this post was submitted on 12 Aug 2025
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cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/34272214

A California-based biotechnology startup has officially launched the world's first commercially available butter made entirely from carbon dioxide, hydrogen, and oxygen, eliminating the need for traditional agriculture or animal farming. Savor, backed by Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates through his Breakthrough Energy Ventures fund, announced the commercial release of its animal- and plant-free butter after three years of development.

The revolutionary product uses a proprietary thermochemical process that transforms carbon dioxide captured from the air, hydrogen from water, and methane into fat molecules chemically identical to those found in dairy butter. According to the company, the process creates fatty acids by heating these gases under controlled temperature and pressure conditions, then combining them with glycerol to form triglycerides.

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[–] dogslayeggs@lemmy.world 141 points 3 weeks ago (5 children)

While I think this is pretty amazing science stuff, the writing is terrible. Here is the progression of the story as written:

They made butter from carbon...

Well, it's actually made from carbon dioxide, hydrogen, and oxygen...

OK, it's actually made from carbon dioxide, hydrogen, oxygen, and methane...

Well, no, it's actually made from carbon dioxide, hydrogen, oxygen, methane, and glycerol...

Wait, hang on, it's actually made from carbon dioxide, hydrogen, oxygen, methane, glycerol, natural flavor, and lecithin...

Now, the source of glycerol is in question, because they say this butter is both animal and plant-free. Glycerol can be made synthetically, but it's WAY more expensive to do it. Also, I'm not seeing any way to create lecithin without plants. They never say what the "natural flavor" is.

[–] halcyoncmdr@lemmy.world 70 points 3 weeks ago (9 children)

They never say what the "natural flavor" is.

A reminder that "natural flavor" doesn't mean healthier or even something you might want over the artificially created flavors. It just means it comes from a natural source and is not lab created.

Castoreum, sometimes used for vanilla and raspberry flavoring, comes from beaver anal secretions. That would be labelled under a "natural flavor" and you'd never be told more than that.

I'll take the artificial stuff any day just on principle there.

[–] tormeh@discuss.tchncs.de 37 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

It would have cost you nothing to not write this.

[–] tal@lemmy.today 19 points 3 weeks ago

Maybe he wouldn't have lost anything, but I wouldn't have been able to enjoy his comment.

[–] Hobo@lemmy.world 31 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (5 children)

I think it's worth pointing out that vanilla extract is from vanilla beans and artificial vanilla is whatever the fuck they feel like that tastes like vanilla. Also, modern artificial vanilla extremely rarely, if ever, is derived from Castoreum because it's hard as hell to farm beavers and expensive as all fuck. The "artificial vanilla comes from beaver anal glands" is basically a prevalent internet myth that gets passed around like the, "You eat 7 spiders a year in your sleep." myth.

Source: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/does-vanilla-flavoring-actually-come-from-beaver-butts-180983288/

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[–] MBech@feddit.dk 18 points 3 weeks ago (4 children)

Also, poop has natural flavour. Natural flavour also doesn't mean it tastes good.

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[–] MedicPigBabySaver@lemmy.world 8 points 3 weeks ago

Mmmm, I like licking beaver butt. 😉

[–] qyron@sopuli.xyz 6 points 3 weeks ago

Myth. Vanilla extracts either come from low grade vanilla pods or cloves. It may have been but not today.

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[–] crank0271@lemmy.world 32 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

They never say what the "natural flavor" is

...it's people?

[–] HugeNerd@lemmy.ca 7 points 3 weeks ago

Where do you think Trump is sending all the homeless? A big old wooden screw press...

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[–] SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 6 points 3 weeks ago

They add just a little butter for that real butter flavor

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[–] muntedcrocodile@hilariouschaos.com 38 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

All butter is made from CO2 it simply goes through a processing step known as cow.

[–] AmidFuror@fedia.io 9 points 3 weeks ago

You missed the grass or corn step.

[–] nkat2112@sh.itjust.works 29 points 3 weeks ago (5 children)

Thank goodness we have the assurances of a billionaire oligarch to help steer humanity in the right dietary direction.

[–] teuniac_@lemmy.world 27 points 3 weeks ago

Global warming and ecological crises make shifting diets away from animal products a pretty good idea.

Whether it's antibiotics resistance, deforestation, or greenhouse gas emissions, humanity is paying a very high price for animal agriculture at the current scale.

