Uk-based food-tech company ENOUGH kicked-off construction of its large-scale protein factory in the Netherlands.
Food tech company ENOUGH (formerly 3F BIO) announced the start of construction for its first of its kind protein factory, targeted as the largest new non-animal protein farm to be built worldwide in 2022. The factory will be operational in 2022 with initial capacity to produce 10,000 tonnes per annum, the equivalent of more than 5 cow’s worth of protein every hour.
The 15,000 square metre (160,000 square feet) facility is co-located alongside the Cargill facility in Sas van Gent in the Netherlands. The location and collaboration with Cargill will ensure the most efficient feed source, as well as supporting zero-waste advantages of ENOUGH’s product. The investment initially creates 25 new jobs and this will double with plans for more than 50,000 tonnes of capacity by 2027.
The new facility is one of 11 Flagship projects which have support from the circular Bio-based Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI JU), contribute to enhancing sustainability and creating new bio-based jobs and products. The flagship facility has received €16.9 million funding
In September, all stakeholders involved celebrated the start of the plant in Sas van Gent, the Netherlands, preparing the way to launch 10,000 tonnes of ABUNDA mycoprotein in 2022. Besides the support through the BBI JU funding via the PLENTITUDE project, ENOUGH recently closed a financing round of €42m in Series B funding.
ENOUGH produces ABUNDA® mycoprotein, fermenting fungi using renewable feedstocks as a sustainable source of food protein. Using fermentation to meet future food protein needs is widely recognised as being an effective solution to feed a growing planet. ENOUGH targets growing over a million tonnes by 2032 which is the equivalent of replacing 5 million cows, over 1 billion chickens or reducing more than 6 million tonnes of CO2 emissions, the equivalent of planting >30 million trees. ABUNDA is sustainable through its advantaged feed conversion, low carbon footprint and water usage.
The funding round in June was led by Nutreco, a global leader in animal nutrition and aqua feed and Olympic Investments Inc. along with new investors including AXA IM Alts through the AXA Impact Fund–Climate & Biodiversity, HAL Investments and Tailored Solutions. Existing investors CPT Capital and Scottish Enterprise are also participating and CPT Capital will remain the largest shareholder in the company.
Jim Laird, CEO of ENOUGH said: “The market for delicious, nutritious vegan products is growing at a pace that requires a step change in the supply of sustainable ingredients. This will supercharge our focus which prioritises collaboration and B2B supply to maximise the pace of growth and reach into the market."
Nutreco CEO, Rob Koremans said: “ENOUGH is an exciting business with real potential to transform protein production. This partnership perfectly supports our ambitions to accelerate the contribution we can make to the challenge of feeding a growing global population. If we are serious about meeting this objective in a sustainable way, we will need to produce protein from a variety of sources such as fermentation, which is very much a shared goal.”
For the launch of the plant in the Netherlands, several stakeholders such as Philippe Mengal, the Executive Director at Bio-based Industries Joint Undertaking, Belgin van Dongen - Köse, Segment Director Enrichment & Renewability for Cargill Starches, Sweeteners & Texturisers Europe, Jo-Annes de Bat from the Province of Zeeland, Jim Laird, CEO of ENOUGH and Andrew Beasley, Commercial Director of ENOUGH came together.
- Paul Hudman, Technical Director at ENOUGH, will speak on 6 Oct during the Session "Food, feed, nutrition: Towards a sustainable food system approach" from 13:00 to 14:30 CET.
- Philippe Mengal, Executive Director of BBI JU, will be speak on 7 Oct during the Closing Plenary Session "OUTLOOK: The pathway to the future for Industrial Biotechnology" from 13:30 to 14:55 CET
Learn more about the EFIB conference, its program and speakers here: www.efibforum.com