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NASA did test yogurt cultures aboard the International Space Station, but it did not turn the station into a yogurt factory or make food ready to feed people on Mars. The work is part of BioNutrients-3, a small-scale experiment testing fermentation and microbial nutrient production. The samples were frozen and returned to Earth for analysis; NASA said the crew would not eat them.
What NASA actually tested in space
BioNutrients-3 used flexible production bags, not a dedicated dairy facility. The bags contained dehydrated growth media and different microorganisms: commercial yogurt and kefir starter cultures in some, and engineered yeast intended to produce particular nutrients or other target products in others. The yeast work is related to the yogurt experiment, but yeast-made nutrients are not yogurt.
NASA describes the yogurt cultures as including the familiar yogurt-associated bacteria Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus. The broader BioNutrients platform also tests production methods, food-safety procedures, and whether cultures can be used again to start another batch. NASA workshop material lists the organisms used in the program.
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NASA says astronaut Kimiya Yui displayed BioNutrients-3 bags containing yogurt cultures aboard the ISS on October 2, 2025. The experiment launched aboard SpaceX CRS-33 in August 2025. That is a real space-based fermentation test—but not evidence that a finished product was approved as astronaut food.
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How the bag experiment worked
- Add water: Astronauts rehydrated the dried contents in a flexible bag.
- Mix and incubate: They agitated the bag and placed it in an incubator. Depending on the sample, incubation lasted about six to 48 hours.
- Watch fermentation: A red-cabbage-derived indicator shifted from purple toward pink as acidity increased. It gave the crew a visual sign of fermentation progress.
- Freeze and return: The samples were frozen and sent back to Earth for laboratory analysis.
The color change is not a safety test. It indicates a change in acidity; it does not show that a sample is free of pathogens, nutritionally adequate, or safe to eat. NASA’s BioNutrients overview describes the bags, procedures, and indicator.
No, the astronauts did not eat these samples
NASA explicitly said the BioNutrients-3 crew would not consume the samples, even though the growth substrate was edible. They were research material to be frozen and examined on Earth—not a snack served aboard the station.
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- Effortless to Make at Home: Making yogurt at home is simple and rewarding. Heat 2 liters of your preferred cow's milk to 82°C (180°F), cool to 42°C (108°F), mix in the starter culture with 1 cup of the cooled cow's milk, pour everything into your yogurt maker and incubate for 8 hours. Chill for at least 2 hours, and enjoy fresh, creamy yogurt anytime!
- Packed with Health Benefits: Create creamy probiotic yogurt that supports digestion, strengthens your gut health, and fits into your balanced lifestyle. Enjoy yogurt that’s low in price, but rich in nutrients.
- Versatile for Every Lifestyle: Make traditional yogurt or Greek-style yogurt. Customize your yogurt to suit your tastes and dietary needs. Longer boiling time gives you thick and creamy yogurt, while a shorter time keeps it light and smooth.
- Pure, Wholesome Ingredients: Made with premium ingredients, this culture provides a natural, tangy flavor and creamy consistency that store-bought yogurt simply can’t match.
- Consistently High Quality: Designed for home use, this starter culture delivers reliable fermentation and authentic yogurt flavor every time, perfect for beginners and experienced fermenters alike.
That distinction matters because fermentation does not automatically make food safe. NASA’s food-safety work considers possible contamination by coliforms, molds, non-lactic-acid bacteria, and pathogens such as Staphylococcus aureus and Salmonella. Desired fermentation organisms can complicate the detection of unwanted microbes. The research includes approaches such as pasteurization and pathogen detection, as well as an electronic-nose concept. See NASA’s technical report on strategies for determining the safety of fermented foods produced in space.
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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteIn short, “edible ingredients” is not the same as “a tested, safe finished food.” Nor does the presence of yogurt cultures establish a proven probiotic benefit for astronauts.
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Why test yogurt cultures if the goal is Mars?
