🧬 Transforming Food Systems with Lactoferrin & Precision Fermentation | Fengru Lin Rerelease (3/3)
July 6, 2026
In this episode of The Biotech Startups Podcast, Jon Chee sits down with Fengru Lin, CEO & co-founder of TurtleTree, who is leveraging precision fermentation and a people-first culture to bring the high-value milk protein lactoferrin to market while reshaping how the food system serves both consumers and farmers. They discuss TurtleTree's strategic refocus from cell-based milk to commercially viable ingredients, the importance of business-centric leadership in biotech, and how thoughtful team-building enables faster execution, better fundraising narratives, and earlier commercialization.
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"Our vision is really to transform the food system. We want to be able to nourish and nurture people, the planet, and animals, and we do that by producing better-for-you ingredients through sustainable methods."
"Our vision is really to transform the food system. We want to be able to nourish and nurture people, the planet, and animals, and we do that by producing better-for-you ingredients through sustainable methods."
In this episode of The Biotech Startups Podcast, Jon Chee sits down with Fengru Lin, CEO & co-founder of TurtleTree, who is leveraging precision fermentation and a people-first culture to bring the high-value milk protein lactoferrin to market while reshaping how the food system serves both consumers and farmers. They discuss TurtleTree's strategic refocus from cell-based milk to commercially viable ingredients, the importance of business-centric leadership in biotech, and how thoughtful team-building enables faster execution, better fundraising narratives, and earlier commercialization.
Key Topics Covered:
- Transforming the food system: TurtleTree’s vision, mission, and B2B2C positioning.
- People as core assets: Early HR leadership, culture-building, and empowering world-class scientists.
- Strategic refocus: Moving from cell-based milk toward precision fermentation & lactoferrin.
- Commercialization strategy: B2B sales, product integration, and “Intel Inside”-style branding.
- Food system impact: Price volatility, farmer pressures, and lactose-free & plant-based applications.
- Fundraising & leadership: Navigating tough markets, investor skepticism, and business-led biotech.
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Find our guest, Fengru Lin, at these links:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fengru/
Website: https://www.turtletree.com/
Find our host, Jon Chee, at these links:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonchee/
Learn more about Excedr:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/excedr/
Website: https://www.excedr.com
Intro & Outro Songs Created by OkKyojin, Owned by Excedr:
Website: https://flow.page/kyojin
Resources & Articles:
SupplySide West ingredients conference: https://www.supplysidewest.com
IFT FIRST Annual Event and Expo (Chicago food conference): https://www.ift.org/events/ift-first-annual-event-and-expo
World Economic Forum feature on lactoferrin & precision fermentation: https://www.facebook.com/worldeconomicforum/posts/lactoferrin-supports-immunity-boosts-gut-health-and-improves-digestion-but-right/1441804124654488
Global Dairy Trade lactoferrin pricing overview: https://www.globaldairytrade.info
Merck KGaA company overview: https://www.merckgroup.com
Dow Corporate company overview: https://corporate.dow.com/en-us.html
Thermo Fisher Scientific company overview: https://www.thermofisher.com
Companies, Universities, & People Mentioned:
TurtleTree: https://www.turtletree.com
Abbott: https://www.abbott.com
Fonterra: https://www.fonterra.com
Merck KGaA: https://www.merckgroup.com
Dow: https://corporate.dow.com/en-us.html
Thermo Fisher Scientific: https://www.thermofisher.com
Salesforce: https://www.salesforce.com
Google: https://www.google.com
Excedr: https://www.excedr.com
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:37 TurtleTree’s mission to transform the food system
02:22 Building an HR-first, people-centric culture
04:08 Business-centric leadership as a “big symphony”
07:10 Empowering experts & orchestrating the team
08:12 Shifting focus from cell-based milk to lactoferrin
10:44 Commercial logic of lactoferrin vs whey & casein
13:11 Choosing precision fermentation over heavy CapEx
15:03 B2B2C strategy & “Intel Inside”-style branding
16:53 Impact on farmers, dairy, and plant-based milks
18:13 Fundraising realities & gross margin discipline
20:55 Stories of investor skepticism about “business” founders
23:30 Walking scientists through investor communications
26:03 Conferences, customer feedback & vegan demand for lactoferrin
27:35 Team gratitude & advice to her 21-year-old self
27:53 Outro
The Biotech Startups Podcast gives you a front-row seat to the business and science of building a biotech. Hosted by Jon Chee, CEO of Excedr, the show features honest conversations with founders, execs, and investors about their work, their companies, and how they got there. From scientific breakthroughs to startup lessons, each episode explores what it really takes to grow a life science company—from pre-seed to IPO.