{"id":444610,"date":"2026-05-12T07:51:08","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T07:51:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/444610\/"},"modified":"2026-05-12T07:51:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T07:51:08","slug":"enifer-enters-petfood-space-as-new-mycoprotein-plant-nears-launch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/444610\/","title":{"rendered":"Enifer enters petfood space as new mycoprotein plant nears launch"},"content":{"rendered":"

Enifer<\/a>\u2019s commercial-scale biomass fermentation facility in Kantvik, Finland, should become operational\u00a0in the second half of this year, says the firm, which just teamed up with Finnish petfood firm Rovio<\/a> to launch semi-moist dog treats made with Enifer\u2019s PEKILO mycoprotein.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are currently in discussions with multiple customers across different categories in pet and food applications. Interest is global, with a particular focus on Europe for pet food and North America with human nutrition,\u201d claimed CEO Simo Ellil\u00e4, who said Enifer will be sharing samples this week at Interzoo<\/a>, a leading trade fair for the pet industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a key milestone for us as it enables consistent production at scale, customer deliveries, and continued cost optimization,\u201d he told AgFunderNews.<\/p>\n

From petfood to human nutrition<\/p>\n

Enifer\u2014which has partnerships with key players in feed and food including Skretting<\/a>, the aquafeed division of\u00a0Nutreco<\/a>; petfood giant\u00a0Purina<\/a>; and dairy giant\u00a0Valio<\/a>\u2014says the collaboration with Rovio is \u201cprimarily about validating PEKILO in real commercial applications, looking at functionality, palatability, and how the ingredient performs in production.\u201d<\/p>\n

The move follows a\u00a060-day dog feeding study<\/a>, in which PEKILO showed \u201chigh digestibility, strong palatability, and no negative impact on stool quality,\u201d with \u201cearly functional signals related to immune activity and oxidative balance,\u201d claimed Ellil\u00e4.<\/p>\n

The next step is to \u201cexpand into broader product formats and higher-volume applications\u201d with Rovio, which has white-label capabilities for international customers, he said. \u201cOur goal is to establish PEKILO as a widely used ingredient across pet food categories, and ultimately across food categories in human nutrition.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"buildingEnifer is building a factory in Finland that will be able to make up to 3,000 tons of PEKILO mycoprotein per year. Image credit: Enifer
\n\u00a0Lower-cost feedstocks<\/p>\n

As the Kantvik facility is located at a sugar refinery, the first phase will utilize sugar industry streams as feedstock, said Ellil\u00e4, who said the firm had just completed its first four-ton commercial production run.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut as we move ahead, a key target within our partnership with Valio is the utilization of dairy side streams, mainly lactose. The flexibility of using different feedstocks is one of the key strengths of our technology, as it allows production to be adapted to local resource streams. That in turn improves both sustainability and unit economics.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe biggest opportunity we see is not only in replacing existing ingredients, but in redefining how protein is produced more broadly\u00a0and how we can be part of the solution for the food and\u00a0agri-industries\u00a0in\u00a0solving and\u00a0creating value from side streams.\u201d<\/p>\n

With this in mind, Enifer recently teamed up with Brazilian ethanol giant\u00a0FS<\/a> to explore using thin stillage\u2014a side stream from corn ethanol production\u2014as a feedstock.<\/p>\n

\u201cCompletion of the [500-ton\/year] demonstration plant is foreseen by year-end,\u201d said Ellil\u00e4. \u201cOur partnership is focused on exploring how PEKILO production can be integrated into corn refineries. The demonstration plant is designed to validate lab and pilot scale data and answer key questions around process integration with the main corn refinery, feedstock processing, and overall economic performance.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Enifer\u201cIn the near term, pet food represents a clear commercial entry point. It allows us to bring the ingredient to market, validate its performance, and build production volume,\u201d says Enifer CEO Simo Ellil\u00e4. Image credit Liro Muttilainen
\nProven at industrial scale<\/p>\n

PEKILO mycoprotein was in commercial production from 1975 to 1991 as a source of feed for pigs and chickens. It is produced by the fungal strain\u00a0Paecilomyces variotii\u00a0KCL-24, which was historically fed with spent sulfite liquor, a byproduct of paper making.<\/p>\n

Enifer<\/a>\u2014which was spun out from the\u00a0VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland<\/a>\u00a0in 2020\u2014has upgraded the process to work with a broader range of feedstocks.<\/p>\n

A protein- and fiber-rich powder with a neutral taste and color that can be shipped at room temperature, PEKILO is initially being targeted at pet food and aquaculture. This will be followed by human food applications from meat and dairy alternatives to snack bars, says the firm, which has made regulatory filings in the US, UK, EU and Singapore.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the US, our dossier was submitted to the FDA in March this year after we achieved self-affirmed GRAS status last year,\u201d said Ellil\u00e4.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe see great long-term opportunity in food applications, particularly in areas such as healthy snacking, where there is strong demand for high-quality, sustainable protein and fiber, which both are combined in PEKILO. It also contributes to formulation through its texture and binding properties, which is particularly relevant in snacks and processed pet food products.\u201d<\/p>\n