Boost Biomes announces extension of Series A with new investor, Universal Materials Incubator

BRISBANE, Calif., Dec. 8, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- US-based food and agriculture biotech startup Boost Biomes and Japanese investment company Universal Materials Incubator (UMI) announced today the close of $2M extended series A equity round.  The first close of the round was led by Yara International, the global crop nutrition company, with participation from Viking Global Investors, Y Combinator and others.  The total series A round exceeded $7.5M.

The additional funding will enable Boost to further develop its product pipeline and technology platform, including generating new products in areas such as crop protection, crop nutrition, food safety and preservation, and soil health.

Boost Biomes' CEO and cofounder, Jamie Bacher, said, "Boost's platform technology is hard at work.  We are developing an exciting portfolio of advanced microbial products for use in food production and after harvest.  We'll look for opportunities to work with strategic or distribution partners to develop and commercialize these novel products.  Working with UMI to advance these opportunities in Japan and the region will be a huge advantage for Boost."

"UMI's decision to invest in Boost comes from our evaluation of their team, technology, and the associated market opportunities.  We believe that Boost's platform generates a unique data set that can be exploited for far superior products with many diverse microbiome applications in food and agriculture.  These are critical areas to achieve food security and promote sustainable agriculture. We also expect Boost's huge potential on other areas where microbiomes are utilized" said Yota Hayama and Hiroaki Goto, both are UMI's venture capitalists.

Boost technology enables an advanced understanding of microbial interactions, which Boost uses to engineer novel microbial products that expand the range options to improve crop yield and quality, in traditional and indoor or non-soil farms; as well as extending the shelf-life and safety of food products.

About Boost Biomes, Inc.

Boost Biomes is developing new products to address critical needs in food and agriculture, to increase crop yields and improve post-harvest food quality and safety.  Underlying the products is a proprietary microbiome technology platform that enables Boost a unique understanding of interactions within microbiomes, leading to superior products that are effective, safe, organic and natural.  For more information, visit http://boostbiomes.com/

About Universal Materials Incubator

UMI is a venture capital focusing on chemicals and material science. It was established in October 2015 based on the vision of "Strengthening Japan's technological capabilities by fostering outstanding material and chemical companies and cultivating an industry structure that can compete in the global area." Currently operating the UMI 1 & 2 Limited Partnership, with 19.5 billion yen ($180 M) in committed capital (from January 2016). For further information please visit www.umi.co.jp/en/

For more information, please contact:

Boost Biomes: Julie Rice, Director of Operations
E-mail: [email protected] 
UMI: Yota Hayama, Hiroaki Goto
E-mail: [email protected]

SOURCE Boost Biomes

Related Links

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