Category: Innovation Infrastructure | Published on 02/11/2022

How Alver is Revolutionising the Plant-based Food Industry with Microalgae

International companies creating the next generation of alternative proteins in the Greater Rotterdam-The Hague area

The protein transition is moving at a rapid pace and the Rotterdam-The Hague area has become a hub for companies working in the field across multiple types of proteins. The classic proteins, usually plant-based proteins, come from ingredients such as soy, peas, or whole grains like oats and quinoa. There are lesser known alternatives that can help propel the transition, while potentially being even healthier and more sustainable. Microalgae is a perfect example of an underrepresented protein with a disruptive potential, but it is often connected with its green colour and an intense smell and taste. With the work of companies like Alver, that perception, however, is quickly changing.

Alver is a Swiss founded food tech company striving to reduce European meat consumption with their innovative plant-based products made from microalgae. We sat down with Majbritt Byskov-Bridges, the co-founder of Alver to learn more about their innovative and high-quality products that are taking over the European food market from their new home in the Rotterdam-The Hague area.

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The Next Generation of Alternative Proteins

Back in 2012, Majbritt met Mine Uran at a women’s executive networking event in Rome. At first sight, the two women did not have much in common, as Majbritt worked in wealth management and Mine was Head of Alternative Proteins at Nestlé, but talking to each other left a mark. Years later in 2017, when Majbritt, who worked in wealth management, was confronted with clients asking for more sustainable, ethical and alternative meat funds, she remembered her conversation with Mine. “Already back in 2012, Mine said that we need to stop thinking about plant-based proteins and jump ahead to the next generation of alternative proteins. Microalgae,” Majbritt recalled. After Mine and Majbritt reconnected, Majbritt understood that Mine had already started the Alver journey and Majbritt left her job to join her.

Ever since, Alver has been developing high-protein chlorella algae, that are not only neutral in colour and taste, but also highly nutritious. What makes Chlorella such a valuable alternative is that it can be used in a variety of different foods. It can replace egg or chemical binders like E461s, methylcellulose and it grows much faster than the usual plant proteins. In general, the production requires far less resources as the fermentation processes can be easily scaled up and microalgae can contribute to a CO₂ reduction across the food industry. This year alone, Alver has been able to save over 400 tonnes of CO₂.

“Microalgae are a real superfood. They are rich in magnesium, potassium, zinc, vitamin B, omega fatty acids, and carotenoids”, Majbritt explained.”

– Majbritt Byskov-Bridges, Co-Founder at Alver World

Expanding Microalgae throughout Europe

Alver is the European leader when it comes to foods made of microalgae and has expanded their products from Switzerland into Germany, the Baltics, Scandinavia, the Netherlands, and soon to the UK. Earlier this year their team opened an office in The Hague to further accelerate the protein transition and the reduction of meat consumption in Europe. Their office is currently situated at Apollo 14 but their team hopes to soon move into Planet B.io, an ecosystem centre for startups and scale ups with multiple members working in the protein transition. Planet B.io is also a co-organizer of the Protein Port initiative together with the regional economic development agency InnovationQuarter and the potential for this ecosystem to push the protein transition forward is unparalleled. Being part of Planet B.io would give Alver access to a labspace and a network with more food companies working towards an alternative protein future. This way, their team can continue developing new ways to incorporate chlorella in ways that consumers are not required to change their habits or the taste and mouthfeel they want and love.

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Scaling up from The Hague

Moving to the Netherlands seemed to be an obvious step for Alver as “the Netherlands is known to be advanced regarding alternative proteins and there are already many existing partnerships with food companies. It seemed like a very attractive space to scale up”, Majbritt said.

InnovationQuarter and The Hague Business Agency have supported Majbritt and her team with introductions within the ecosystem to potential partners and investors. As part of ImpactCity, Majbritt has been surprised by the willingness of people to help and connect her to new people which is even more necessary as their team has experienced challenges being a Swiss entity setting up an office in the EU. The Alver team is excited about taking this step and is currently looking for more sales people, especially here in the Netherlands.

In the next few years, Alver will continue working with universities and other partners to bring everyone’s knowledge together and develop new innovations for the use of microalgae. As they have crossed a million euros in sales, Majbritt hopes to further expand their products across europe. Raising awareness about how microalgae are a healthier alternative and also more sustainable will play an important role in the future scaling processes for Alver. Luckily, they already have a head start by being located in the Rotterdam-The Hague area.

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