Led · Debt Financing · Nov 2023

Liberation Labs is an early-stage US biomanufacturing company developing a purpose-built precision fermentation platform called Bio3 and a launch facility in Richmond, Indiana. The company is building a 600,000 L launch plant scheduled to be operational in Q1 2025 and is studying a flexible-use, commercial-scale 4 million L plant. Liberation Labs has no current revenues; its monthly operating costs are reported at $0.4 million and total liabilities were $43.8 million as of June 30, 2024. Management says it has signed letters of intent with potential customers representing over 200% of the launch facility’s available capacity in initial years across food, fuel, materials and pharmaceutical markets. Prior financings include $33.5 million raised in equity-linked instruments and secured commitments for an additional $55 million, including $30 million in equipment financing and a $25 million loan from Ameris Bank. The company has also received a $1.39 million DoD award for a feasibility study that could lead to further government funding for expanding bioindustrial manufacturing capacity. Liberation Labs is developing Bio3, a purpose-built biomanufacturing platform aiming to be the industrial biotechnology industry's global fabrication partner. The platform is designed to address a critical bottleneck faced by fermentation companies by offering design, build and operation of biomanufacturing facilities. The company broke ground in June 2023 on its first facility in Richmond, Indiana, which when complete will have 600k litres of fermentation capacity and potential expansion of an additional 4 million litres. The project is approximately halfway through its build program and, subject to completion of a Qualified Financing, is expected to be commissioned in Q1 2025. Financially, Liberation Labs has raised US$33.5M in equity-linked instruments to date and has formal commitments for US$55M in non-dilutive funding, including US$30M equipment financing and a US$25M USDA-backed loan from Ameris Bank. Recent financing activity includes a US$12.5M round that featured a US$10M Secured Convertible Promissory Note from Agronomics to support continued construction ahead of the planned Series A. Liberation Labs is building a purpose-built commercial-scale precision fermentation facility in Richmond, Indiana, with 600,000 liters of capacity expected to be operational by the end of 2024. The plant will produce bio-based proteins and other building-block ingredients for consumer packaged goods companies and industrial manufacturers, and the site covers end-to-end processing from sugar feedstock to final product. The company says the facility is designed for higher throughput and lower all-in manufacturing costs compared with retrofitted pharma CMOS and can run a broader range of organisms, including methanol-fed Pichia. Construction milestones include footings installed in August, concrete poured in September, and long-lead equipment ordered and under construction. Liberation Labs has continued to build out its corporate staff and local team as it prepares for operation. Financially, the company has secured $20 million in seed funding (including Agronomics and CPT Capital), $30 million in equipment financing, and a new $25 million USDA-backed loan while it raises a Series A. Liberation Labs commercializes precision fermentation and develops purpose-built manufacturing facilities to enable large-scale production of bio-based consumer products. The company is advancing its first commercial-scale precision fermentation plant in Richmond, Indiana, which it describes as the first purpose-built commercial-scale precision fermentation facility in the United States. The Richmond facility is planned to have 600,000 liters of fermentation capacity and a fully dedicated downstream process. Liberation Labs has commenced detailed design engineering, placed orders for major engineered equipment (including 150,000-liter fermenters and DSP separation and drying units), and is building out engineering and operations teams. Groundbreaking was expected in June 2023 with initial plant startup targeted by the end of 2024. The company secured $30 million in equipment financing and completed a seed raise that together support equipment procurement and continued team investment. Liberation Labs develops a precision fermentation platform and a global network of purpose-built manufacturing facilities to produce alternative proteins at scale. The company is led by CEO Mark Warner and is focused on commercializing its platform through large-scale production sites. With the recent seed financing, Liberation Labs plans to build out a 600,000-liter production facility as part of its initial manufacturing footprint. Near-term priorities include finalizing site selection, completing Front End Loading level 3 (FEL-3) engineering, ordering long-lead equipment, and building the operations team. The company projects commissioning and commercial production of its first facility by the end of 2024. The raise funds these capital and operational milestones as it scales toward commercial operations.

Led · Grant · Oct 2023

PlantSwitch develops compostable forks, spoons, cups and other single-use food-service items molded from agricultural waste such as rice husks. The company designs its products to feel and function like conventional plastic while breaking down naturally within about ten weeks. Cofounded by Dillon Baxter and Maxime Blandin, PlantSwitch has signed commercial customers including Taylor Farms, Starlink corporate campuses, Live Nation, and SoFi Stadium for World Cup distribution. The startup targets high-volume, low-margin segments to drive scale and reduce costs with the goal of reaching price parity with plastic and expanding into non-food product categories. PlantSwitch has raised $28 million in total funding following its $17 million Series A.

