NovoNutrients

About NovoNutrients

NovoNutrients, legally operating as Oakbio, Inc., is a biotechnology company focused on upcycling industrial carbon dioxide emissions into high-value protein ingredients for food and feed. The company was founded in 2017 by Brian Sefton, Russell Howard, and Bahare Howard, evolving from its predecessor Oakbio, which was incorporated in 2008 and initially targeted biofuels. The strategic pivot to nutrition in 2017 was influenced by David Tze, an aquaculture investor who saw the technology's potential to address the unsustainable practice of using wild-caught fish for aquaculture feed. Tze, with a background in aquaculture-focused venture capital through his fund Aquacopia, joined as CEO in 2017, bringing crucial market insight that reshaped the company's direction. Brian Sefton, a serial entrepreneur and biochemist, created the company's core intellectual property.

The company's core technology is a proprietary gas fermentation process. It uses natural and tailored microbes within specialized looping bioreactors to convert untreated industrial CO2 emissions, hydrogen, and oxygen into a single-cell protein. This process is designed to be more energy-efficient than traditional tank-based fermentation. The resulting product, a protein flour named Novotein™, has demonstrated a protein content of up to 73% and nutritional quality comparable to beef. This protein is aimed at several large markets, including aquaculture feed, pet food, and human nutrition, specifically for plant-based meat alternatives. NovoNutrients' business model is asset-light, focusing on licensing its technology to industrial partners, such as energy companies and cement producers, who have a vested interest in carbon capture and utilization. This model allows the company to act as a technology partner, providing the microbes and licensing the rights to build and operate production facilities, while also handling the marketing of the final protein products.

In July 2024, NovoNutrients secured a significant milestone with an $18 million Series A funding round, co-led by Woodside Energy and CM Venture Capital, to advance its industrial pilot program and expand commercial partnerships. The company had established technology development agreements with partners like Chevron and Woodside Energy to validate its technology at an industrial scale. However, by July 2025, despite the technology proving effective in its pilot phase, NovoNutrients faced liquidation due to the challenges of capital intensity in a shifting investment climate. The company entered an Assignment for the Benefit of Creditors (ABC) process to sell its assets, which include patents for gas fermentation, proprietary microbial strains, bioreactor trade secrets, and its brands.