NEW TECH FOODS

Kääpä Biotech, a Finnish start-up specialising in functional mushroom ingredients, has successfully secured a €9 million strategic investment.

The milestone will contribute to the company’s growth plans in the global nutraceuticals market, accelerating its mission to bring premium, traceable and clinically validated functional mushroom ingredients to the forefront of global wellness and health.

Global agri-food tech fund manager PeakBridge led the investment round, together with food-tech venture capital fund Zintinus.

The capital will enable Kääpä to increase production capacity, expand vertical integration, scale operations, strengthen the market position of its NordRelease ingredients and meet surging demand from international consumers across the wellness, nutrition and supplement sectors.

Eric Puro, CEO and co-founder of Kääpä Biotech, said: “The functional mushroom market continues to expand rapidly, with the sector fuelled by increasing customer demand for high-quality, trustworthy and science-backed functional mushroom products”.

“We are overjoyed by the strengthening relationship with PeakBridge, who invested in us earlier this year. In addition to the strategic partnership and funding, PeakBridge’s tailored value-add programmes for portfolio companies are a cornerstone of their partnership approach, guided by a team with deep food industry expertise.”

Gali Artzi, partner and CTO at PeakBridge, commented: “Kääpä Biotech exemplifies what we look for in this space: vertical integration that addresses real supply chain vulnerabilities, rigorous bioactive standardisation and a European base that cuts dependence on Asia's concentrated production”.

“Functional mushrooms represent more than a wellness trend; they're a convergence of centuries of traditional use, growing clinical evidence and modern extraction science that delivers measurable health benefits. Kääpä is a true sector leader and we’re thrilled to extend our support into this next chapter.”

In September 2025, Kääpä unveiled a new mushroom cultivation facility in Paimio, Finland, expanding its production and R&D capabilities. In June 2025, it opened an additional cultivation site in Salo, Finland, further strengthening its capacity to meet growing demand for Nordic-origin, premium functional mushroom ingredients.