Angus Stone is a man of many parts. He’s one half of renowned folk sibling duo Angus & Julia Stone, whose first four albums reached the top 10 of the ARIA Albums Chart; in his spare time he moonlights as DOPE LEMON, a genre-bending indie star who casually samples Will Ferrell and Judd Apatow and is mates with famous footy players.
And in a time of reveals – Stone only revealed himself to be the person behind the DOPE LEMON persona on his newly released fourth album, Kimosabè – he has unveiled his latest part: a key player in Australia’s increasing commitment to alternative dairy products.
Alongside the Victorian government, Stone is one of a handful of Aussie icons backing Eden Brew, a world-leading innovator in the alternative protein and precision fermentation sector, as it’s reached its targeted funding goal of $25M during Series A capital raise. It’s a major funding milestone that should enable the company to bring a wider range of animal-free dairy products to the Australian market.
For Stone, lending his voice to this important project felt just as important as his creative pursuits.
“The work I do with writing and making records is a labour of love and alongside that, I have a great appreciation for the work that the incredibly brilliant scientists of Eden Brew are doing to make our world a more efficient and better place for us and the generations to come,” he says.
“Getting involved with the team at Eden Brew felt like a good symbiotic relationship for me to lend my voice, partnering up alongside the important work that they have achieved so far.”
He’s not the only familiar name backing Eden Brew. Powderfinger legend Bernard Fanning joined the project in order to support a “forward thinking step in manufacture that will help take pressure off the environment.”
“It’s also an Australian innovation that needs local support, as so many of our great ideas end up benefitting other economies that are prepared to take the leap that this kind of technology requires,” as Fanning puts it.
Paul Piticco is no stranger to the pitfalls of the changing environment. One of the organisers of Splendour in the Grass, he had to watch his beloved festival be nicknamed ‘Splendour in the Mud’ last year, when wild and wet weather battered the Splendour site, causing traffic chaos and several cancellations.
“As a promoter, manager and restauranteur, I am always looking for ways to innovate and lower our impact on the environment,” Piticco says. “Previously, dairy substitutes have meant flavour compromises. When I first heard the term ‘real milk, no cow’, I was 100% engaged. The Eden Brew team are amazing and true innovators and I look forward to serving animal-free ice cream for our events and venues in the near future.”
The time for change is now, but as Eden Brew CEO and co-founder Jim Fader acknowledges, we’re really just at the start of systemic dietary change.
“When we think about dairy, we think about milk in coffees and over cereal, it’s a breakfast staple. It’s a very personal household moment to gather around the kitchen table and, globally, the use of milk is a common thread. We’re very conscious of this and know we’re not just releasing a new product but a new social concept for families to get their heads around,” he explains.
“With diet change demanding a much greater supply of protein, we need to provide consumers another choice of milk to help manage supply and to do so sustainably. Reaching the conscious consumer is no mean feat when taking entirely new products to market that are made through methods that seem unfathomable to the masses.
“Receiving the backing we have from Bernard Fanning, Angus Stone, Paul Piticco and Dylan Alcott helps us bridge a gap between corporate and consumer, and we’re incredibly pleased they have showed us their support by investing in Eden Brew.”
So, if you’re attending Splendour in the Grass – sans treacherous mud, hopefully – next year, or going to see Angus Stone or Bernard Fanning in concert sometime soon, you’ll hopefully have much more alternative dairy products on offer.
