Digestiva, a California-based biotech firm in the food industry, has secured $18.4m in a Series A equity financing round.
The funding round was led by Magdalena, a firm involved in sugar cane processing on a global scale. UC Investments, along with Digestiva’s existing investors March Fund and Astanor also took part in the round.
Digestiva’s technology is centred on the discovery and advancement of protease enzymes to tackle issues in protein nutrition, functionality, and overall health.
The firm’s proteases significantly enhance protein bioavailability, enabling individuals and animals alike to optimise nutritional benefits from their current diets without the need for increased protein intake.
According to Digestiva, these scientifically driven solutions address worldwide malnutrition and promote sustainable nutrition practices.
Digestiva CEO John Melo said: “We are very pleased with the high calibre of investors participating in our financing round and the strategic alignment in scaling our breakthrough technology to deliver a significant positive impact on the future of human and animal nutrition.
“We are excited to partner with Magdalena to manufacture our enzymes, ensuring both cost efficiencies and long-term supply security for our customers. Digestiva is a prime example of the groundbreaking biotechnology emerging from the UC Davis ecosystem.”
Concurrently, the food biotech firm has forged a manufacturing partnership with Magdalena. The collaboration will facilitate the scaled production of enzymes crucial for Digestiva to meet its commercial objectives.
Currently, the company is advancing multiple pilot projects aimed at expediting commercialisation efforts and achieving initial revenue milestones.
Its precision protease technology is said to enhance the processability, nutritional quality, digestibility, and bioavailability of proteins.
The enzyme is designed to release an optimal blend of amino acids and peptides, suitable for applications across nutrition and protein processing sectors.
Furthermore, the results from pilot human studies and industrial applications highlight its potential to transform the quality of protein ingredients sourced from both plants and animals, Digestiva said.
The food biotech company is targeting markets in animal feed, pet food, and human nutrition for the commercialisation of its protease technology.
