April 3, 2024

By Lynda Kiernan-Stone, Global AgInvesting Media

Onego Bio has closed on $40 million in Series A funding – one of the largest such rounds in the Nordics – to support the commercialization and manufacturing of Bioalbumen – its revolutionary animal-free egg protein.

This round, which brought total funding to-date for the company to $56 million, was led by NordicNinja, a Japanese-Nordic venture capital firm, and included equity investments from Tesi and EIT Food, existing investors Agronomics, Maki.vc, Holdix, and Turret. It also included $10 million of non-dilutive funding from Business Finland, a public organization under the Finnish government supporting innovations that accelerate system changes that solve critical global challenges. 

As consumer demands shift, and animal welfare, human health, and environmental concerns remain strongly connected to animal-based agriculture, startups like Onego Bio are garnering attention from investors looking to gain exposure to technologies that can answer all of these challenges.

Eggs are one of the most commonly used animal proteins. This demand has driven global egg production to almost double over the past 20 years with expectations that it will reach 138 million tons per year by 2030. But demand for animal-free egg white protein has the opportunity to experience global growth due to the greater rates of excessive use of land, greenhouse gas emissions, water scarcity, and the risk of global pandemics that are associated with this demand being met by animal agriculture. 

“Eggs are an essential part of food businesses, but with the egg market constantly fluctuating due to avian flu and increased demand for cage-free, manufacturers are challenged to find a viable replacement with a consistent, reliable, and safe supply of high-quality protein at an accessible price,” said Jim Mellon, executive chairman and co-founder, Agronomics.

“A long-term sustainable solution for chicken eggs is needed. We have been highly impressed with Onego’s capabilities and vision from the very beginning. By repurposing a well-established technology from the enzyme industry for food protein production, they are well-positioned to scale to the massive volumes needed to future-proof the supply of the world’s most versatile and popular food protein.” 

Founded in 2022, Onego Bio was spun off from VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland by alternative protein pioneer Maija Itkonen (CEO) and precision fermentation leader Christopher Landowski (CTO). The company uses a commercially proven fungal fermentation technology, which is superior in both productivity and scalability with demonstrated output potential of 120g/L in 250,000-liter fermentation vessels, allowing for competitive price parity with conventional methods of egg protein production. 

Bioalbumen® is bioidentical to ovalbumin, the major protein in chicken egg white. It is nutritionally complete, containing all essential amino acids, delivering more than 90 grams of protein per 100 grams, and having the highest possible protein digestibility score (PDCAAS) of 1.0.

Catering to the food industry, the product has a clean, neutral flavor, superior functional properties, and is an ideal industrial ingredient for replacing eggs and enhancing the texture, taste, and performance of foods through a wide range of applications. 

“We’re incredibly fortunate to be surrounded by a passionate team and like-minded investors who share our vision for systemic change in the food system,” said Maija Itkonen, co-founder and CEO, Onego Bio. “This powerful combination has fueled our rapid growth, allowing us to deliver a revolutionary ingredient that is unmatched in terms of functionality, taste and texture.”

“Egg protein remains one of nature’s most perfect foods; this single ingredient supplies more than 20 different functional benefits from aeration to emulsification and gelation,” continued Itkonen. “While it may sound scientific, the value is in our mouths every day with velvety cake structures, silky-smooth mayonnaises, crispy nugget batterings, or those chewy-fluffy nougat fillings, just to mention a few.” 

With its recent funding, the company will pursue its North American go-to-market strategy, which includes scaling up to industrial-level production and expanding its U.S. commercial team. To accelerate the process, it is also partnering with co-manufacturers while finalizing its in-house manufacturing plans. 

It was explained that this comprehensive approach involves securing offtake agreements and non-dilutive funding for the construction of their first manufacturing unit boasting a 2 million-liter fermentation capacity, effectively replacing an egg farm with six million laying hens. This scale translates to a 90 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and a 95 percent decrease in land use. To further minimize its impact, Onego Bio is also conducting ongoing projects focused on using alternative feedstocks to ultimately eliminate their reliance on corn sugar and grasslands. 

“Onego is well placed to scale successfully, due to its highly experienced team who have world-leading research expertise, and extensive experience in scaling companies from startups to large corporations,” said Claes Mikko Nilsen, principal, NordicNinja. “We couldn’t be more thrilled to be part of this journey.”

Tomosaku Sohara, managing partner, NordicNinja, added “Onego Bio is taking all the right steps to commercialize in record time. They are a next-generation precision fermentation company, with a clear path to industrialization, go-to-market, and profitability.”

“With technology that is designed to scale, and such a strong team, they really stand out. In less than two years, Onego is already working with major global food companies and is staged to disrupt the $330 billion egg market and create system level change, accelerating the green transition.”

~ Lynda Kiernan-Stone is editor in chief with GAI Media, and is managing editor and daily contributor for Global AgInvesting’s AgInvesting Weekly News and Agtech Intel News. She can be reached at lkiernan-stone@globalaginvesting.com.

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