S/O to Marc Violo's Fungi Industry Map, founder of MycoStories - as an homage we've identified the fast-growing fungi focused companies. Using Specter’s proprietary data platform, this landscape identifies 290+ companies leading the charge across four pivotal categories: Food, Materials, Health, and Soil.
From mycelium meats and fermentation-first proteins to biodegradable materials, psychedelic therapies, and soil-restoring microbes, this landscape captures the full breadth of how fungi are transforming industries. It’s not just sustainability — it’s platform biology in action. No hype. It's a signal-rich, data-backed view of an ecosystem moving from fringe to fundamental.
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Food
Hedgehog (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 1965)
Hedgehog produces high-quality, locally grown mushrooms using innovative technology. Founded by Jamie Balsillie and Wilson Ruotolo. In Early Stage stage, backed by UpHonest Capital, Collaborative Fund, Kahlil Lalji, Lee Redden, Pear VC, Haystack, Soma Capital, Great Circle Ventures, Y Combinator, and Nate Storey, with a total funding of $12.78m. Last raised on 2024-08-30 (series Unknown). Top Tier Investors, Web Traffic Surge, No Recent Funding. Based in Palo Alto, California, United States.
Chromologics (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 7142)
Chromologics develops natural colorants using a fungal fermentation platform for various industries. Founded by Anders Odum, Andreas Laustsen, Gerit Tolborg, and Thomas Ostenfeld Larsen. In Pre-seed / Seed stage, backed by Nordic Foodtech VC, Novo Holdings, Vaekstfonden, Döhler Ventures, and Blue Horizon, with a total funding of $14.68m. Last raised on 2023-03-06 (Seed). Top Tier Investors, Web Traffic Surge. Based in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Sylvan (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 248427)
Sylvan is the world's largest producer of mushroom spawn, serving over 65 countries, founded in 1946. In Late Stage stage, previously owned by Greenyard and now backed by Novo Holdings. Last round was Private Equity on 2025-04-02. Top Tier Investors, Strong Headcount Growth, Recent Funding, Media Spotlight. Based in Kittanning, Pennsylvania, United States.
Meati (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 320521)
Meati offers nutrient-rich mycelium-based steaks and cutlets as a sustainable meat alternative. Founded by Justin Whiteley and Tyler Huggins. In Growth Stage stage, backed by a wide investor syndicate including Revolution Growth, Acre Venture Partners, Chipotle Cultivate Next, Bond, and CPP Investments, with $374.47m total funding. Last raised on 2024-05-08 (series c). Top Tier Investors, Strong Social Growth. Based in Boulder, Colorado, United States.
Materials
Notpla (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 176)
Notpla creates sustainable packaging solutions from seaweed and plants to replace single-use plastics. Founded by Pierre Paslier and Rodrigo García González. In Early Stage, backed by investors like Temasek Trust Capital, Horizons Ventures, Astanor Ventures, and The Schmidt Family Foundation. Raised $26.3m, most recently on 2024-09-24 (series a). Top Tier Investors, Web Traffic Surge, Strong Social Growth. Based in London, United Kingdom.
altM (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 22321)
altM engineers waste biomass into sustainable chemicals and materials. Founded by Apoorv Garg, Harshad Velankar, and Yugal Raj Jain. In Pre-seed / Seed stage with $3.5m in grant and early-stage backing from Omnivore, Theia Ventures, and Thai Wah Ventures. Last raised on 2024-10-13. Strong Headcount Growth. Based in Bengaluru, India.
MycoWorks (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 318990)
MycoWorks creates sustainable materials using Fine Mycelium™, a premium non-animal alternative to leather. Founded by Eddie Pavlu, Philip Ross, and Sophia Wang. In Growth Stage, raised $37.1m from Novo Holdings, Valor Equity, Tony Fadell, Natalie Portman, SK Networks, and others. Last raised on 2024-07-09 (series d). Strong Headcount Growth, Strong Social Growth. Based in Emeryville, California, USA.
Ecovative Design (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 356874)
Ecovative Design grows sustainable materials using innovative mycelium technology. Founded by Eben Bayer and Gavin McIntyre. In Late Stage, backed by Viking Global, 3M New Ventures, and FootPrint Coalition. Grant raised on 2025-03-27. Recent Funding and News Traction. Based in Albany, New York, USA.
