Applied Food Sciences Inc. (AFS) announced its equity investment and partnership with KÄÄPÄ Biotech, a Finland-based company specializing in fungi cultivation and research. With the functional mushroom market proliferating, AFS recognizes the need to collaborate with a partner dedicated to mycology and to supply the best quality ingredients for product formulators.
"We felt that we could strategically add value to KÄÄPÄ's unique functional mushroom supply chain," explains Loretta Zapp, CEO of AFS. "We are working on enhancing functionality as well as bringing greater awareness and access to the market."
This strategic partnership will expand AFS' primarily botanical portfolio with the addition of Nordic grown, functional mushroom extracts for use in food, beverages, and supplements. The launch will include six organic powdered mushroom extracts: Lion's Mane, Reishi, Cordyceps, Chaga, Shiitake, and Maitake. Each species naturally contains a variety of adaptogenic, antioxidant, nootropic, or other benefits, in line with AFS' commitment to innovating functional, organic ingredients.
The mushrooms are grown and cultivated at KÄÄPÄ Biotech in Finland, whose award-winning mycological technology and sustainable practices distinguish them from other suppliers. The extracts are made from mushroom fruiting bodies, free from excipients and grain fillers, and standardized to primary active compounds for optimal bioavailability. Finland is also one of the best places in the world to grow clean, healthy mushrooms.
"Finland has the cleanest air and cleanest water ever measured in the world," says Eric Puro, CEO and Co-Founder of KÄÄPÄ Biotech. "Mushrooms are strong bio-accumulators, so when we grow them, it's very important that their environment is clean." Puro explains that the quality of growing conditions has been a major issue in the market.
KÄÄPÄ Biotech is proud to grow its organic mushrooms using local birch wood, the national tree in Finland, instead of more common grain alternatives. Chaga overharvesting is another specific concern in the industry, but KÄÄPÄ Biotech adheres to Finland's strict regulations through progressive sustainability initiatives. By sourcing from its own managed forests near the Arctic Circle, it has responsibly become the world's largest supplier of wild-grown chaga.
AFS is working with KÄÄPÄ to supply mushroom ingredients that are USDA-certified organic, GRAS for safe use in approved food and beverage applications, and third-party tested for purity, ensuring they are free from contaminants and pathogens while improving validation methods.
