Hyfé raises $9 M for feedstocks for biomanufacturing

Daniela Castillo Monagas

Hyfé, a company transforming food processing wastewater into feedstocks for biomanufacturing and clean water, announced an oversubscribed $9 million seed investment led by Synthesis Capital.

Hyfé will use the new capital to advance select commercial partnerships, double its employee headcount, and progress towards pilot scale technology demonstration. Rosie Wardle, co-founder and partner at Synthesis Capital, will also join the company’s Board of Directors.

Biomanufacturing offers a path to decarbonize key industrial sectors such as foods, fuels, materials, and chemicals, and is forecasted to mitigate at least 3 GT of carbon emissions annually by 2030. However, it’s difficult for the sector to compete with incumbent processes that depend on fossil resources, animal agriculture, and deforestation. Cost and supply of sugar feedstocks used to power bioprocesses is a major obstacle towards achieving price parity and the glucose needs of the bioeconomy are forecasted to outpace supply over the next 10-20 years. It is critical for the feedstocks that will power that growth to come from underutilized waste carbon streams that are cost effective, non-competitive with food, and avoid disruption of agricultural systems.

“Biomanufacturing has the potential to solve some of the most pressing challenges facing humanity, but first it needs to be made economically viable,” said Michelle Ruiz, co-founder and CEO of Hyfé. “We are building a solution that addresses a fundamental bottleneck for the bioeconomy just as it’s reaching an inflection point. This historic moment is as pivotal as the invention of the steam engine, the age of science and mass production, and the rise of digital technology.”

While other companies are working to convert solid food and agricultural waste into fermentation feedstocks, Hyfé is leveraging their extensive experience in wastewater treatment and fermentation-enabled waste valorization to develop feedstocks from food processing wastewater, an abundant and untapped source of carbon.

“The future bioeconomy will be worth at least $4 trillion, and up to $30 trillion globally. We have a timely opportunity to propel this growth through the development of cost-efficient and sustainable feedstocks,” said Rosie Wardle, co-founder and partner at Synthesis Capital. “We’re thrilled to support Hyfé, a leader in the biomanufacturing revolution, in their next phase of growth, applying their technology to power the development of more sustainable products across sectors through bioproduction. This is something the world desperately needs to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, revitalize the manufacturing sector, strengthen our supply chains, and improve our health and environment.”

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