NovoNutrients, a carbon-to-protein biotechnology startup, is entering a new chapter as it moves forward with the sale of its assets through an assignment for the benefit of creditors (ABC). The decision follows more than seven years of innovation in gas fermentation and industrial biotech, developing a platform that transforms industrial CO₂ into high-value protein and other ingredients.

NovoNutrients has developed a novel platform to convert industrial CO₂ into food and feed ingredients. The company has initially targeted aquafeed protein markets and had longer-term ambitions to supply ingredients across the alt-protein landscape.

While the company was making progress in its pilot phase, showcasing technology that could convert CO₂ into protein with up to 73% content, it faced increasing capital intensity amid a shifting investment landscape.

Recent funding rounds raised by NovoNutrients included a USD 4.7 million led by Happiness Capital in 2021 and a USD 18 million Series A financing in 2024 led by Woodside Energy, which followed a previous USD 3 million round in 2023.

The sale process, now open, offers potential acquirers a rare opportunity to leverage NovoNutrients’ proven IP and technical infrastructure to accelerate their own carbon capture, industrial biotech, or alternative protein ventures.

Key assets available are:

Intellectual property:

• Issued U.S. patents in gas fermentation and carbon utilization
• Proprietary non-GMO microbial strains
• Trade secrets in bioreactor design, scale-up, and processing
• Product brands: Novotein™ and Novoceuticals™

Technical assets:

• Fully equipped laboratory and pilot plan
• Validated fermentation protocols and operational data
• Demonstrated production of protein (73%) and carotenoids from waste CO₂

NovoNutrients’ platform has broad multi-sector applications, from feed to materials. For companies in industrial biotech or carbon valorization, the acquisition represents the potential to compress R&D timelines by up to five years, the company said.

“While this isn't the outcome we envisioned, the technology’s potential is unchanged,” the company stated in a public announcement. “In the right hands, it can still transform how we think about carbon and protein.”

The sale process is being managed by Forrest Reineke at Armanino. Bid deadline is July 31, 2025, at 5:00 PM PT, with a full sale memo available to qualified parties.