MAASH, a Brussels-based fermentation company specialising in the development and production of mycoproteins for the food industry, has secured a €12.15 million funding package combining equity investment and public financing.
The package includes a €5.85 million equity raise from five new investors: Ambra Capital, InvestPro, Bpifrance, Amorçage Industriel, Nordzucker and Tereos. It also includes €4.3 million in support from Bpifrance through the Première Usine programme and a €2 million Bpifrance loan through its Prêt d’Amorçage Investissement, supported by France 2030.
Frédéric Van Gansberghe, co-founder and Chairman of the board, said, “Our industrial fermentation experience, combined with the arrival of our new partners, will allow us to move quickly through our technical and commercial scale-up.”
Founded in 2021 by Frédéric Van Gansberghe and Gaspard Gilbert, MAASH is a BioTech startup focused on developing mycoprotein as a sustainable ingredient for the food industry.
According to the company, it precisely controls fermentation parameters such as temperature, pH, and oxygen supply to ensure optimal yield while preserving the mycoprotein’s functional and sensory qualities. It collaborates with companies to “enhance” its products by incorporating its mycoprotein, reducing meat content by 10 to 30%, or developing vegan and vegetarian options.
The company states that with LoCylia™, its fermentation-derived mycoprotein, it is positioning itself as a B2B ingredient supplier for the food industry.
MAASH also revealed that it is moving from project development to execution, two years after acquiring the former Metabolic Explorer site in Carling-Saint-Avold.
The Belgian startup has also appointed Samah Garringer as its CEO, who will join the company in September 2026. She has more than 25 years of international experience spanning food, ingredients, nutrition and industrial scale-up, and has held executive roles at DSM, Avril Group and ENOUGH Foods.
Samah Garringer, incoming CEO, said, “I am thrilled to join MAASH at this pivotal moment. Together with the team and our new partners, we will deliver the pre-industrial project, accelerate commercial rollout and build a resilient, cost-competitive platform to bring nutritious, sustainable mycoprotein to market at scale.”
As part of this transition, Gaspard Gilbert, MAASH’s current Managing Director and co-founder, will take on the role of Chief Commercial Officer, leading the company’s commercial relationships and strategic partnerships, while also serving as acting Chief Finance Officer.
Gilbert said, “Acquiring the former Metex site gave us an industrial base. Over the past two years, we have worked to turn that base into a credible and executable project. This financing marks an important step in that journey: we now have the partners, resources and leadership in place to move from preparation to industrial deployment. The appointment of Samah Garringer as CEO reflects the same ambition – giving MAASH the industrial, human and commercial capabilities it needs to scale.”
The funding will support the launch of MAASH’s 12 m³ demonstration plant in Carling-Saint-Avold, France, and prepare the company for further scale-up to 10,000 tons of annual industrial production.