Clean-label functional ingredients of the future

Australia’s Food and Beverage Accelerator is providing $740,000 matched co-investment to SeaStock Pty Ltd to help accelerate the commercialisation of clean-label ingredients designed as alternatives to synthetic additives.

SeaStock specialises in onshore algae cultivation and compound extraction. The funding will help with the development and certification of its RUBY SEA naturally derived red pigment (R-Phycoerythrin (R-PE)) extracted from sustainably cultivated Asparagopsis algae.

FaBA Director Dr Chris Downs said the project’s “approach to developing clean-label, functional ingredients aligns strongly with FaBA’s mission to accelerate the growth of Australia’s food and beverage manufacturing sector through science-led commercialisation”.

The FaBA-backed project will enable SeaStock to progress key research and development stages, including:

• Safe and scalable extraction of food-grade R-PE pigment (RUBY SEA)
• Identification and evaluation of commercially viable co-products
• Generation of data to support Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) and international regulatory approval
• Bench-scale to pilot-scale production to facilitate material transfer agreements and early customer validation.

SeaStock Co-Founder and Managing Director Tom Puddy said: “This support from FaBA will accelerate our ability to deliver high-purity, naturally derived functional ingredients for the food and beverage sector.”

The project supports SeaStock’s broader mission to lead in the production and extraction of algae-based compounds that replace synthetic additives with sustainable, high-performance alternatives.

“By replacing synthetic additives with natural compounds, SeaStock has the potential to help shape a more sustainable and health-conscious future for consumers,” Downs said.

Image credit: iStock.com/AnnaPustynnikova