Brazil’s Future Cow Raises R$4.85M to Advance Production of Animal-Free Dairy Proteins
Brazilian precision fermentation startup Future Cow has secured R$4.85 million (around $0.9 million) to make its animal-free dairy technology scalable and ready to be licensed by the food industry. The company initially raised R$1.27 million via a crowdfunding campaign earlier this year, falling short of its R$1.5 million target. However, it has now received further funding in the form of R$1.5 million from the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) and …
Enifer Partners With FS to Produce Mycoproteins in Brazil from Corn Ethanol Sidestreams
Finnish mycoprotein company Enifer has announced that its proprietary PEKILO® fermentation technology is set to arrive in Latin America for the first time, in partnership with Brazilian ethanol producer FS. The collaboration will mark the first time Enifer’s PEKILO®Pet and PEKILO®Aqua production processes have operated outside Europe, and the first time corn ethanol-derived thin stillage has been used as feedstock. FS is now working to construct an industrial process at …
Cellva Shifts Focus to Microencapsulation Technology with Launch of Cocoa Substitute
Cellva has recently undergone a strategic pivot, refocusing its efforts on microencapsulation technology, which it sees as central to its future growth. This shift is accompanied by the consolidation of its research and development and administrative operations, all aimed at streamlining its processes and reinforcing its commitment to sustainable food solutions. The future of cocoa The company’s new direction is highlighted by the launch of CoffeeCoa™, a cocoa substitute developed …
Chile’s Luyef Receives $1.25M to Develop Nutrients for Cultivated Meat Using Fermentation and Agro By-Products
Luyef (previously Luyef Biotechnologies), a biotech startup focused on cellular agriculture based in Santiago de Chile, has received two substantial grants totaling $1.25 million to accelerate cultivated meat production (detailed information about the grants below). The Ganesha Lab, LATAM’s global biotech scale-up for science and technology-based startups, announced the investment. Kris Blanchard, a biotechnology engineer from the University of Chile, co-founded Luyef in 2020, participating in The Ganesha Lab’s accelerator program …
GALY Raises $33M From Bill Gates’ BEV, H&M, and Inditex to Advance Climate-Resilient Cultivated Cotton
GALY, a plant-cell culture startup based in Brazil and Boston, USA, has raised $33 million in an oversubscribed Series B financing round to advance its proprietary platform for cultivated cotton from lab to pre-industrial scale. Additionally, the funds will support expanding R&D efforts to improve the quality of “GALY Cotton” and develop other sustainable alternatives to traditional crop-derived commodities. The funding round was led by Bill Gates’s Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV), with …
LATAM’s Mycoprotein Innovator ‘Typcal’ Secures R$250K From Brazilian Government
Brazil’s Typcal, a startup pioneering mycoprotein in Latin America, has been selected by the Paraná Anjo Inovador to receive R$250,000 in funding. A spinoff of Fungi Biotechnology, the startup was founded in 2021 by bioprocess engineer Eduardo Sydney (CTO) and food industry entrepreneur Paulo Ibri (CEO) to leverage biomass fermentation to develop a mycoprotein ingredient for food applications. Typcal was one of the 68 selected in the program’s first call …
Brazil’s First Precision Fermentation Startup Future Cow Prepares to Scale Up Production of Animal-Free Milk
Future Cow, a Brazilian food tech startup founded in 2023 by entrepreneur Leonardo Vieira and food scientist Rosana Goldbeck, aims to revolutionize dairy production with precision fermentation, creating real milk without cows. Considered Brazil’s first cellular agriculture startup using precision fermentation, Future Cow gained momentum through São Paulo’s Antler residency program, securing a $150,000 initial investment. Soon after, in a funding round led by Antler and Big Idea Ventures as part of …
The Live Green Co. Unveils Yeast-Derived Breast Milk Fat and Gut Health Postbiotic
The Live Green Co. (TLGC), a US food tech company headquartered in Boston since 2022, unveils two active functional ingredients developed with precision fermentation: GreenTAGs — an analog of human breast milk fat known as OPO — and GutRevyv, a postbiotic for gut health. Human milk fat, mainly containing Triacylglycerols or OPO, plays a crucial role in infant development and health: It benefits nutrient absorption, supports neurodevelopment, boosts immunity, favors gut …
Brazil’s Cellva Raises R$6.5 Million to Develop Cultivated Pork Fat
Cellva Ingredients, the first startup in Brazil to develop and produce cultivated animal ingredients, starting with pork fat, has raised R$6.5 million in its first financial round. Seed4SCience from Fundepar led the round with the participation of ProVeg Incubator, the Spanish fund Rumbo Ventures, and the Rio Grande do Sul angel investor network EA Angels. Cellva expects to close the round by March 2024, aiming to raise R$10 million. The startup …
Meat Giant JBS Begins Construction on $62M Innovation Centre for Cultivated Meat
JBS, the largest meat processing company in the world, announces it has commenced construction of Brazil’s first research facility focused on food biotechnology — the JBS Biotech Innovation Centre. Located at Sapiens Parque innovation hub in Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, and scheduled to open at the end of 2024, the center aims to be a model facility to produce cultivated meat efficiently, scalable, and at competitive prices. “As a global leader …