Cosaic Bags $6M to Replace Industrial Additives with One-Size-Fits-All Yeast Ingredient

Swiss startup Cosaic has secured $6M in a seed extension round to scale up its yeast-derived emulsifier and advance its regulatory efforts in the US and Europe.

Six months after notching a strategic partnership with Ingredion, Switzerland’s Cosaic has just been backed by another industry major.

The company has raised $6M in an extension of its seed round, an effort led by DSM-Firmenich Ventures, the VC arm of the chemicals and ingredients giant. Further, the round included a large Swiss family office, deep tech investor, Kickfund, and existing backers Navus Ventures and Zuercher Kantonalbank.

Formerly known as Cultivated Biosciences, Cosaic has developed a yeast fermentation platform to create multifunctional ingredients for the food and drink industry. Its first innovation, Cosaic Neo, delivers creaminess, stability, and functionality, replacing emulsifiers derived from dairy, eggs, or industrial plant-based formulations.

The capital injection takes Cosaic’s total funding to $12.5M, and will support three business priorities: regulatory progress in the US and Europe, production scale-up with a contract manufacturer, and industrial trials with large clients.

“We are building an ingredient that resolves the trade-offs food companies face every day between clean label, sensory performance, and cost,” said Cosaic co-founder and CEO Tomas Turner.

“This round sends a clear signal: the market is backing foodtech companies that can deliver real functional value and a credible path to commercialisation.”

A yeast-derived ingredient that can do it all

To produce its ingredient, Cosaic makes use of a non-GMO oleaginous yeast strain, known to naturally produce significant quantities of lipids. The microorganisms are cultivated in a bioreactor, where they are fed a diet of sugars, nitrogen sources, and a mix of minerals and vitamins.

The startup’s proprietary biomass fermentation technology enables non-chemical extraction with off-the-shelf equipment to break open the cells and extract the emulsion. The specific microstructures it extracts give the ingredient an off-white colour.

Cosaic Neo contains 8-15% protein, 45-60% fat (13-22% of which is saturated), and 25-45% fibre. It can replace multiple single-purpose ingredients, adding bulk, nutrition, and stability to the products it’s integrated into.

Some of these applications include ready-to-drink protein shakes, coffee creamers, non-dairy milks, mayo, sauces, and creamy liqueurs. These products may contain animal-derived ingredients such as whey and eggs, or industrial additives such as lecithin.

Consumers are increasingly looking for cleaner-label formulations. Research shows that 76% of people are willing to pay more for clean-label products, and 74% of EU citizens find simple ingredients an essential part of purchasing decisions.

Cosaic notes that it can deliver eight functional benefits in a single ingredient, addressing formulation challenges that otherwise require a multitude of components and additives.

Cosaic eyes US market amid funding wins for fermentation

The company’s raise comes in a highly challenging fundraising environment: last year, fermentation startups experienced a 43.5% decline in financing. However, 2025 has seen several investment wins for fermentation companies.

This week, fellow Swiss startup Planetary secured $28M to scale its fermentation licensing platform globally, weeks after Australia’s Cauldron Ferm raised $13.25M for its “hyper-fermentation” manufacturing system.

This year has seen several investment rounds for precision-fermented firms, including French players Verley ($38M) and Standing Ovation ($34.2M), Dutch firm Those Vegan Cowboys (which completed a $14M round), and UK startup Clean Food Group ($7M).

Cosaic said its successful fundraising effort reflects investor confidence in its patented technology, its low-capex scale-up strategy, and its strategic go-to-market partnership with Ingredion.

Announced in November, this collaboration will see Ingredion help Cosaic implement its commercialisation strategy. The two companies will also co-develop new products to expand the latter’s portfolio.

Cosaic is targeting the US as its initial market, citing its “significantly more expedient” regulatory process. “We work with a novel composition of yeast with a qualified presumption of safety. This means that we need to pass regulatory approval, but we already have a strong base of knowledge for authorities to prove its safety,” chief commercial officer Lucie Rein told Green Queen last year.

He added: “With strong strategic backing and a capital-efficient scale-up model, we are well-positioned to move from development to launch readiness.”