Dutch ingredients startup Vivici has secured €32.5 million in a Series A funding round led by APG (on behalf of one of the world’s largest pension funds, ABP) and Invest-NL.
The round also saw participation from InnovationQuarter, along with existing shareholders dsm-firmenich and Fonterra. The news comes after Vivici secured its first customer offtake agreements for dairy proteins made with precision fermentation.
The funding will be used to expand into new international markets, launch a second dairy protein ingredient, and establish long-term manufacturing capabilities. Through its proprietary protein platform, ViviteinTM, Vivici hopes to complement the protein production of the dairy industry.
The company’s first ingredient, ViviteinTM BLG, is targeted at consumers in the active nutrition category. It is suitable for use in products such as clear water-based protein drinks and vegan-friendly bars. Vivici says it has a strong pipeline of future ingredient products, with its lactoferrin, ViviteinTM LF, set to launch later in 2025.
“New standard of protein”
Vivici was founded in 2023 with the aim of realising the commercial potential of precision fermentation. In August of that year, the startup closed a successful seed round.
By October 2023, Vivici announced it had successfully scaled its platform to produce beta-lactoglobulin, the major whey protein in milk. The following month, the company partnered with cell programming and biosecurity platform Ginkgo Bioworks to advance the production of sustainable animal-free dairy proteins.
“With this investment, we will continue on our path to turning the promise of precision fermentation into a commercial reality,” said Stephan van Sint Fiet, CEO of Vivici. “This fundraise demonstrates the confidence investors have in both our mission and our capabilities. With our ViviteinTM protein platform, we’re bringing a new standard of protein to the market – one that will become a mainstay of consumer protein products.”
