As food manufacturers across Europe scramble to reformulate products following the EU ban on titanium dioxide, Swiss biomaterials company Seprify has developed a plant-based alternative derived from FSC-certified wood pulp. The Marly-based startup, which spun out of the University of Cambridge and the University of Fribourg, produces cellulose-based white pigments designed to replicate the opacity and brightness that titanium dioxide has long provided in food applications. The company recently closed a €13.4 million Series A round and has partnered with natural colour supplier Oterra to bring the ingredient to food and beverage manufacturers globally.
We spoke with Dr. Lukas Schertel, co-founder and CEO of Seprify, about why white is the hardest colour to replace, what the reformulation challenge actually looks like in practice, and how a wood pulp-derived ingredient is making the case for sustainable food colouring.
What is driving the food industry’s search for titanium dioxide alternatives today?
The search for alternatives to titanium dioxide is being driven by a combination of regulatory change, consumer expectations and long-term risk management. In Europe, the ban on titanium dioxide as a food additive has been a clear trigger, forcing manufacturers to reformulate products that previously relied on it for whiteness and opacity. At the same time, increased regulatory scrutiny of artificial colours in other markets, including the US, is prompting brands to reassess ingredients that were previously considered standard.
Beyond regulation, there is also a commercial reality. Reformulating away from titanium dioxide is no longer a future consideration but an immediate requirement for many manufacturers. This has created demand not just for replacements, but for solutions that can be integrated into existing products without compromising appearance, performance or supply reliability.
White colouring is often described as one of the hardest colour challenges in food formulation. Why is replacing titanium dioxide particularly complex compared to other colours?
White behaves very differently from other colours because it is created by the scattering of visible light across the entire spectrum, rather than absorbing specific wavelengths. Titanium dioxide achieves this effect extremely reliably due to its intrinsic physical properties, particularly its very high refractive index. Replicating the same level of whiteness with natural materials is far more complex, as they do not inherently possess these properties and require precise control over factors such as particle size and shape to achieve comparable light scattering.
In addition, titanium dioxide performs consistently across a wide range of products and processing conditions. Replacing it requires an ingredient that can deliver similar functionality while remaining stable during processing, compatible with different formulations and acceptable from a regulatory and labelling perspective. Achieving all of these simultaneously is what makes white such a complex challenge.
Your solution has been tested across multiple food categories. What have you learned about how different matrices respond to plant-based white colouring?
One of the key learnings is that performance is highly dependent on the formulation and processing context. Different matrices interact with white colouring ingredients in different ways, affecting opacity, brightness and distribution. For example, fat content, moisture levels and processing conditions all play a role in the final visual outcome.
What this reinforces is the importance of application-specific optimisation. Rather than offering a one-size-fits-all ingredient, our work has focused on understanding how plant-based white colouring behaves in different food systems and helping customer adjusting formulations accordingly.
For example, in confectionery applications such as boiled candy, the order in which ingredients are added can significantly affect homogeneity and appearance. In bakery applications, including glazing and icing, careful selection of co-ingredients can help increase opacity without increasing ingredient load. These insights allow manufacturers to achieve the desired visual result while working within existing formulations and processes.
Scalability is often a bottleneck for novel food ingredients. What considerations are most important when moving a colouring solution from pilot testing to commercial adoption?
Scalability is not just about producing larger volumes. It requires consistency, repeatability and the ability to integrate into existing supply chains. From a food manufacturer’s perspective, this includes reliable quality, predictable performance and confidence that the ingredient can be sourced at the volumes required over time.
Another critical factor is manufacturability. A solution that works in pilot trials must also be compatible with industrial production processes and procurement expectations. This is why, from the very beginning, we have focused early on production readiness and working within established manufacturing and distribution frameworks.
From a sustainability standpoint, how does replacing titanium dioxide with plant-based alternatives contribute to broader environmental or supply-chain goals for food manufacturers?
From a sustainability standpoint, replacing titanium dioxide with plant-based alternatives allows food manufacturers to reduce reliance on mineral-derived ingredients and move towards materials sourced from renewable feedstocks. For many brands, this supports broader goals around emissions reduction, resource efficiency and long-term supply-chain resilience.
In Seprify’s case, the white pigment is derived from FSC-certified virgin wood pulp, which is 100% renewable. Based on internal life cycle assessments, optimisation of the production process has already delivered a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, with the material showing significantly lower CO2 emissions per product compared to titanium dioxide (up to ~80% lower).
Beyond emissions, plant-based alternatives can also help manufacturers mitigate regulatory and sourcing risks while maintaining food safety and compliance. For food producers, this combination of sustainability performance, regulatory readiness and functional equivalence is becoming increasingly important when reformulating away from titanium dioxide.
