Chromologics secures €7 million to advance fermentation-derived natural colors toward market launch

Chromologics has raised €7 million (US$7.6 million) to accelerate the regulatory approval and commercial launch of its fermentation-derived natural food color, Natu.Red. The Copenhagen-based company announced the funding round on 18 November, bringing its total capital raised to nearly €20 million (US$21.6 million). The latest investment came from Novo Holdings, the Export and Investment Fund of Denmark (EIFO), Döhler Ventures, Collateral Good Ventures, and Synergetic.

The new funding will allow Chromologics to complete regulatory submissions with both the European Food Safety Authority and the US Food and Drug Administration. The company said the investment would also support product launch activities and scale-up in partnership with a contract manufacturing organization providing access to high-capacity fermentation infrastructure. With this backing, Chromologics aimed to transition from pilot volumes to commercial-scale production.

The company, a spin-out from the Technical University of Denmark, has been supported by Novo Holdings and EIFO since 2020. Both investors said the latest round reflected continued confidence in the market demand for biotechnology-derived natural colorants and in the progress Chromologics has made since its founding.

“In times of shifting priorities, we deeply valued the continued trust in our mission,” commented Gerit Tolborg, CEO at Chromologics. “Biomanufacturing remained essential to stabilize food supply chains, an endeavor that required patient investors who understood the realities of innovation. The support from our existing shareholders underscored the confidence in both Chromologics’ technology and its commercial potential. Chromologics has demonstrated the cost efficiency, scalability, safety, and product market fit of Natu.Red.”

Thomas Grotkjær, Partner, Planetary Health Investments at Novo Holdings, said the company’s progress and the broader market environment supported the renewed commitment from investors. “Our renewed, increased commitment reflected both Chromologics’ strong progress over the past five years and the growing market demand for natural, more sustainable alternatives to synthetic colorants,” he said. “The constructive dialogues with strategic players suggested that we could scale the business rapidly upon regulatory approval. We were confident that Chromologics’ technology and strategy would have a significant impact on the landscape for natural food colors.”

Sara Sande, Partner at EIFO, said Chromologics offered a scalable and sustainable alternative as pressure on synthetic colorants continued to increase. “As bans on synthetic food colorants increase and current natural alternatives fall short and are not fully sustainable, Chromologics set itself apart with proven, scalable, cost competitive fermentation derived colors,” she said. “This investment supported Chromologics as they prepared to launch their first product and underlined EIFO’s commitment to support the green transition.”

The timing of the round coincided with renewed scrutiny of synthetic food dyes. Following the US ban on synthetic Red 3, demand for heat-stable, pH-stable, and label-friendly alternatives has continued to rise among food and beverage manufacturers. Chromologics positioned Natu.Red as a high-performing solution suitable for vegan applications and independent of agricultural variables such as seasonality, weather conditions, and land use.

The company emphasized that fermentation-derived pigments offered environmental advantages over traditional plant-based color extraction, requiring significantly less land and water while providing consistent quality. Such attributes have become increasingly important for manufacturers evaluating the sustainability impacts of ingredients.

Since 2021, Chromologics has conducted trials with more than 90 food companies across Europe and the USA to validate the performance of Natu.Red across multiple applications. These trials provided insights into stability, usage rates, and product behavior in categories ranging from beverages and confectionery to plant-based foods.

The company said customer interest remained strong across these segments, particularly as manufacturers sought to transition away from synthetic dyes without compromising technical performance. Chromologics planned to use the latest funding to advance toward commercial readiness while continuing to refine production processes through its CMO partnership.

Rodrigo Hortega de Velasco, Director at Döhler Ventures, said the company was aligned with a broader industry shift. “Chromologics was favorably positioned to lead the forthcoming shift towards more natural and better performing ingredients,” he said. “The sustainable fermentation technology provided a stable, scalable, and cost competitive solution for customers to quickly transition from existing solutions to the high quality, natural colors that were required to meet both new legislative frameworks and a surging consumer demand.”

With the current round, Chromologics said it would finalize regulatory dossiers, expand production capacity, and prepare for the first commercial deployment of Natu.Red. The company framed the path ahead as an opportunity to establish a new generation of fermentation-derived colorants, offering consistency and sustainability benefits over both synthetic dyes and agricultural extraction methods.

Founded in 2017, Chromologics developed a precision fermentation platform capable of producing natural food colors compatible with vegan, kosher, and halal requirements. The company said its proprietary process offered a cost-effective, scalable route to natural color production and positioned Natu.Red as its first commercial product.

Investors said they viewed the company as well placed to benefit from the rising global demand for high-performing natural ingredients. As food and beverage companies increasingly review synthetic dyes in their portfolios, Chromologics planned to leverage the latest funding round to move Natu.Red toward regulatory clearance and commercial launch.