq ft pilot facility in Batavia, Illinois, as well as strengthening foodservice and CPG collaborations. “We need to demonstrate that we can consistently deliver the volumes and quality that food manufacturers require,” the CEO says.
“We are already matching premium butter pricing for our early restaurant and bakery partners. As we continue to scale up at our production facility and pursue additional fats beyond milkfat, our efficiencies will increase,” she adds.
“In parallel, we are designing and plan to build a commercial plant, which will operate at 10,000 tonnes of annual capacity. At that stage, we will be able to reach parity with cocoa butter, as well as specific palm- and coconut-derived products.”
Fundraising is naturally part of its growth strategy. Savor has raised $33M to date, with Bill Gates’s Breakthrough Energy Ventures one of its lead backers. Other investors include Synthesis Capital and United Airlines Ventures, which Alexander describes as “mission-driven investment funds” focused on speeding up innovations that can significantly slash emissions.
“We’re fortunate to have a diverse coalition of investors who have been instrumental in our journey,” she says. Now, Savor is launching a Series B funding round.
“As we continue scaling, fundraising is naturally part of our growth strategy. To reach our pilot facility’s designed annual capacity of 1,000 tonnes and eventually build a commercial facility to scale production to 10,000 tonnes, we’ll need additional capital investment,” she explains.
“At that 10,000 tonne scale, we’ll be able to produce our milkfat at costs that compete with conventional milkfat, and at larger scales, we’re targeting price parity with palm oil, which would be a real game-changer for the industry.”
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