Agronomics Limited has announced that its portfolio company, Clean Food Group Ltd, has entered into a partnership agreement with Roberts Bakery Ltd, a leading bakery brand in the UK. The partnership will allow Clean Food Group to use Roberts Bakery's surplus bread as a feedstock for its proprietary non-GMO yeast strain in the production of precision fermentation palm oil. This innovative process will convert discarded bread into valuable oils and fats, addressing the issue of food waste and showcasing the potential of circular economy principles in the food industry.
The partnership will begin with an initial trial phase, with the goal of creating a circular ecosystem where Roberts Bakery provides Clean Food Group with bread waste to produce oils that can be used as an ingredient in bread and biscuits. Agronomics has invested a total of £900,500 into Clean Food Group, which is carried at £6.27 million, including an unrealized gain on cost of £5.37 million. Agronomics holds an equity ownership of 30.59% on a fully diluted basis in Clean Food Group.
Jim Mellon, Executive Director of Agronomics and Director of Clean Food Group, commented on the partnership, stating, "This partnership marks a significant milestone in the ongoing transition towards developing sustainable food production systems." Professor Chris Chuck, Co-founder at Clean Food Group, added, "We're seeing some great results from our early trials... This all-in-one feed gives us a real advantage over using more complex media, in both performance and sustainability."
Clean Food Group is a UK-based food-tech business that delivers sustainable oils and fats solutions to food and cosmetics manufacturers. Its mission is to provide scalable, healthier, and competitively priced ingredients that have a positive impact on the economic, environmental, and social health of the planet. Agronomics is a leading listed company focused on cellular agriculture and cultivated meat, with a portfolio of over 20 companies in the sector. It seeks to invest in companies with defensible intellectual property that offer new ways of producing food and materials derived from animals, driving sustainability and addressing various global challenges.