Zymofix to build flagship microbial manufacturing plant as it takes solid-state fermentation to industrial scale

The new Deinze facility will expand production following successful pilot-scale validation and growing customer demand

Zymofix, the Belgian microbial manufacturing company behind next-generation solid-state fermentation platform Zyft, today announces that it has selected Deinze, Belgium, as the location for its new flagship manufacturing site. The new facility marks the company’s move into industrial production and follows a Series A round led by First Imagine!, with participation from  existing investors VP Capital, HTGF and The Nest Family Office.

The expansion follows successful validation of Zyft at pilot scale and growing customer demand that now exceeds Zymofix’s existing production capacity. The new site will enable the company to increase production for existing customer programmes, onboard new projects and build the manufacturing infrastructure needed for its next phase of growth.

Operations will begin moving to the Deinze site over the coming months, marking Zymofix’s shift from technology development and validation into industrial manufacturing.

The new facility represents a €6 million CAPEX investment, partially financed through Zymofix’s equity round and partially through revenue generated by its existing customer programmes. The site will have a production capacity of 300 tonnes per year, enough to treat approximately 1 million hectares, with production expected to begin in Q4 2027. A further €25 million expansion, planned for 2028 subject to successful commissioning of the initial line, will raise capacity to 2,000 tonnes per year, treating approximately 10 million hectares.

Natural products, and microbials in particular, are playing an increasingly important role in the transition of key industries, such as crop protection, towards more sustainable solutions. Within this shift, Zymofix is targeting a key challenge in the commercialisation of microbial products: establishing viable manufacturing routes for microorganisms that are not always optimally suited to conventional liquid fermentation.

Zymofix developed Zyft to provide an alternative manufacturing route. Its proprietary next-generation solid-state fermentation and formulation platform cultivates living microorganisms on solid substrates in a controlled and scalable way. More than 170 strains spanning bacteria, fungi and yeasts have been tested on the platform, providing a broad technical base for customer manufacturing programmes.

Emile Redant, Co-founder & CEO, Zymofix said: “Finding a promising microorganism is only part of the challenge. The harder part is manufacturing it consistently, efficiently and at the volumes the market requires. Solid-state fermentation has significant potential, but historically it has been difficult to scale. We have spent the past four years developing Zyft to fix that problem and, having successfully validated the platform at pilot scale, the new facility in Deinze allows us to take the next step into industrial production.”

Zymofix currently works with more than 15 customers, with agriculture currently representing a major focus. Most of these customers are multinational agricultural-input companies for which microbial products form a strategic part of their portfolios.

Customer programmes include biostimulants, biofertilisers and biocontrol products, alongside opportunities in bioremediation and other industrial applications where microorganisms need to be produced cost-effectively at large volumes.

Rather than developing proprietary strains for these markets, Zymofix works as a manufacturing partner, supporting customers across process development, fermentation, formulation and scale-up.

Founded in 2022, Zymofix has grown to a team of around 35 people, reflecting the company’s progress from early technology development towards commercial manufacturing. The team is expected to grow to approximately 45 employees by the end of 2026 and 60 by the end of 2027, as the company expands its manufacturing, technical and commercial capabilities.

Boris Dorin, Partner, First Imagine! said: “Microbial products only reach the market if someone can manufacture them reliably, at industrial volumes and at a price the market will pay, and manufacturing is exactly where Europe is thinnest. Zymofix has done the hard part: it has taken solid-state fermentation from a laboratory technique to a validated platform that industrial customers already depend on. Building that layer is what First Imagine! is here to do, and we intend to stay with this company well past the opening of a first plant.”

Mathijs van der Knaap, Investment Manager Ventures, VP Capital said: “Since our initial investment, we have seen Zymofix progress from technology development and validation towards a manufacturing business with clear customer demand. The team has built a strong technical foundation and is now moving into the next stage of execution, with the opportunity to support wider adoption of microbial solutions across agriculture and other industries. We are pleased to continue supporting Zymofix through this next phase of growth.”

About Zymofix

Zymofix is an industrial biotechnology company specializing in scalable, cost-efficient manufacturing of beneficial microorganisms using biomass residues. Supported in its pre-seed stage by biotope by VIB, Zymofix later closed seed funding led by HTGF, with participation from VP Capital and The Nest Family Office. The company partners with product developers to bring field-ready microbial solutions to market across agriculture, bioremediation, and other sectors.