Naplasol acquires Mycorena to boost the mycelium and alt-protein market

Naplasol, a member of the VEOS group, has acquired Swedish mycoprotein company Mycorena. With this acquisition, Naplasol will enhance its mycoprotein product portfolio and plans to produce Mycorena’s mycoprotein, Promyc®, at its industrial facility in Bree, Belgium. 

In March 2022, Mycorena, which makes a mycelium protein ingredient for meat alternatives, raised €24 million, the largest Series A round on record for an alternative protein company across Europe. This was superseded this year when Infinite Roots raised $58 million.

Mycorena went on to raise €35 million in total funding and, in April this year received funding from the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Discovery Programme in recognition of its products’ potential for use on long-distance space missions.

However, in June, the company announced it was discontinuing its large-scale factory project in Sweden for Promyc, which is in part attributed to its failed attempts to raise Series B funding with SEB and Pareto Securities in 2022-2023. 

In July, it filed for bankruptcy. COO and co-founder Ebba Fröling highlighted:

"The past few years have been extremely tough for us. Despite forming valuable partnerships and receiving support from our investors, it was not enough. 

We hope for the company to get new ownership in order to build on our significant groundwork and that the team, and their efforts, can remain the same."

Wim Slee, co-CEO of VEOS Group, shared:

“Both companies, Naplasol and Mycorena, are active in the same field and have complementary knowledge and products of which we can benefit in the future.

We are proud that we can continue the story of Mycorena, as we strongly believe in the future of mycoproteins."  

"Mycorena has been on an exciting journey toward becoming a leading player in the mycoprotein industry. The acquisition and merger with Naplasol offer a unique opportunity to build on the foundation we have established. We look forward to seeing Mycorena continue to thrive under the strong industrial expertise of the Veos Group," says Ramkumar Nair PhD, Founder of Mycorena. 

VEOS Group was founded in 1974 and headquartered in Belgium, and operates production facilities worldwide for the food, pet food and feed industries, supported by a global sales network. The acquisition will enable Naplasol to offer a wider range of sustainable solutions for these industries.

Lead image: Mycorena. Photo: uncredited.