Finally Foods is financed by the Israeli Innovation Authority
(IIA) and The Kitchen Hub, and will be granted a license to utilize
Evogene's AI technology
REHOVOT, Israel, April 2,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Evogene Ltd. (Nasdaq:
EVGN) (TASE: EVGN), a leading computational biology company
targeting to revolutionize life-science-based product discovery and
development utilizing cutting edge computational biology
technologies, across multiple market segments and The Kitchen
FoodTech Hub (TKH), the foodtech incubator and investment arm
of Israeli food giant Strauss Group, have jointly announced the
establishment of Finally Foods Ltd.
'Finally Foods' is an AI-driven company specializing in
molecular farming for the food sector, committed to providing
sustainable alternative sources to animal-based proteins. The
company's mission is to modify plants as "bioreactors" to
produce these proteins efficiently and environmentally responsibly.
Leveraging Evogene's GeneRator AI technology, the company
aims for short R&D cycles and rapid time-to-market.
According to average market reports, the global alternative
proteins market was valued at around USD
17.6 billion in 2022, with an anticipated average CAGR of
12%, expected to reach USD 55 billion
by 2032[1]. 'Finally Foods' is
poised to capture a share in this growing sector, leveraging the
revolutionary potential of molecular farming – an efficient and
environmentally friendly method for producing valuable
proteins.
'Finally Foods' has secured pre-seed funding from TKH and the
Israeli Innovation Authority (IIA). Evogene holds approximately 40%
stake in the company, with the remaining ownership divided among
TKH and the founding team – CEO Dafna
Gabbay, a seasoned entrepreneur, and CTO Dr. Basia J.
Vinocur, an expert in agricultural biotechnology.
Ofer Haviv, President &
CEO of Evogene, expressed his enthusiasm for this new venture,
stating, "We are thrilled to embark on this new segment, marking a
milestone for Evogene as we continue to drive innovation and growth
in the Life Science industry. By harnessing the power of our
GeneRator AI tech-engine, molecular farming has the
potential to revolutionize the food industry and promote healthier
diets worldwide."
"'Finally Foods' is one of the rare cases where we see an
extremely strong founding team, in Dafna and Basia, coupled with a
proven technology platform based on the leading AI engine of
Evogene" said Amir Zaidman, Chief
Business Officer of The Kitchen Hub. "Establishing the company
under the framework of The Kitchen and investing the pre-seed round
was an easy decision in this case."
Dafna Gabbay, Co-Founder &
CEO of Finally Foods, expressed her confidence, stating, "I
believe that with Evogene's cutting edge technology, TKH's leading
position in the FoodTech industry and with Dr. Vinocur's vast
experience – 'Finally Foods' has full potential to emerge as a
promising company in the alternative proteins sector. Molecular
farming represents a catalyst towards global food security and a
more sustainable future, and I am proud to lead 'Finally Foods' to
take an important part towards supporting this crucial vision for
the world."
About Evogene:
Evogene Ltd. (Nasdaq: EVGN, TASE: EVGN) is a computational
biology company leveraging big data and artificial
intelligence, aiming to revolutionize the development of
life-science-based products by utilizing cutting-edge technologies
to increase the probability of success while reducing development
time and cost.
Evogene established three unique tech-engines -
MicroBoost AI, ChemPass
AI and GeneRator AI. Each tech-engine is
focused on the discovery and development of products based on one
of the following core components: microbes (MicroBoost AI),
small molecules (ChemPass AI), and genetic elements
(GeneRator AI).
Evogene uses its tech-engines to develop products through
strategic partnerships and collaborations, and its five
subsidiaries including:
1. Biomica Ltd.
(www.biomicamed.com) developing and advancing novel
microbiome-based therapeutics to treat human disorders powered
by MicroBoost AI;
2. Lavie Bio
Ltd. (www.lavie-bio.com) - developing and
commercially advancing, microbiome based ag-biologicals powered
by MicroBoost AI;
3. AgPlenus Ltd. (www.agplenus.com) -developing
next generation ag chemicals for effective and sustainable crop
protection powered by ChemPass AI;
4. Canonic
Ltd. (www.canonicbio.com) – developing medical
cannabis products based on decoding plant genetics for optimized
therapeutic effect powered by GeneRator AI;
and
5. Casterra Ag Ltd. (www.casterra.co)–
developing and marketing superior castor seed varieties producing
high yield and high-grade oil content, on an industrial scale for
the biofuel and other industries powered by GeneRator
AI.
