In October, Wagralim, the Walloon agri-food innovation cluster and coordinator of the I3 project Biotech4Food, participated in the Biotech for Planetary Health Investor event, organised by Biotope that brought together biotech startups and investors. The event showcased innovations in biotech for planetary health — including advances in food biotechnology — and offered insights into what it truly takes to grow and fund a biotech company today.
The event began with insightful introductions from Annick Verween (Head of Biotope) and Tom Viaene (VIB New Ventures Team). Their message was clear: addressing global sustainability challenges requires deeper science paired with bolder builders. Barbara Freitag, founder of Inbiose shared insights on what fundraising really means:
- Timing is key: Fundraising is not only about how much money you need or from whom, but it is also about when. Founders should plan their milestones carefully and raise capital just before reaching the next critical step. Strategic timing creates momentum.
- Relationships start before you need the money: Investor relationships should be built early. Regularly update them, seek advice, and bring them along your journey so that by the time you’re raising, they already understand your vision.
- Finding the right match: Sometimes it takes multiple tries before finding the investor whose expertise, timing, expectations and culture fit your project. Fundraising is ultimately a partnership, not a transaction.
Investors also shared complementary advice for founders to strengthen their fundraising strategy, build meaningful partnerships, and communicate their needs with clarity:
- Build a strong and relevant network: biotech is a capital-intensive and complex field. Building meaningful partnerships – scientific, industrial, commercial or operational – considerably increases investor confidence.
- Be precise about your needs: founders should clearly articulate how much funding they need, what milestones it will achieve, and what additional support (non-financial) they expect from investors.
- Understand the partnership you are seeking: defining expectations early ensures alignment and smooth collaboration once the investment begins.
Moreover, the pitching sessions highlighted a broad range of biotech innovations addressing sustainability challenges from multiple perspectives. Several startups presented next-generation sustainable ingredients produced through fermentation, offering alternatives to conventional production methods: human milk oligosaccharides, cocoa butter alternatives, aromatic compounds, etc. Others focused on agricultural biosolutions, introducing microbial technologies and biological inputs designed to enhance soil health and reduce dependence on chemical treatments.
The program also included an inspiring talk from the Craig Johnston, co-founder and CTO of ENOUGH, a company producing protein alternatives from mycoprotein (mycelium). He retraced the company’s evolution from a young startup founded in 2015 to a fully industrialised player, sharing how ENOUGH secured more than €100 million in funding to scale its technology and operations.
Overall, the event offered valuable perspectives on food biotechnologies, strengthening Biotech4Food understanding of emerging trends and connection with key innovators.
