GBN LA Exhibitor Spotlight: Geltor
To better introduce you to our amazing Green Beauty Night exhibitors, we sent all of them this questionaire to share more about what they do. Here’s what Geltor had to say!
What does ‘sustainability’ mean to you?
From a sustainability and ethical standpoint at Geltor, removing animals entirely from the production process for high-performance protein ingredients has been our primary motivating factor. Knowing what modern science is capable of today, we were shocked at how outdated, unsustainable, and potentially harmful to public health our reliance on animals can be in the sourcing of common beauty ingredients like collagen, elastin, and keratin.
By using fermentation instead of sourcing from animals in our manufacturing process, Geltor’s proteins offer companies and consumers a much kinder and more ethical option of sourcing ingredients from nature that are either conventionally derived from livestock, or too rare or unattainable to harvest. Geltor's conscious biodesign platform enables any protein found across nature’s tree of life to be unlocked for its particular performance in meeting a consumer need. As a result, Geltor is able to deliver proteins of the highest quality and purity, without the harmful environmental footprint and ethical concerns around factory-farming, or contributing to the growing threat of antibiotic resistance.
Why do you feel your company is a ‘sustainability’ leader? What does your company do to be “green”?
Through biodesign, Geltor has established an unprecedented method of sourcing protein ingredients which could previously only be harvested from animals. Our first ingredient was the CEW Innovation Award-winning marine collagen, Collume™, produced with zero animal inputs. We then expanded on our portfolio of collagens to include HumaColl21™, the world’s first human collagen for skincare. No other collagens on the market are available for brands intending to make animal-free formulations.
Rather than settling for commodity proteins derived from factory-farmed animal waste, brands now have the ability to opt for premium versions of proteins like collagen, designed for superior performance as hero ingredients in consumer products - without the ethical and sustainability concerns around animal sourcing. The manufacturing process for these ingredients uses renewable, natural inputs that can be found anywhere in the world, using a fraction of the land, water, and time required to raise an animal.
Additionally, Geltor's proteins offer unique benefits to users in areas including biocompatibility, unmatched purity, and functionality, so that consumers and brands can make the more ethical, environmentally-friendly choice without compromising on quality and results.
Why did you decide to launch your company? Was there a problem or gap in the marketplace you were trying to solve or fill?
Geltor was founded in 2015 by Alex Lorestani and Nick Ouzounov, who met while completing PhDs in Molecular Biology at Princeton University. The two wondered why scientific and technological advances which were vastly improving the field of medicine were not being similarly applied to areas like personal care and nutrition, and they started Geltor with the aim of improving public health, animal welfare, and sustainability through their unique approach to protein design and production.
Why are you passionate about sustainability in personal care?
Both Alex and Nick are vegetarians with a deep respect and appreciation for nature. The personal care market has been a perfect fit for Geltor’s ingredients and ethos, with its fast-moving innovation cycles for increasingly conscious consumers demanding effective, animal-free, and sustainable ingredients that align with their evolving personal values. As a company, we’re thrilled to serve the diverse needs found across global markets and working with customers of different backgrounds and philosophies around beauty. There is no better feeling than to see a new product launched containing Geltor’s protein, watching it be embraced by users in the beauty community, and knowing that there was a conscious choice made to select a truly greener hero ingredient.
Alex Lorestani is co-founder and CEO of Geltor, the biodesign company that has created the largest selection of 100% animal-free, globally scalable, and sustainably cultivated designer proteins. He is strongly motivated by the positive impact that Geltor’s protein design and production technology can have on public health and sustainability. Alex became interested in transforming the global protein supply chain as an MD/ Ph.D. student working to solve antibiotic resistance. He studied Medicine at Rutgers University, earned a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from Princeton University, and holds a BS in Biology from Boston College. Outside the office he enjoys learning new languages and cycling around northern California.
Nick Ouzounov is CTO and co-founder of Geltor. Nick heads innovation and production development and leads the team’s efforts in taking Geltor’s novel ingredients from lab bench to customer. He is passionate about combining synthetic biology with his unique background in microbiology, biochemistry, and molecular biology. Before founding Geltor, Nick received a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from Princeton University and a BS in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry from Rutgers University. When he is not working on creating new technology, Nick enjoys nature hikes, science fiction, and being a dad to his two young daughters.