April 26th, 2024
Plant-based foodtech Edonia has raised €2M from Asterion Ventures. Edonia’s protein ingredients are based on microalgae such as spirulina and chlorella, The fact that these products are not subject to the “Novel Food” category (food or food ingredients requiring French/EU authorization to go to market) enables it to commercialise its production more rapidly than other plant-based food producers.
Through a process known as "edonization", Edonia transforms micro-algae biomass into a textured ingredient with numerous organoleptic, nutritional and environmental qualities. Often presented in powder form with a pronounced taste, products on the market struggle to convince consumers outside of the nutraceutical niche.
A Life Cycle Assessment, carried out with university institution AgroParisTech, shows that the product could emit 40 times less CO2 than its ground meat equivalent, and 3 times less than its textured soy equivalent. By substituting these materials with their product, Edonia would have a massive positive environmental impact in the years to come.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the world's growing population is increasing consumption of animal proteins, and could require a 50% increase in food production by 2050, with challenges linked to limited resources and deforestation. Algae-based aquaculture could cover all the world's protein needs by 2050, offering significant environmental benefits. Their launch will be European, and then the startup aims to quickly expand to other continents through strategic partnerships.
"At a time of climate emergency, when 34% of greenhouse gas emissions are generated by our food, the greening of our plates needs to accelerate.” said Hugo Valentin, CEO of Edonia. “Microalgae, known for their nutritional and ecological virtues, can be a real tool for food industry professionals in this respect. But it has to taste good! That's what we're offering: delicious protein ingredients, that are hyper-nutritious, with very little processing or pollutants".