Astaxanthin pioneer raises cash for scale-up after breakthrough
Kuehnle AgroSystems (KAS), an algal biotechnology company pioneering sustainable production of natural astaxanthin through proprietary dark fermentation technology, has announced the successful close of a multi-million-dollar Series B financing.
The funding round was led by IVC AS, an investment firm belonging to the Witzøe family that owns the largest share of the world’s second largest Atlantic salmon farmer, SalMar.
The investment follows a landmark technical achievement earlier this year in which KAS, in collaboration with its manufacturing partner, Biorea, successfully demonstrated the production of natural astaxanthin in oleoresin using proprietary dark fermentation technology at industrially relevant scale.
It said the breakthrough establishes the technical foundation for a step-change in the cost of production of sustainable, natural astaxanthin.
Salmon feed products
The new funding will be used to accelerate KAS's transition from technology development to commercial production and sales, including expansion of research and development capabilities, and acceleration of the company's strategic development programme with Dutch food and biochemicals company Corbion.
It will also be used for the development and validation of salmon feed products, attaining global regulatory approvals for aquaculture and human nutrition markets, and manufacturing scale-up and commercial deployment.
Astaxanthin is an essential ingredient in feed for farmed salmon. Beyond providing the characteristic pink colour that salmon in the wild get from astaxanthin in their diet, it is a critical nutrient that supports fish health, fertility, stress tolerance, immune function. and overall production performance.
Demand is growing
Aquaculture accelerator Hatch Blue, which first invested in KAS seven years ago and also took part in the Series B fundraise, said global demand for astaxanthin continues to increase alongside salmon production, while the industry seeks more sustainable and resilient ingredient supply chains.
It added that KAS's fermentation platform offers the potential to provide premium natural astaxanthin with significantly lower environmental impact, improved supply security and a pathway to substantially lower production costs than conventional cultivation-based methods.
Demand is also being driven by rapid growth in the premium nutraceutical market, where natural astaxanthin is increasingly recognised as one of the world's most potent antioxidants, said Hatch Blue.
“KAS is uniquely positioned to address both high-growth markets through its proprietary dark fermentation platform, and this Series B financing provides the capital needed to accelerate the company's path to commercial production and global market adoption,” the investment firm added.
A cost-competititve source
KAS chief exceutive Dr Claude Kaplan said: “This financing validates both our technology and our commercial strategy.
“This investment enables us to accelerate manufacturing scale-up, expand our commercial partnerships and bring a truly sustainable, reliable and cost-competitive source of natural astaxanthin to the global aquaculture and human nutrition industries. We believe this technology will fundamentally reshape the natural astaxanthin market.”
KAS entered into a strategic partnership to develop and commercialise its astaxanthin with Corbion in August last year.
A pivotal milestone
Corbion has decades of expertise in industrial biotechnology, large-scale fermentation, regulatory development and global commercialisation of ingredient solutions. Its products include AlgaPrime DHA omega-3 derived from algae.
“The successful demonstration of natural astaxanthin oleoresin through dark fermentation represents a pivotal milestone,” said Corbion’s chief technology officer, Yves Boland.
Carsten Krome, managing partner and co-founder at Hatch Blue, said: “For the first time since our original investment in 2019, KAS now has a clear pathway to commercialisation of its transformative astaxanthin product through strong manufacturing and distribution partnerships. We are therefore very excited to continue backing the company.”
