Cargill Joins Growth Funding Round for ENOUGH, Agrees to Use and Market its Mycoprotein
Summary
Cargill is expanding its partnership with food tech company ENOUGH by joining its most recent growth funding round, and by signing a commercial agreement to use and market ABUNDA, ENOUGHs signature sustainable and vegan protein created by fermenting fungi fed by renewable feedstocks.Founded in 2015 under its original name 3F Bio by Jim Laird, David Ritchie, and Craig Johnston (the name change occurred in 2021 to reflect the premise that One Earth needs to be ENOUGH), ENOUGH is pioneering high-scale, sustainable protein production to address the dual challenges of feeding the world and the unsustainable impacts of traditional protein production.In August 2023, when ENOUGH announced it had raised 40 million (US$43.3 million) in growth funding to-date, the company explained that in todays world, the production of vast quantities of sustainable protein is one of our most urgent priorities.The environmental impacts of animal agriculture, and how to mitigate the effects, are complex. Theres also the loss of biodiversity, water usage and pollution, soil degradation, and monoculture agriculture to produce enough feed, among others.Concurrently, interest in plant-based foods has created a demand that has increased in recent years, according to figures by BCG, which forecasts that the alternative protein market will reach a value of $290 billion by 2035, with a minimum of 10 percent of the meat, eggs, dairy, and seafood consumed globally coming from alternative sources. From here, Cargill provides glucose syrup and utilities as well as partnering with ENOUGH in the EU-funded PLENITUDE consortium project.Through the expansion of this relationship, Cargill will co-create nutritious protein alternative foods containing ABUNDA mycoprotein with customers by leveraging its expansive portfolio of plant-based proteins, texturizers, and fats, together with its formulations and application capabilities.Meanwhile, ENOUGH will continue to benefit from Cargills global reach, position as a food solution leader at the heart of the food supply chain, and feedstock technology expertise to more rapidly scale up in Europe and beyond, as it strives toward its goal to grow more than 1 million tons of ABUNDA cumulatively by 2033.Expanding our partnership with Cargill is an exciting step to accelerate the great strides weve already made through the co-location of our Sas van Gent facility, said Jim Laird, CEO, ENOUGH.The alternative protein market is a multi-billion-dollar opportunity, and efficiency will come from collaboration with partners such as Cargill to leverage existing demand and supply chain to gain scale.~ Lynda Kiernan-Stone is editor in chief with GAI Media, and is managing editor and daily contributor for Global AgInvestings AgInvesting Weekly News and Agtech Intel News, as well as HighQuest Groups Unconventional Ag. *The content put forth by Global AgInvesting News and its parent company HighQuest Partners is intended to be used and must be used for informational purposes only. Global AgInvesting and HighQuest Partners are not a fiduciary in any manner, and the reader assumes the sole responsibility of evaluating the merits and risks associated with the use of any information or other content on this site.