Close Ad

The Spoon

Daily news and analysis about the food tech revolution

fermented protein

Nature’s Fynd Raises $350M Series C for its Microbial Protein

Nature’s Fynd, which makes protein from microbes that originated in geothermal springs of Yellowstone National Park, announced today that it has raised a $350 million Series C round of funding. The round was led by SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2, with participcation from new investors including Blackstone Strategic Partners, Balyasny Asset Management, Hillhouse Investment, EDBI, SK Inc. and Hongkou, as well as other existing investors. This brings the total amount raised by Nature’s Fynd to more than $500 million.

The company’s protein is called Fy, and it’s a fermented fungi protein derived from the Fusar­i­um strain flavolapis microbe. Because Fy is grown through fermentation, the cultivation of the protein requires less land, water and energy than traditional agriculture. Fy is a complete protein with 9 essential amino acids, and it can be used to make alternative meat and dairy products. In February of this year, Nature’s Fynd announced its first two Fy-based products: a dairy-free cream cheese and a meatless breakfast patty. The company also makes a dairy-free yogurt that was eaten on camera by Bill Gates (a Nature’s Fynd investor) and Anderson Cooper during a segment on 60 Minutes earlier this year.

Fermentation has been dubbed the third pillar of alternative protein, alongside cell-based and plant-based protein. We have seen a wave of startups using fermentation technology to bring variety of animal-free products to market. Perfect Day and Remilk use fermentation to create dairy proteins. Nourish Ingredients ferments yeast to make plant-based fats. SuperBrewed ferments microbes to create a vegan protein powder than can be used in plant-based cheese and milks. And Better Meat Co. recently launched its own fermentation production facility to create its mycoprotein-based Rhiza ingredient.

All of this activity has also helped attract plenty of funding over the past year and a half. According to data from the Good Food Institute and Pitchbook, fermentation startups received $590 million in funding in 2020. In addition to Nature’s Fynd’s haul announced today, last month Motif Foodworks, which uses microbial engineering and precision fermentation to create novel food ingredients, raised $226 million.

Nature’s Fynd said it will use its new funding to expand its production capacity, add new products to its lineup, and set the stage for its international growth.

Nature’s Fynd Raises $45M For 2021 Launch of its Fermented Protein

Nature’s Fynd, producers of microbe-based proteins, raised $45 million this week (h/t FoodDive) to support its go-to-market strategy and launch in 2021. This most recent funding round was led by Oxford Finance and Trinity Capital, and this brings the company’s total funding to $113M.

The company’s fermented protein is called Fy Protein, which is formulated through the fermentation of a specific fungi protein. The particular protein is derived from a microbe, called Fusar­i­um strain flavolapis, which is found in the geothermal hot springs of Yellowstone National Park. The finished product is a complete protein with 9 essential amino acids, and can be used to create meat and dairy alternative products.

Fermented protein is certainly having a breakthrough year; according to the Good Food Institute, fermented protein companies raised $435 million in the first seven months of 2020. In addition to Nature Fynd’s hefty funding round, several other fermented protein companies have also received a nice chunk of capital this year. Remilk, an Israeli-based start-up, raised $11.3 million this week for its fermented microbe, animal-free milk. Change Foods raised $875,000 for its cheese made from fermented microbes. Last month, MycoTechnology won the first-place prize of $1 million in the Radicle Protein Challenge for its fermented mushroom protein.

Nature’s Fynd will be launching products next year, though the company has not announced which products it will bring to market. According to its website, it seems that the new products will fall into the meat or dairy alternative category.