150-Year-Old Ice Cream Company Debuts High-Tech Vegan Pints 

Cincinnati, OH-based brand Graeter’s Ice Cream—America’s oldest family-run craft ice cream maker founded in 1870—is launching its first vegan ice cream line in partnership with Berkeley, CA-based food technology startup Perfect Day, which creates “flora-based” vegan proteins that mimic dairy in every way. Under its new Perfect Indulgence line, Graeter’s will offer vegan versions of six classic flavors: Black Cherry Chocolate Chip, Cookies & Cream, Oregon Strawberry, Mint Chocolate Chip, Chocolate, and Chocolate Chip. The pints will be available online on Graeter’s website on November 27 and in its 55 scoops shops on December 1. Graeter’s plans to expand the line with additional flavors, such as Madagascar Vanilla Bean, in the future.

“The taste of Perfect Indulgence is exactly what our customers have come to expect after 150 years of bringing them irresistibly indulgent ice cream,” Richard Graeter, president and CEO of Graeter’s Ice Cream, said. “We are excited to finally be able to serve authentic Graeter’s indulgence to guests who choose to eat vegan or cannot enjoy our regular ice cream due to a lactose intolerance. Until now, we couldn’t put our name on a vegan product because it simply did not live up to our standards. But now, with Perfect Day, we can.” 

Founded in 2014 by entrepreneurs Ryan Pandya and Perumal Gandhi, Perfect Day is establishing a new category, Animal-Free Dairy, with its innovative technology which involves inserting a cow’s DNA sequence as a blueprint into yeast-based microflora—tiny living organisms used to make everyday items such as vitamins and probiotics. The flora then takes the place of a cow and undergoes an acellular (without animal cells) fermentation process producing an abundance of proteins that can be used as a base for flora-based products that are indistinguishable from dairy foods such as milk, cheese, and ice cream.

“We’re honored to partner with Graeter’s Ice Cream, a venerable brand beloved across generations for its great taste and uncompromising quality,” Pandya said. “From the coasts to the Midwest, and across the entire world, everyone’s looking for kinder, greener offerings that deliver on taste appeal. This is just the beginning of what we see as a tremendous opportunity to share delicious, animal-free dairy with people in a mainstream capacity.”

To date, Perfect Day has raised $400 million in investment capital to fund its mission of taking cows out of the dairy equation. In October, the company welcomed Bob Iger—the Executive Chairman of The Walt Disney Company—to its board of directors to help accelerate its growth.