RCS - Frontier IP Group - Nandi: investment from Nesta & Scottish Enterprise

Frontier IPAnnouncement

27/08/2024 07:00

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RNS Number : 6730B  Frontier IP Group plc  27 August 2024

Reach - a non-regulatory announcement

AIM: FIPP

27 August 2024

 

 

Frontier IP Group Plc

("Frontier IP" or the "Group")

 

Portfolio news - Nandi Proteins secures investment from Nesta and Scottish
Enterprise as part of £500,000 funding round

 

Frontier IP, a specialist in commercialising intellectual property, today
announces that portfolio company Nandi Proteins ("Nandi" or the "Company") has
raised more than £500,000 via a convertible loan with investors including
Nesta and Scottish Enterprise.

 

The move is part of wider funding initiative aimed at raising a total of about
£1.5 million for the Company. Nesta Impact Investments (NII), the investment
arm of UK social innovation agency Nesta (https://www.nesta.org.uk/) , has
also committed to back an equity funding round, which is expected to complete
later this year and which aims to raise a further £1 million. Frontier IP
holds a 19.7% per cent equity stake in Nandi.

 

Nandi intends to use the funding to support development of its egg white
replacer, which has attracted strong interest from the baking and meat
alternative industries. Earlier this year, Nandi signed a commercial license
with a leading global food ingredients business who will take Nandi's meat/fat
replacer to market worldwide once scale up and final application tests have
been completed successfully.

 

Nandi's meat and fat replacers are based on collagen. The Company uses
vegetable proteins to replace egg whites in a range of products, including
gluten-free bread and muffins. Replacing egg whites in meat alternatives means
vegetarian products can be sold as vegan.

 

Other applications for its innovative technology being developed by Nandi
include:

 

·    vegetable proteins to replace methylcellulose a widely used binder in
plant based meat alternatives

·    whey proteins to replace chemical emulsifiers in baked products

 

John Loder, investment director at Nesta Impact Investments, said: "Through
pioneering ways to reduce the fat with lower calorie ingredients in popular
foods, Nandi Proteins has the potential to help reduce the UK's stubbornly
high obesity rates. Nesta Impact Investments is committed to finding
innovative ways to help halve obesity, aligning closely with Nandi's
commercial egg and meat replacements for baking recipes, sausages and burgers,
which in some cases halve the fat content. We are excited to support Nandi as
it develops its business further."

 

Kerry Sharp, Director of Entrepreneurship and Investment, Scottish Enterprise,
said: "As an existing investor we are pleased to support Nandi Proteins as it
makes real progress towards commercialising its innovative protein
technology."

 

David Flower, Chief Executive Officer of Nandi Proteins, said: "We are
delighted with this funding from Nesta and Scottish Enterprise, and Nesta's
commitment to invest in our equity raise. It provides further validation for
our innovative food ingredient technology following our success in completing
a global license of our first product that will be taken to market by a major
industry supplier."

 

Neil Crabb, Frontier IP Chief Executive Officer, said: "Nandi's technology has
huge potential to replace undesirable ingredients used widely in the food
industry. We very much welcome the support from Nesta, the UK government fund
for social good, which underlines the value of the Company's work."

 

 

ENQUIRIES

 

 Frontier IP Group Plc                                                  T: 07464 546 025
 Neil Crabb, Chief Executive                                            neil@frontierip.co.uk

 Andrew Johnson, Communications & Investor Relations                    M: 07464 546 025

 Company website: www.frontierip.co.uk (http://www.frontierip.co.uk/)
 Nesta Impact Investments

                                                                        kieran.lowe@nesta.org.uk

 Kieran Lowe, Group Media Lead                                          M: 07942 499 048

                                                                        T: 0203 328 5656

 Allenby Capital Limited (Nominated Adviser)
 Nick Athanas / George Payne

About Frontier IP

Frontier IP unites science and commerce by identifying strong intellectual
property and accelerating its development through a range of commercialisation
services. A critical part of the Group's work is involving relevant industry
partners at an early stage of development to ensure technology meets real
world demands and needs.

The Group looks to build and grow a portfolio of equity stakes and licence
income by taking an active involvement in spin-out companies, including
support for fund raising and collaboration with relevant industry partners at
an early stage of development.

About Nesta Impact Investments

Nesta Impact Investments (https://nestainvestments.org.uk/)  provides
financial, knowledge and network capital to innovative tech ventures that are
changing the world for good. We look to back businesses in edtech, foodtech,
healthtech, climate tech, the future of work and productivity, that are
closely aligned to Nesta's mission impact goals:

·     sustainable future: To accelerate the decarbonisation of UK
households and raise productivity in ways that advance the transition to net
zero. Our focus at the moment is on reducing domestic energy consumption,
supporting SMEs to adopt green technology and supporting the upskilling needed
for a green economy.

·     A healthy life: To increase the average number of healthy years
lived in the UK, while narrowing health inequalities. Our focus at the moment
is on reducing obesity. This includes new food tech, novel ingredients,
healthy brands and helping people access healthy foods, as well as relevant
behavioural and health tech.