Led · Grant · Mar 2023

Ostara manufactures Crystal Green® (5-28-0 with 10%Mg), a granular phosphate fertilizer that naturally releases nutrients in response to plant demand and is designed to maximize yield while reducing runoff and leaching. The company sells Crystal Green through a network of retailers and distributors across North America and Europe and serves the agriculture, turf, and ornamental sectors. Ostara emphasizes the product’s unique organic acid solubility and environmental benefits compared with conventional phosphate fertilizers. The USDA awarded the company a $7.6M grant to support increased U.S. production, signaling public-sector backing for expansion. Grant funds will be used to build a new production facility in St. Louis with capacity to produce over 200,000 tons of Crystal Green. Construction was scheduled for completion in summer 2023 to supply growers that fall. Ostara manufactures Crystal Green® — a line of highly efficient, plant-available granular phosphate fertilizers sold into agriculture, specialty, and turf markets. The company’s products are designed to increase yields, reduce phosphate tie-up, and limit runoff and leaching to protect waterways. Ostara announced a US$70 million Series C to scale North American production and complete a new manufacturing facility in St. Louis. The soon-to-be commissioned plant is planned to produce 200,000 tons per year and supply product in time for the 2024 growing season. Ostara says the expanded manufacturing base will allow it to serve more U.S. and Canadian farmers through its existing retailer and distributor networks in North America and Europe. The buildout is also expected to create dozens of new jobs in the St. Louis region and increase resiliency of the North American fertilizer supply chain. Ostara produces Crystal Green® fertilizers, described in the release as the first slow‑release phosphorus fertilizers that release nutrients in response to plant demand (Root‑Activated™ granules). The company also develops Pearl® technology to recover phosphorus and nitrogen from industrial, agricultural, and municipal water streams and transform those nutrients into its premium fertilizers. Crystal Green® products are sold into the agriculture and turf sectors through a network of established distributors in North America and Europe. Ostara says its granules increase yields, enhance soil health and significantly reduce phosphorus tie‑up and runoff, helping protect waterways. The company closed a US$20M financing to acquire and upgrade a strategically located fertilizer production facility in Missouri to significantly scale up Crystal Green® production. Participating investors named in the release include Forage Capital, Export Development Canada, ADM Capital’s advised Cibus Enterprise Fund and Wheatsheaf Group. Ostara’s Pearl® technology captures phosphorus and nitrogen from water streams and converts the nutrients into Crystal Green® continuous‑release fertilizers sold to agriculture and turf markets. Crystal Green® Root‑Activated™ granules are positioned to increase crop yields, enhance soil health, and reduce phosphorus runoff. The company sells through established distributor networks in North America and Europe and is scaling fertilizer production. As part of that scale‑up, Ostara closed the second tranche of a prior equity financing for approximately US$5.0 million in December 2019. It also closed a new US$5.0 million working‑capital credit facility to support ongoing production ramp and to augment an existing credit facility with Comerica Bank. The company frames its product as a circular solution that helps clean water while supplying regenerative fertilizer to farmers. Ostara uses its Pearl® technology to recover phosphorus and nitrogen from industrial, agricultural, and municipal water streams and transforms those nutrients into Crystal Green® fertilizers. Crystal Green® is marketed as a premium, Root‑Activated™ slow‑release phosphorus fertilizer designed to release nutrients in response to plant demand and to reduce phosphorus runoff. The company sells into the agriculture and turf sectors through an established distributor network in North America and Europe. Ostara recently scaled production, contracting additional tolling capacity in the Southwestern US and operating a Southeastern US‑based toll granulator to meet rising demand. Management reported selling more than four times the volumes of Crystal Green® compared with the prior fiscal year and expects to significantly exceed that pace. Proceeds from the current financing are intended to fast‑track production scale‑up, capacity enhancements, and to support continued growth of fertilizer and nutrient recovery system sales in the US, Europe and Asia.

