News · Agriculture & Food Systems

Ayana Bio and Zenfold buy Meati's fermentation equipment

By Startup Enthusiast · 15 September 2026

What they do

Ayana Bio is a Boston startup that grows plant cells in bioreactors to make high-value ingredients

It jointly bought 12 fermentation tanks from bankrupt Meati Foods for $75,000 with Zenfold Sustainable Technologies

The equipment will be shipped to India to set up a pilot facility for plant cell development by early 2027

Ayana Bio and Zenfold Sustainable Technologies jointly bought Meati Foods' fermentation equipment for $75,000.
The equipment includes 12 fermentation tanks, each 25,000 litres, plus seed trains, totalling 300,000 litres of capacity.
The equipment was originally worth several million dollars when installed at Meati's Colorado facility.
Meati Foods entered an Assignment for the Benefit of Creditors (ABC) process in May 2025 and laid off most staff by end of 2025.
Meati was later acquired by Meati Holdings, but its core fermentation assets remained unsold in an online auction in spring 2026.
Ayana Bio and Zenfold will decommission and ship the equipment to Zenfold's facilities in India.
The equipment will establish a dedicated Ayana Bio pilot facility for plant cell development, with a target operational date of first half of 2027.
The pilot capabilities will also be accessible to other plant cell companies.

Plant cell culture grows plant cells in bioreactors under controlled conditions to produce high-value compounds and secondary metabolites.
Advantages include consistent supply despite climate change, no pesticides, reduced land and water use, and higher yields.
The 25,000-litre fermenters provide an intermediate scale between pilot and Zenfold's existing 100,000-litre commercial runs, reducing technical and financial risk.
Ayana Bio's initial target ingredients include rosmarinic acid from sage, which is seen as a natural preservative alternative amid proposed bans on synthetic preservatives like BHA.

Ayana Bio is a Boston-based startup focused on plant cell culture to produce high-value ingredients.
It grows plant cells in bioreactors under controlled conditions to make compounds like rosmarinic acid, crocins, zeaxanthin, and lutein.
Initial target ingredients are rosmarinic acid from sage, crocins from saffron, and zeaxanthin and lutein from marigold.
Rosmarinic acid is positioned as a natural preservative alternative amid regulatory activity against synthetic preservatives.
Zenfold Sustainable Technologies is headquartered in Bengaluru with manufacturing and R&D in Bengaluru and Hyderabad.
Zenfold focuses on specialty and fine chemicals using green chemistry, biotransformation, and synthetic biology.
Zenfold already operates four 100,000-litre bioreactors.

Ayana Bio and Zenfold will decommission and ship the equipment to Zenfold's facilities in India.
The equipment will establish a dedicated Ayana Bio pilot facility for plant cell development.
The pilot facility is targeted to be operational by the first half of 2027.
The pilot capabilities will also be accessible to other plant cell companies.