Based in Boston Ayana BioA spinoff from Gingko Bioworks, announced a $3 million investment to accelerate cacao bioactive production using plant cell technology to create consumer products for markets such as health and wellness, F&B, and cosmetics.
Ayana Bio will use the capital to accelerate commercialization of its cacao ingredients and expand partnerships with CPG companies to prioritize R&D on the benefits of different cacao varieties as well as potential uses and applications.
Production of high polyphenol cacao extract
Ayana Bio uses plant cell technology — growing plant cell lines in bioreactors rather than agricultural production — to discover and produce plant and fungal bioactives that support and improve human health.
According to Biotech, cacao contains biologically active compounds that support Healthy digestion, cardiovascular health, cognition, and immunity while reducing inflammation and diabetes risk.
“The genetic profiles we discovered will allow us to focus on producing high polyphenol cacao extracts to provide benefits in consumer packaged products that typically lack nutritional value,” said Effendi Leonard, co-founder and CTO of Ayana Bio.
Apart from Cacao Bioactive, which will be commercialized by the end of 2024 according to the startup, Ayana Bio is exploring other bioactive products in ingredients such as berry, ginseng, echinacea, ginger and other high-value botanicals.
Bringing plant and fungal bioactives to market
Founded in 2021, Ayana Bio started life with $30 million in Series A funding led by Viking Global Investors and Cascade Investments. The biotech was launched in collaboration with Ginkgo Bioworks and Ferment, a company building studios for the next wave of synthetic biology product companies.
Ayana Bio aims to collaborate with global industry leaders in F&B, health and wellness, specialty nutrition, animal care and cosmetics to bring standardized plant and fungal bioactives to market.
Leonard said, “While most cacao producers focus on confectionery chocolate, Ayana Bio is uniquely positioned to expand cacao’s health and wellness applications.
Why plant cell technology?
Plant cell tech produces plant biomass with the identical molecular makeup of natural plants, produced without the need for land, irrigation, fertilizers or pesticides required for agriculture. It solves standardization problems in all agro-based supply chains and provides resilience to climate change while protecting natural ecosystems and biodiversity, the biotech company explained.
Frank Jacques, CEO of Aina Bio, commented: “This multi-million dollar commitment will allow us to redouble our efforts to use plant cell cultivation to scale up sustainable bioactives and reduce reliance on harmful agricultural practices.”