Led · Grant · Oct 2017

Hazel Technologies is a USDA-funded agricultural technology company that develops solutions to extend the quality shelf life of fresh produce. Its flagship product is a packaging insert sachet that delivers a controlled release of shelf-life enhancing vapor, placed in boxes of bulk produce at harvest to slow aging and prevent decay. The company works with more than 160 companies across 12 countries and counts Mission Avocado, Zespri, and Oppy among its customers. Founded in 2015 and led by CEO Aidan Mouat, Hazel is based in Chicago, IL. Hazel raised $70M in a Series C, bringing cumulative capital raised to over $87M. The company intends to use the funds to build global operations in major agricultural production areas and expand into Southeast Asia, Africa, the EU, and beyond. Hazel Technologies is a USDA-supported agricultural technology company founded in 2015 and based in Chicago, IL. It develops sachet-based products that release active, shelf-life-enhancing vapor from packaging inserts placed in boxes at harvest to slow aging and prevent fungus or decay. The company has completed over 100 pilot trials since 2017 across crops including melons, okra, apricots, avocados and cherries. Hazel works with over 100 of the largest fresh produce packers, shippers and retailers in the US and Latin America. The company plans to use new funding to continue growth of its main product line, launch new technologies and add talent. Its recent fundraise increased its cumulative financing to date, supporting commercial expansion of its core technology. Hazel Technologies develops drop-in packaging inserts that release an anti-fungal, shelf-life-extending vapor for produce. Its inserts can extend shelf life by as much as three times by preventing fungus and decay. The company is USDA-supported and is led by CEO and co-founder Aidan Mouat. Hazel closed a $3.26M Series A and intends to use the funds to increase production capacity. In 2017 and 2018 the company announced partnerships with major domestic and international produce growers, including Dresick Farms International (DFI) and Agritrade Farms International. The product targets the global food-waste problem by increasing produce shelf life via a simple packaging solution. Hazel Technologies builds shelf-life enhancement technologies aimed at extending the freshness of fresh produce to reduce food waste. The company develops treatments and packaging adjuncts that growers and shippers can apply to prolong produce shelf life. Hazel has received multiple USDA awards, including a recent $600k Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant and an earlier $100k development grant in 2016. With the new funding the company plans to explore export markets and further enhance its technology for global food-waste reduction. The USDA awarded the SBIR grant based on endorsements from growers who tested Hazel’s technologies, providing field validation. Aidan Mouat is the company’s CEO and co-founder. Chicago-based Hazel Technologies produces biodegradable, non-toxic packaging inserts—pads and sugar‑packet–sized sachets—that actively emit ingredients to slow spoilage of fruits and vegetables. Its FruitBrite packets use 1-methylcyclopropene (1‑MCP) to block ethylene receptors and delay ripening; the BerryBrite product line targets fungal threats. The company was started by Northwestern University alumni and is led by CEO Aidan Mouat. Hazel says the inserts work with existing grower and shipper infrastructure and can extend shelf life from days to weeks, enabling access to more distant markets. Hazel previously received SBIR grant funding from the USDA. The startup raised funding to ramp up manufacturing and to develop new products while expanding its commercial partnerships.

Led · Debt Financing · Jun 2012

Myriant leverages a proprietary technology platform to produce renewable chemicals from non-food, low-cost sugars, including commercial-scale D(-) lactic acid and bio-succinic acid. The company’s flagship Lake Providence, Louisiana plant is a 30 million pound-per-year bio-succinic acid facility with construction on schedule for a planned commercial start-up in early 2013. Myriant has signed multi-year customer contracts for the plant’s expected annual production and is planning a 140 million pound expansion in the United States. The firm highlights that its high-purity bio-succinic acid is a chemical drop-in replacement for petroleum-based succinic acid and is cost-competitive and more environmentally friendly. Financial support for the project includes a $25 million private bond placement under the USDA B&I loan guarantee program, a $50 million Department of Energy cooperative agreement, and a $10 million grant from the Lake Providence Port Commission and the Louisiana Department of Transportation. The Lake Providence project is expected to create roughly 40–50 direct highly skilled jobs, ~250 construction jobs, and an estimated 300 indirect jobs. Myriant develops and produces high-value bio-based chemicals using proprietary microbial biotechnology and low-cost cellulosic sugars. The company produces D(-) lactic acid at commercial scale (started June 2008) and planned a 30 million pound succinic acid plant at the Port of Lake Providence beginning in early 2011. Myriant’s succinic acid is made via fermentation of sugars and is positioned as a replacement for petroleum-derived chemicals used in food, pharmaceuticals, surfactants, plastics, fibers and biodegradable solvents. Headquartered in Quincy, Massachusetts, the company leverages a team of molecular biologists, engineers and chemists to commercialize specialty renewable chemicals. Myriant received a $60 million strategic investment to support expansion and the creation of biochemical plants in North America and Asia and to advance commercialization. Management characterized the partnership as validation of the technology and an important step toward global expansion.