St Louis, Sept. 8, 2016 /PRNewswire/ — Agrivida Inc., an agritech company focused on animal nutrition, announces it has completed an initial close of $20.4 million Series E financing. The funds will be used to advance the commercialization of Agrivida’s patented GRAINZYME® feed additive enzymes for use with poultry and swine, and to support product development for dairy and beef cattle. The University of Texas Investment Management Company led the round and was joined by current investors ARCH Venture Partners, Cultivian Sandbox, Middleland Capital, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, and Northgate Capital.
“We’re excited to partner with the Agrivida team as the company prepares to commercialize its initial GRAINZYME products,” says Spencer Swayze of the University of Texas Investment Management Company that led the raise. “The company’s technology has the potential to improve the production efficiency for producers while reducing raw material and energy costs in the large and rapidly growing feed enzyme market.”
Company poised to launch breakthrough patented technologies
In addition to funding expansion of its capabilities and leadership team, the current financing will allow Agrivida to advance its regulatory and product development programs, and to execute a go-to-market commercialization plan for its patented GRAINZYME Phytase technology, which uses protein expression and storage in grain to simplify the process of enzyme production. The company expects to introduce its new products in early 2017, entering the feed enzyme market, which according to Research and Markets was valued at $1.1 billion in 2015, with an annual growth rate of 7 percent.
“This is another significant milestone for our company,” says Dan Meagher, CEO of Agrivida. “Exciting results from our recent animal trials are creating a convincing value proposition for the producers of food animals. We are looking forward to delivering on our promise of improving the production efficiency of meat, milk, and eggs to help address the growing global demand for food.”
About Agrivida
Committed to using technology to improve the production of food for a growing global population, Agrivida scientists are experts in biochemistry, plant biology, molecular biology, agriculture, and nutrition. Founded in 2004 by scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who were focused on ways to improve the manufacture and use of enzymes, the company has been granted 33 patents, with more than 85 pending. The company’s innovative solutions have resulted in several research grants from both the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Energy. Additional information on the company can be found at www.agrivida.com.
E-mail: pr@agrivida.com