Forbion announced that its Forbion BioEconomy Fund I has closed at its hard cap of €200 million, marking one of the most significant dedicated bioeconomy funds in Europe. The fund focuses on biotechnology-driven solutions that support planetary health and industrial sustainability, building on Forbion’s established expertise in life sciences and its track record of investing in scientific innovation.
The fund was launched in 2024 with an initial target of €150 million and received significant support from institutional investors across Europe and North America, including KfW Capital, Novo Holdings, Rentenbank, Aurae Impact, ABN AMRO Bank, and EIFO. The strategy focuses on supporting companies that utilize biological and green chemistry approaches to enhance environmental outcomes in large-scale supply-chain industries.
Forbion BioEconomy Fund I has already invested in five portfolio companies. These include eeden, which focuses on textile-to-textile recycling using green chemistry, Genomines, which applies plant biotechnology for metal extraction, SOLASTA Bio, which develops peptide-based alternatives to traditional pesticides, Novameat, which produces clean plant-based protein cuts, and PACT, which is advancing collagen-based biomaterial coating solutions for industrial uses.
The fund is expected to invest in 12 to 14 companies across Europe and North America. It targets businesses that have demonstrated a proof of concept and provide biology-based business-to-business solutions that can be cost-competitive or cost-advantaged compared to existing products. The market for biotech-enabled alternatives across food, agriculture, materials, and environmental technologies is projected to represent a multi-trillion-euro commercial opportunity over the coming decade.
Forbion notes that the BioEconomy Fund I aligns with its broader commitment to science-led investment and reflects a shift in capital toward market-ready sustainability technologies. The fund complements the firm’s broader investment platform, focusing on both human and planetary health.
KEY QUOTES:
“We are seeing a clear evolution in how investors approach climate and industrial innovation. Biotechnology is moving beyond healthcare to tackle global challenges in food, materials, and resource efficiency. The strong demand for Forbion BioEconomy Fund I reflects growing confidence that science-led solutions can deliver both environmental and financial value.”
Alexander Hoffmann, General Partner at Forbion
“Capital is shifting from software to science. With strong backing from leading institutional and strategic limited partners, we are excited to build a portfolio that leverages the power of biology and chemistry to deliver much-needed, commercially viable sustainable solutions for the planet.”
Joy Faucher, General Partner at Forbion