For more information, please visit: www.evogene.com.
About The Kitchen Hub:
Founded in 2015 by the Strauss-Group as a part of the Israeli
Innovation Authority incubators' program, The Kitchen is a seed
investor and a FoodTech focused incubator.
The Kitchen addresses global food challenges by harnessing
Israel's renowned innovation
ecosystem. We strive to make the world's food chain more
productive, affordable, sustainable and healthy by investing in and
nurturing cutting-edge technology startups.
Some examples of our areas of interest are: improved
agricultural processes, supply chain technologies, efficient food
processing, sensors for food safety and quality, prolonged shelf
life and reduction of food spoilage, smart packaging, ingredients
and products with new health benefits, improved nutritional
profiles, reduction of environmental footprint and more.
In addition to a capital investment, the incubator provides the
portfolio companies with benefits such as: close mentorship from
the incubator's team; access to expertise and know-how from within
the Strauss-Group and its partners; connections with global F&B
companies and access to international investors.
Our vision is: Better Industry; Better Food; Better World
We believe that technological innovation can overcome the
challenges of the food industry and are teaming up with the best
FoodTech entrepreneurs to turn our vision into a
reality.
More on http://www.TheKitchenHub.com/
About Finally Foods Ltd:
Finally Foods Ltd. is a new AI-driven company specializing in
molecular farming for the food sector. It was co-founded by
Dafna Gabbay, CEO, a seasoned
entrepreneur, and Dr. Basia J. Vinocur, CTO an expert in
agricultural biotechnology. The company was formed in collaboration
with Evogene Ltd., a leading computational biology company and The
Kitchen FoodTech Hub (TKH), the FoodTech incubator and the
investment arm of the Strauss Group. Finally Foods produces
animal-based proteins by modifying plants to serve as
"bioreactors", leveraging Evogene's AI technology. Its first target
protein is Casein.
More on http://www.finally-foods.com
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking statements"
relating to future events. These statements may be identified by
words such as "may", "could", "expects", "hopes" "intends",
"anticipates", "plans", "believes", "scheduled", "estimates",
"demonstrates" or words of similar meaning. For example, Evogene
and its subsidiaries are using forward-looking statement in this
press release when it discusses Finally Foods ability to produce
proteins and express them in plants, in a cost effective and
sustainable manner, Finally Foods seizure of a share in the
molecular farming sector. Such statements are based on
current expectations, estimates, projections and assumptions,
describe opinions about future events, involve certain risks and
uncertainties which are difficult to predict and are not guarantees
of future performance. Therefore, actual future results,
performance or achievements of Evogene and its subsidiaries may
differ materially from what is expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors, many of
which are beyond the control of Evogene and its subsidiaries,
including, without limitation, the current war between Israel and Hamas and any worsening of the
situation in Israel such as
further mobilizations or escalation in the northern border of
Israel and those
risk factors contained in Evogene's reports filed with the
applicable securities authority. In addition, Evogene and its
subsidiaries rely, and expect to continue to rely, on third parties
to conduct certain activities, such as their field-trials and
pre-clinical studies, and if these third parties do not
successfully carry out their contractual duties, comply with
regulatory requirements or meet expected deadlines, Evogene and its
subsidiaries may experience significant delays in the conduct of
their activities. Evogene and its subsidiaries disclaim any
obligation or commitment to update these forward-looking statements
to reflect future events or developments or changes in
expectations, estimates, projections and assumptions.
Investor Relations Contact
Rachel Pomerantz Gerber I Head of
Investor Relations at Evogene
rachel.pomerantz@evogene.com I Tel: +972-8-9311901
[1]
https://www.feedandadditive.com/global-alternative-proteins-market/#:~:text=The%20highest%20estimate%20of%20the,the%20forecast%20period%202023-2030
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SOURCE Evogene
