Fact Check: Are U.S. Stores Secretly Selling “Lab-Grown” Eggs?
Claim: In October 2026, U.S. consumers could purchase federally approved “lab-grown” eggs that major brands were secretly sneaking into everyday packaged foods.
Rating: Mixture
What’s True
- Animal-free egg proteins exist: Several companies manufacture animal-free egg white proteins in the United States, and some have been on the market since 2021.
- OvoPro’s release: A specific product called OvoPro, produced by The EVERY Company, became available directly to home consumers in March 2026.
- FDA safety status: In October 2023, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a “no questions” letter regarding The EVERY Company’s conclusion that the protein ingredient in OvoPro is “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS).
What’s False
- Secret ingredients: There is no evidence that food brands using OvoPro are omitting it from their ingredient lists. Federal regulations strictly govern what must appear on food labels. A representative for The EVERY Company confirmed that the firm never sought an exemption from labeling rules and actively provides guidance on how companies should properly list the ingredient.
What’s Undetermined
- The “lab-grown” label: It remains unclear whether yeast-produced proteins like OvoPro technically qualify as “lab-grown.” That terminology is typically reserved for products cultivated from actual animal tissue cells, which OvoPro does not use.
Understanding the Viral Rumor
Social media videos circulating in October 2026 claimed that major retailers like Walmart and Target were covertly selling “lab-grown” eggs. One viral video alleged that companies were brewing “factory fungus” spliced with egg proteins in giant fermenting vats, turning it into a “cloudy sludge,” and hiding the resulting powder in packaged foods without telling consumers.
These claims drew attention to packaging for OvoPro, an egg-white protein manufactured by The EVERY Company.
While products utilizing yeast-derived egg proteins were indeed available to U.S. consumers in late 2026, they were not brand new, nor were they being slipped into foods in secret.
How Yeast-Grown Egg Protein Is Made
OvoPro is not an actual whole egg, nor is it grown from animal cells. Instead, it is created using precision fermentation.
According to The EVERY Company, the process involves programming a specific strain of yeast (Komagataella phaffii) with the genetic instructions to produce ovalbumin, which is the primary protein found in natural egg whites. The yeast undergoes fermentation—a process similar to brewing beer—without the involvement of any chickens or animal cells. The resulting product is a purified protein powder used to replicate the functional qualities of real eggs in various food applications.
The EVERY Company secured a patent for this precision fermentation method in September 2024, though the firm (formerly known as Clara Foods) has been developing animal-free egg proteins since at least 2021. Early iterations of the technology, such as “ClearEgg” and “EveryEgg,” have previously been utilized in smoothies, vegan macarons, bottled juices, and restaurant dishes.
Clarifying FDA “Approval”
Social media posts frequently mischaracterized the regulatory status of these products, claiming they were “federally approved.”
The FDA does not issue “approvals” for food products in the same way it evaluates pharmaceuticals for safety and efficacy. Instead, the agency operates a Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) notification program. Under this framework, companies submit scientific data demonstrating that a food substance is safe for its intended use.
- In September 2021, the FDA issued a “no questions” letter regarding The EVERY Company’s earlier protein, ClearEgg.
- In October 2023, the FDA issued a similar “no questions” letter for the specific yeast-derived egg white protein utilized in OvoPro.
These letters indicate that the FDA reviewed the company’s safety data and raised no objections to its safety determinations, rather than granting a formal government “approval.”
Direct-to-Consumer Availability
While earlier versions of animal-free egg proteins were primarily distributed to restaurants and commercial food manufacturers, 2026 marked a shift toward direct consumer availability. In March 2026, The EVERY Company announced that OvoPro could be purchased by the general public via online retailers like Amazon and Healthier Comforts. By June 2026, the company confirmed that OvoPro was also being utilized as an ingredient in products stocked by major retailers like Walmart and Target.
Are Brands Hiding the Ingredient?
Viral claims suggesting that food brands are “burying” the ingredient without listing it on labels are false.
Federal regulations require food packaging to feature clear ingredient lists, ordered by weight from highest to lowest. A spokesperson for The EVERY Company clarified that the company never requested any exemption from these labeling requirements.
Because “OvoPro” is a proprietary trade name used by the manufacturer, it typically does not appear on retail packaging under that exact brand name. Instead, it is identified by common descriptive terms on ingredient labels—such as “egg white protein (from fermentation)” or “animal-free egg white protein”—matching guidance provided by the manufacturer. For instance, the retailer Healthier Comforts lists the product explicitly as “animal-free egg white protein powder.”