·     A fairer start: To narrow the education outcome gap between
children growing up in disadvantage and the national average. We look for
solutions that deliver high-quality, affordable provision and workforce
development. We are also looking at financial inclusion solutions which can
reduce stress on families who can then better support the home learning
environment.

About Scottish Enterprise

Scottish Enterprise (SE) is Scotland's national economic development agency
and a non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government. It supports
businesses to innovate and scale to transform the Scottish economy by focusing
on new market opportunities through targeted investment, innovation and
internationalisation. Follow us on X (formerly Twitter) and LinkedIn.

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About Nandi's technology

Nandi's patented technology is based on the knowledge that the functional
properties of proteins change when they unfold (denature). Controlled
denaturation can be used to deliberately change and control the protein
functionality as an ingredient. The Company is focused on two protein types:

·       globular proteins, where the molecules are folded into a
spherical shape, found in vegetables and dairy; and

·       spiral proteins, where long chains of molecules form spirals or
helices. They are found in meat.

In both cases, chemical bonds along the length of, and between different
portions of, the protein molecule keep the proteins in their shapes.

Applying heat breaks the weak bonds allowing the proteins to unfold. The
structure of the protein that was previously 'inside' the folded protein is
now exposed. This allows it to interact with its surroundings -- for example
by binding onto water molecules -- enhancing functionality such as solubility
and emulsifying ability.

The unfolded structure also allows for new chemical bonds to form between one
protein to another. The result is that individual protein molecules can become
joined together to create a network which will change functional properties
such as thickening and gelation abilities.

These denaturation processes are already widely used in food ingredient
processing and cooking. For example, an egg white consists of globular
proteins suspended in water. When you fry the egg, the proteins unfold and
create a mesh, which traps the water molecules. The egg white solidifies. The
challenge is in controlling the process precisely. Cook the egg for too long,
too many protein bonds form, the net's mesh becomes too tight, and the white
becomes rubbery.

By controlling the heat applied and monitoring the unfolding process extremely
precisely, Nandi can precisely create protein functionality that allows it to
replace the functionality of fat and additive molecules such as emulsifiers.

Nandi is capable of producing modified proteins from both globular proteins
(present in a wide range of naturally-occurring foodstuffs, including whey,
potato, soy and peas, as well as eggs) and spiral proteins present in meat
(Nandi has been specifically exploring the modification of collagen proteins).

Nandi achieves control of the unfolding process by using chemistry and
light-based systems to measure in real time a range of key variables as heat
is applied to proteins in solution. This allows the Company to maximise their
functional properties, such as emulsification, solubility, acid stability,
foaming, water binding and gelation.

The company's technology includes proprietary sensor systems which can be used
across existing manufacturing processes to control the variables and create
functional proteins.

 

Nandi version

Nandi Proteins secures investment from Nesta and Scottish Enterprise as part
of £500,000 funding round

 

Nandi Proteins ("Nandi" or the "Company") has raised more than £500,000 via a
convertible loan with investors including Nesta and Scottish Enterprise.

 

The move is part of wider funding initiative aimed at raising a total of about
£1.5 million for the Company. Nesta Impact Investments (NII), the investment
arm of UK social innovation agency Nesta (https://www.nesta.org.uk/) , has
also committed to back an equity funding round, which is expected to complete
later this year and which aims to raise a further £1 million.

 

Nandi intends to use the funding to support development of its egg white
replacer, which has attracted strong interest from the baking and meat
alternative industries. Earlier this year, Nandi signed a commercial license
with a leading global food ingredients business who will take Nandi's meat/fat
replacer to market worldwide once scale up and final application tests have
been completed successfully.

 

Nandi's meat and fat replacers are based on collagen. The Company uses
vegetable proteins to replace egg whites in a range of products, including
gluten-free bread and muffins. Replacing egg whites in meat alternatives means
vegetarian products can be sold as vegan.

 

Other applications for its innovative technology being developed by Nandi
include:

 

·    vegetable proteins to replace methylcellulose a widely used binder in
plant based meat alternatives

·    whey proteins to replace chemical emulsifiers in baked products

 

John Loder, investment director at Nesta Impact Investments, said: "Through
pioneering ways to reduce the fat with lower calorie ingredients in popular
foods, Nandi Proteins has the potential to help reduce the UK's stubbornly
high obesity rates. Nesta Impact Investments is committed to finding
innovative ways to help halve obesity, aligning closely with Nandi's
commercial egg and meat replacements for baking recipes, sausages and burgers,
which in some cases halve the fat content. We are excited to support Nandi as
it develops its business further."

 

Kerry Sharp, Director of Entrepreneurship and Investment, Scottish Enterprise,
said: "As an existing investor we are pleased to support Nandi Proteins as it
makes real progress towards commercialising its innovative protein
technology."

 

David Flower, Chief Executive Officer of Nandi Proteins, said: "We are
delighted with this funding from Nesta and Scottish Enterprise, and Nesta's
commitment to invest in our equity raise. It provides further validation for
our innovative food ingredient technology following our success in completing
a global license of our first product that will be taken to market by a major
industry supplier."

 

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