N&E Innovations has raised AUD $2.4 million in Series A funding led by Tundra Capital. The Singapore company makes an edible antimicrobial ingredient from agricultural waste.
The round also included SGInnovate, The Radical Fund, Archipelago VC and SG7 Group. Existing investors Cercano, SEEDS Capital, Elev8 Capital and Qian Hu Corporation also participated. The funds will support international expansion, regulatory work and team growth.
N&E was co-founded in 2020 by biomedical scientist Didi Gan. Its patented ViKANG99 technology extracts antimicrobial compounds from agricultural by-products, including discarded cashew nut husks, and refines them into a food-grade ingredient.
The ingredient can be applied directly to fresh produce or incorporated into packaging, cling wrap, hand sanitiser and cleaning products. According to the company, it can help fresh produce last up to four times longer.
N&E already supplies customers including Singapore Airlines and supermarket chain Sheng Siong. Its KeepWell hand sanitiser was also selected for the official fun pack at Singapore's National Day Parade.
Gan said the fresh capital would help broaden commercial use of the technology overseas.
"Food waste is usually seen as something we need to get rid of. We see it as a resource," said Didi Gan, Co-Founder, N&E Innovations.
"We can take something like a discarded cashew nut husk, extract the compounds that naturally fight microbes and turn them into an ingredient that can help protect food," Gan said.
"The exciting part is that ViKANG99 isn't limited to one product. It can be incorporated into packaging, used on fresh produce or formulated into cleaning products, which gives the technology enormous potential," Gan said.
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