Health
Biohm Technologies (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 26216)
Biohm Technologies offers innovative microbiome solutions for digestive health through Mycohsa™ and gut health testing. Founded by Afif Ghannoum. In Early Stage, backed by SparkFood, VTC Ventures, Vanterra Capital, and others with $13m in total funding. Last raised on 2025-04-02 (series b). Recent Funding and News Spotlight. Based in Cleveland, Ohio, USA.
DIRTEA (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 57109)
DIRTEA offers functional mushroom-based drinks for energy, immunity, and focus. Founded by Simon Salter. In Pre-seed / Seed stage, backed by Bear Grylls and Zeeshaan Shah. Last round raised on 2024-06-14 (Undisclosed amount). Strong Social Growth. Based in London, United Kingdom.
RYZE Superfoods (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 323478)
RYZE Superfoods sells mushroom coffee with health benefits and no caffeine side effects. Founded by Andree Werner and Rashad Hossain. In Growth Stage, raised a $2.15m seed round from PS27 Ventures, last round was a series a in 2023-01-01. Strong Social and Headcount Growth. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Novogaia (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 611658)
Novogaia leverages machine learning to discover novel natural products from fungi for various industries. Founded by David Kubánek and Tess Bevers. Raised an undisclosed amount at an accelerator/incubator in 01-01-2024. No funding records available. Based in San Francisco, California, USA.
Soil
Mycomine (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 3777)
Mycomine offers sustainable solutions for environmental pollution using mycelium-based bioremediation. Participated in Sting's accelerator. In Pre-seed / Seed stage with no disclosed funding. Last raised via non-equity assistance on 2022-09-06. Headcount and Web Traffic Surge. Based in Stockholm, Sweden.
Sundew (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 380621)
Sundew develops biological products to address aquatic ecosystem challenges, such as parasite control and water restoration. Founded by Andy Gardiner, Jørgen Hansen, and Neil Goldsmith. In Growth Stage, backed by The Yield Lab, Novo Nordisk Foundation, SOSV, Vaekstfonden, and others. Raised ~$5.78m, last round on 2024-04-30 (series b). Based in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Rhizocore Technologies (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 11990)
Rhizocore Technologies enhances tree planting success with locally adapted mycorrhizal fungi. In Pre-seed / Seed stage, backed by ReGen Ventures, Nucleus Capital, Collaborative Fund, Grok Ventures, and others. Raised ~$5.2M, most recently 2024-03-02 (accelerator/incubator) and 2023-03-28 (seed). Based in Edinburgh, United Kingdom.
Quorum Earth (🌟 Specter - Global Rank: 94808)
Quorum Earth develops safe pesticides using the power of the fungal kingdom. Founded by Chris Kantrowitz, Jeff Rosenthal, and Jonathan Webb. In Pre-seed / Seed stage, backed by SOSV and IndieBio. Last raised on 2024-11-21 (Seed). Based in New York City, USA.
Strategic Outlook
The fungal economy is evolving from niche biomaterial experiments into a robust platform layer for sustainable transformation across food, materials, soil, and health:
- Alt-Protein Innovators like Meati and MycoWorks are scaling proprietary mycelium technologies to replace conventional animal proteins and leathers, proving that fungi-based scaffolds can deliver texture, nutrition, and scalability at industrial levels.
- Material Engineers such as Notpla and Ecovative Design are replacing plastics and foams with fungi- and seaweed-derived substrates—offering biodegradable, high-performance alternatives now used in packaging, textiles, and insulation.
- Soil & Bioremediation Platforms like Mycomine and Sundew are leveraging mycelial networks and microbial products to remediate soil and aquatic environments, positioning fungi as core to circular bioeconomies and regenerative agriculture.
- Functional Health Startups including Biohm Technologies and DIRTEA are tapping into consumer wellness trends with clinically-backed mushroom-based products—from gut microbiome modulation to cognitive performance enhancement.
Key Takeaways
- Fungal platforms are emerging as climate-aligned infrastructure—reducing emissions, regenerating ecosystems, and displacing petrochemical incumbents with scalable biomanufacturing.
- Vertically integrated players who combine fermentation tech, supply chains, and consumer distribution (e.g. Meati, MycoWorks) are gaining traction with late-stage capital and national retailers.
- Public policy tailwinds—from EU Green Deal to USDA bioeconomy grants—are catalyzing R&D and procurement, especially in sustainable materials and soil restoration.
- Investors are backing companies that can productize quickly, align with ESG metrics, and operate across both industrial B2B and consumer-facing B2C channels.
🔹 Explore the full Fungal Economy Landscape →
These insights are just the beginning. Discover 1,000+ more Fungal innovators and emerging trends on Specter.