Yogurt is an accessible example of a bigger idea: in-space biomanufacturing. On a long mission, stored food and supplements must remain usable for years, while launch mass and storage space are limited. Some nutrients can lose potency over time. NASA is exploring whether dried microorganisms and suitable growth media could be stored, activated with water, and used to make selected nutrients when crews need them.
Earlier BioNutrients work has investigated engineered microorganisms for products including beta-carotene, zeaxanthin, and follistatin. Follistatin is of interest in research related to muscle loss, but making it in an experiment is not the same as producing a finished medicine or an approved treatment. NASA presents microbial production as a possible way to supplement supplies on future missions—not as a replacement for a crew’s complete diet.
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- PROMOTE GUT WELLNESS - High content of Lactobacillus probiotics. These good bacteria help to maintain a healthy gut microbiome, which plays a vital role in overall health and well-being.
- EASY AND ECONOMICAL - This yogurt starter allows you to make homemade yogurt smooth and simple.
- NATURAL PRODUCT – No GMO. No harmful preservatives or coloring agents. No harmful chemicals.
Yogurt-like fermentation may also help researchers study whether food cultures can remain useful, reproduce, and be managed in a spacecraft. The operational question is not merely whether a culture ferments once; it is whether a compact, reliable process can produce a safe and useful product with manageable demands on crew time and equipment.
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- April 2019 — BioNutrients-1: The first flight experiment tested microbial nutrient-production packs and their operation over time. NASA reports repeated runs over nearly six years, including a seventh run in February 2025.
- November 2022 — BioNutrients-2 launched: The experiment expanded the work to include yogurt and kefir cultures alongside other organisms. Crew culture runs took place in January and May 2023.
- BioNutrients-2 hardware: NASA Ames reports that its flat-pack bioreactor reduced mass by about 91% compared with the earlier design. That is a hardware improvement, not proof that the process can provide a mission’s food.
- August 2025 — BioNutrients-3 launched: The next experiment added food-safety features and yeast strains designed to produce multiple nutrients in one bag.
- October 2, 2025 — Cultures shown aboard the ISS: NASA later identified this as the date of Yui’s image with yogurt-culture bags.
- February 2026 — Samples scheduled for return: NASA said the material was due to return on a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and be analyzed at Ames. Its public update described planned analysis; it did not announce that the samples were cleared for consumption or that the system was ready for Mars.
NASA’s February 2026 update covers the sample return and analysis plan. The status described in the available official updates does not establish a Mars-ready food system.
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What would have to work before this could help a Mars crew?
A successful fermentation run in orbit is only one part of the case. A practical deep-space system would need to demonstrate:
- Long-term stability: Dried cultures must remain viable through extended storage and the conditions of a mission.
- Reliable yield: Researchers need to measure how much usable product a bag makes and whether output is nutritionally meaningful.
- Repeatability: Batches—and any attempt to start new batches from existing cultures—must work consistently without contamination or declining performance.
- Food safety: A crew needs practical ways to detect and control harmful organisms. A color change alone cannot do this.
- Manageable inputs: Water, power, heat, refrigeration, equipment, and astronaut time all count against the system.
- Useful nutrition and acceptability: The product would need an understood nutritional role and a taste, texture, and smell that crews can tolerate over long missions.
- Waste and containment: Used bags and biological material must be safely handled, especially where engineered organisms are involved.
- Performance beyond the ISS: The station provides a microgravity environment, but it is not a Mars transit or surface habitat. The process would need evaluation in the settings where it might actually be used.
NASA’s BioNutrients program is therefore best understood as foundational research into storing and activating biological production systems, not as a tested recipe for feeding Mars explorers. The ISS experiments also do not show that yogurt or microbial nutrients could supply all the calories and variety a crew needs.
A related idea is not the same experiment
NASA TechPort lists a separate completed project, “In Situ Yogurt Production for Probiotic and Nutrition Delivery.” That concept proposed packets with dried milk solids and preserved yogurt cultures, followed by hydration and warm incubation. It is a related future-food idea, not evidence that BioNutrients-3 made approved yogurt for astronauts.
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