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[–] interdimensionalmeme@lemmy.ml 22 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

So, like every other butter and oil, that's why we call them hydrocarbon.

I imagine this "butter" doesn't contain any glycomacropeptide, α-lactalbumin, β-lactoglobulin, serum albumin and immunoglobulins

[–] ivanafterall@lemmy.world 19 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

You're probably right, but I can't wait to see the egg on your face if it does turn out to contain glycomacropeptides, α-lactalbumin, β-lactoglobulin, serum albumin and immunoglobulins!

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[–] partial_accumen@lemmy.world 20 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

To put it in simple terms, Savor says they take carbon dioxide from the air and hydrogen from water, heat them up, oxidize them and get a final result that looks like candle wax but is in fact fat molecules like those in beef, cheese or vegetable oils.

So their process sounds like it creates synthetic lard, not butter. This can still be a good thing as the extra ingredients to make it "butter" aren't really the hard/impactful part of butter.

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[–] Binturong@lemmy.ca 19 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Good ol' Gates, always around to make a quick buck of the bloodied backs of humanity. Never an advancement meant to aid us all he can't swoop in to parasitize. That's right Billy boy, I didn't forget the COVID vaccine patents. Billionaires must be condemned to the rubbish bin of history.

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[–] ShittyBeatlesFCPres@lemmy.world 18 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

I don’t eat carbon-based foods. Exotic silicon lifeforms, fresh from Titan’s methane seas.

[–] Blackout@fedia.io 15 points 3 weeks ago

How do you know when someone is a non-carbon eater? Don't worry they will tell you.

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[–] tal@lemmy.today 15 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (6 children)

I'd actually be willing to give it a try if it's vaguely price-competitive, but their website is all glam shots of butter and people doing things with butter and not only doesn't sell it but doesn't tell you where you can get it.

https://www.savor.it/

Also, they did not do a good job of choosing that name. It looks like there's a very-similarly-named French Canadian manufacturer of butter, Savör, which apparently isn't too religious about using their umlaut:

At Savor, we believe the best butter starts with the best environment. That’s why we source our grass-fed dairy butter from New Zealand, a country renowned for its pristine landscapes, sustainable farming, and exceptional dairy quality.

I foresee a collision between those two.

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[–] IllNess@infosec.pub 14 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

This is interesting...

Lab grown meat have problem where they cannot create fat. So if this works, maybe this is the solution.

"So you're using this gas right now to cook your food and we're proposing that we would like to first make your food with— with that gas," said Kathleen Alexander, co-founder and CEO of Savor.

That doesn't sound appetizing... Lol.

[–] NoForwardslashS@sopuli.xyz 10 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

I would like to propose you eat my gas

[–] IllNess@infosec.pub 10 points 3 weeks ago

"Eat my gas" should be their slogan.

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[–] 9488fcea02a9@sh.itjust.works 12 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

I'm not giving up a small pleasure like butter just so that a billionaire can buy another private jet and wipe out whatever tiny carbon footprint savings comes from giving up butter

[–] bluefootedbooby@sopuli.xyz 17 points 3 weeks ago (8 children)

I too love participating in the simple pleasure of systemic animal abuse just to spite the billionaires

[–] Squizzy@lemmy.world 8 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

The cows yearn to be milked.

[–] Korhaka@sopuli.xyz 6 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)
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[–] Bosht@lemmy.world 11 points 3 weeks ago (11 children)

How much carbon is emitted to run the factory to make it though? Are we talking a net negative here?

[–] CodingCarpenter@lemmy.ml 9 points 3 weeks ago

You mean how much butter is emitted

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[–] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 11 points 3 weeks ago

I'm a traditionalist, I prefer my butter silicon based. Maybe germanium or tin if it's a special occasion

[–] Betinem@feddit.org 10 points 3 weeks ago

Yeah #govegan, I love it. I am curious to try it. Great invention.

[–] KingThrillgore@lemmy.ml 8 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Didnt the Nazis also make something similar using coal?

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[–] sexy_peach@feddit.org 7 points 3 weeks ago
[–] SocialMediaRefugee@lemmy.world 6 points 3 weeks ago

Should be a nice change from that silicon based butter I usually get.

[–] qyron@sopuli.xyz 6 points 3 weeks ago

So, in essence, this, but with added marketing steps.

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