Brevel raises US$25M for microalgae protein development and market expansion

Israeli food-tech company Brevel has raised more than US$5 million in a seed extension up-round, bringing the total investment to US$25 million. The investment allows the company to accelerate its go-to-market strategy and develop microalgae proteins for F&B applications.

Investors decided to increase their stake in the company, including: NevaTeam Partners, Siddhi Capital, European Union’s EIC Fund, Good Protein Fund, The Food Tech Lab and PVS Investments. In addition, the extension attracted multiple new investors who were granted access under the same terms. 

Yonatan Golan, co-founder and CEO of Brevel, says: “We are dedicated to delivering nutritious protein that can replace animal protein in formulations. Our vision as a climate food-tech start-up is to reduce the carbon footprint to a minimum by developing affordable, flavor-neutral flavored, and functional microalgae protein at global scales for consumers. It ticks all the boxes: it’s good for the people, good for our customers, and good for the planet.”

Brevel’s recently completed the first-of-a-kind commercial factory, successfully scaled-up its the technology to a commercial production volume of 5,000L, secured a commercial and joint-development agreement with The Central Bottling Company (CBC Group), and made advancements on its protein and polar lipid ingredient developments.

The funding will accelerate Brevel’s commercial activities, and allow the company to reach understandings with manufacturing JV partners for future production lines, alongside signing of additional offtake agreements with customers in preparation for large-scale production.

Shai Levy Partner of Nevateam Partners and board member of Brevel, says: “The shareholders’ decision to exercise their warrants is a strong vote of confidence in Brevel’s mission and execution. We believe their technology will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of alternative proteins, and we are excited to continue supporting their journey toward that.”

Fermentation development 

Brevel’s proprietary technology for cultivating microalgae combines light with sugar-based fermentation in indoor bioreactors. This platform enables the efficient production of nutrient-rich microalgae in large quantities without the need for genetic modification. 

Fermentation, traditionally limited to dark environments, produces microalgae at high yields and affordable costs yet is poor in light-dependent nutrients, functionalities, and overall commercial value. 

Brevel says it is the first company to unite the two processes and take fermentation out of the dark, producing high quality, nutrient rich microalgae at high yields and low costs.

The company’s downstream process delivers a white, completely neutral-flavored microalgae protein isolate powder. The powder can be integrated into meats and dairy alternatives as a functional ingredient with emulsifying, gelling, and foaming properties. 

The key to cost parity

Microalgae’s natural nutrients include protein, lipids, fibers, and bioactive antioxidants derived from photosynthesis.

“Our business model is similar to that of soy protein,” says Golan. “The revenue must come from the co-products just as with soy and meat products. Our combined light and fermentation platform allows us to capitalize on all of the components of the microalgae and not just the protein portion.”

“While the fermentation process reduces costs, the light in our proprietary technology enables us to increase bottom-line results since we produce, in addition to the protein, functional oil with potent emulsifying properties, antioxidants as valuable food supplements, and nutritional fibers for food applications,” adds Golan. 

“Through this wide portfolio, we can achieve overall price parity for our superior protein and for each co-product. We plan to roll out the next products in line this summer.”