German-based BIOWEG, a company developing high-performance, biodegradable ingredients to replace intentionally added acrylic polymer based microplastics, has closed a €16 million Series A round.
The round was led by Axeleo Capital - Green Tech Industry Fund, joined by the EIC Fund, NBank Capital, BonVenture, and seed investor Dr.-Ing. Frank Jenner.
To date, BIOWEG has raised €22 million to accelerate market entry and expand its footprint across Europe.
Founded in 2019 by Dr. Prateek Mahalwar and Srinivas Karuturi, BIOWEG utilises precision fermentation to convert food-industry byproducts into bacterial cellulose, which is refined using green chemistry into drop-in alternatives to fossil-based polymers. The company operates a pilot production facility in Quakenbrück with a capacity of up to six tonnes, alongside a material science, formulation, and applications lab on Bayer Crop Science’s campus in Monheim.
As Europe phases out intentionally added fossil-based microplastics, supply chains in the personal care, home care, pharmaceutical, and agricultural sectors are undergoing rapid change. Companies now require compliant, high-performance ingredients manufactured at scale within the EU, a demand BIOWEG is uniquely positioned to meet while enabling straightforward reformulation.
To support this transition, BIOWEG is designing a new plant that will scale from its current 6,000-litre fermentation capacity to large-volume production. Co-located with a major sugar producer in Germany, the facility will leverage feedstock synergies and reduce operating costs. Meanwhile, the company will upgrade its Quakenbrück pilot line to serve near-term customer orders during construction and expand its commercial, regulatory, and production teams to accelerate growth across the European market.
Dr Prateek Mahalwar, Co-founder and CEO of BIOWEG, shared:
Today’s funding allows us to move decisively into industrial manufacturing and to support customers as they transition away from microplastics. Our focus is on matching and expanding polymer-level performance with bio-based, biodegradable ingredients produced at European scale.
The newly secured funding will drive scale-up, commercialisation, and the construction of BIOWEG’s first-of-its-kind bacterial cellulose plant in Germany. This step marks the transition from pilot to industrial production and positions the company to meet rising demand from industrial customers for sustainable, microplastics-free ingredients.
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