Perfat Technologies launches fiber-rich fat alternative to target bakery and plant-based foods

Perfat Technologies has officially launched Perfat Soft, the first commercial product developed from its proprietary oleogel technology platform, as the Finnish food technology company looks to help manufacturers reduce saturated fat while maintaining the functionality required across a wide range of food applications.

• Perfat Soft is a sunflower oil-based oleogel designed to replace butter, palm oil, and coconut oil in food products.
• The ingredient contains 34g of fiber per 100g and more than 75% less saturated fat than butter or palm oil.
• Commercial launches featuring Perfat Soft are expected in late 2026 or early 2027.

The Helsinki-based startup announced the launch of Perfat Soft this month, describing the ingredient as "a new way of thinking about fat" that combines nutrition, functionality, and sustainability in a single solution. The product is the company's first commercial offering since it was founded in 2023 by CEO Jyrki Lee-Korhonen, CTO Fabio Valoppi, and COO Anton Nolvi.

According to the company, Perfat Soft is built on its proprietary oleogel technology, which transforms liquid vegetable oils into solid fats while preserving their functional properties. The first commercial formulation uses high-oleic sunflower oil combined with soluble corn fiber, mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids, and natural antioxidants.

Oleogelation has attracted increasing attention from researchers as a way of replacing saturated fats in foods. By structuring liquid oils into solid or semi-solid formats, the technology aims to deliver many of the textural and processing characteristics of conventional fats without relying on ingredients such as butter, palm oil, or coconut oil.

Speaking to Green Queen, Lee-Korhonen said Perfat's approach builds on existing oleogel science while introducing dietary fiber as part of the fat structure.

"We can use any healthy vegetable oil and give it a solid fat structure. Oleogel technology allows trapping of oil within a matrix, and we have taken oleogels to the next level by using dietary fibre as a co-structurant," he said.

One of Perfat Soft's defining characteristics is its nutritional profile. The ingredient contains 34g of fiber per 100g, compared with virtually no fiber in conventional solid fats. According to the company, it also delivers 616 calories per 100g, around 14% fewer than butter and approximately 30% fewer than palm oil.

Lee-Korhonen attributed the lower calorie content to the product's composition. "Our fat is not 100% oil or fat," he told Green Queen, noting that the high fiber content "has a significantly lower caloric content than oil or fat".

The company also says the ingredient contains no trans fat and just 11.7g of saturated fat per 100g, representing a reduction of more than 75% compared with butter and palm oil.

Perfat is positioning the ingredient for multiple food categories, including bakery products such as cakes, biscuits, cereal bars and fillings, as well as confectionery, plant-based dairy products, and meat alternatives.

In plant-based ice cream, the company says Perfat Soft can deliver a stable structure and creamy texture while reducing saturated fat by 71% compared with conventional dairy cream. It also says the ingredient can contribute structure, juiciness, and mouthfeel in plant-based meat products.

"The first version of Perfat Soft is targeted at various bakery applications, including cakes, bars, biscuits, etc.," Lee-Korhonen said, adding that the company is already co-developing products with food manufacturers.

Sustainability also forms part of the company's commercial proposition. Perfat estimates that Perfat Soft generates 1.7kg CO2e per kilogram of product, which it says is 83% lower than dairy butter and 77% lower than palm oil. Those figures could appeal to manufacturers looking to reduce the environmental footprint of finished products while reformulating for improved nutrition.

Unlike some alternative fat technologies, Perfat says its ingredient does not require Novel Food authorization in the European Union.

"Furthermore, unlike many other alternative fats, our fat is not a novel food, so we don't need any novel food approvals in Europe," Lee-Korhonen said. He added that the first consumer products containing Perfat Soft are expected to reach the market in late 2026 or early 2027.

The commercial launch follows a Series A funding round announced in 2025 that raised €2.5 million (US$2.9 million) to support production scale-up and commercialization. Overall, Perfat has now secured approximately €7 million (US$8.2 million) in funding, including backing from EIT Food programs. The company currently outsources manufacturing and says it has capacity to supply more than 1,000 metric tons of product annually.