Recombia Bio

What Recombia Bio does

Recombia Biosciences is a U.S.-based metabolic engineering platform that engineers industrial microorganisms (yeast and bacteria) for fermentation-based production of biobased chemicals, proteins and enzymes, biofuels, food and feed ingredients, and natural products. Founded in 2019 by three Stanford researchers, the company operates a three-part platform: multiplex genome editing that simultaneously modifies multiple genomic targets with high accuracy, proprietary Donor DNA technology for error-free sequence replacement, and natural product biosynthetic pathway discovery capabilities. Its go-to-market is consultative B2B enterprise engagement, structured as custom metabolic engineering projects delivered through direct sales and a "Speak to Our Experts" contact model, with services sold as contract R&D rather than licensed products.

Recombia's commercial trajectory has been defined by its deepening alignment with Lesaffre Group. In October 2020 it formed a joint bioengineering platform with Lesaffre's LIST R&D arm, and in September 2022 Lesaffre completed a full acquisition, making Recombia a wholly-owned subsidiary that now distributes technology through Lesaffre's global biofoundry and commercial network. The first co-developed commercial product, Evolve Evergreen (a yeast-based bio-ethanol solution), was launched by Leaf by Lesaffre in January 2024. The company acquired Double Rainbow in 2023 and commissioned its Boston Labs headquarters in Bedford, Massachusetts in 2024, growing to 34 employees across sites in Brisbane, California and Bedford, Massachusetts.

The business is essentially a strategic R&D engine within Lesaffre's global fermentation stack. Recombia generates revenue through B2B strain engineering and biofoundry services (professional services model), with pricing opaque and quote-based. End markets span biobased chemicals, proteins and enzymes, natural products, bread yeast, extracts, feed, biofuels, distillers, and winemaking/brewing — all delivered through Lesaffre's distribution channels and Recombia's direct enterprise relationships. No public revenue, funding, or valuation data exists; the company's growth signal is visible in headcount expansion (7 in 2020 to 34 in 2024) and product launches rather than financial disclosure.

Name

Recombia Bio

Legal name

Recombia Biosciences

Website

https://recombia.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Recombia Biosciences is a U.S.-based metabolic engineering platform founded in 2019 by Stanford researchers that uses multiplex genome editing to engineer industrial yeast and bacteria for fermentation-based production of biofuels, enzymes, food ingredients, and biobased chemicals, operating as a wholly-owned Lesaffre subsidiary since 2022.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Metabolic Engineering Services

NAICS

Food Manufacturing (311)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Food And Kindred Products (2000)

akta.pro primary industry

Biological Formulation, Fermentation & Scale-Up Manufacturing (AFABAEAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cultures, Probiotics & Fermentation Ingredients (Starter Cultures, Yeast, Adjuncts) (CRADAOAI), Beverage Fermentation Cultures (Beer, Wine, Cider, Kombucha, Fermented Soft Drinks) (AFAJAJAC), Biofuels & Renewable Fuels Switching (Biomethane/RNG, Bio-oils, Sustainable Biomass) (EUABAJAD), Enzymes & Industrial Biotechnology Inputs (Enzymes, Microbial Strains, Fermentation Aids) (EUAAAIAL)

Keywords

• Metabolic engineering services
• Synthetic biology platform
• Genome editing technology
• Industrial strain engineering
• Microbial fermentation solutions

Headquarters

HQ city

Brisbane

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Contract R&D and Metabolic Engineering Services: B2B services model where Recombia engineers microorganisms for industrial clients. Revenue derived from custom fermentation organism development and optimization projects, likely structured as project-based or long-term contractual engagements.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Recombia Biosciences provides B2B metabolic engineering services that design and engineer industrial microorganisms (yeast and bacteria) for fermentation-based production of biobased chemicals, enzymes, biofuels, and food ingredients. The platform combines proprietary multiplex genome editing technology and natural product pathway discovery capabilities, delivered alongside Lesaffre's industrial biofoundry and biomanufacturing infrastructure. The company's first commercial product, Evolve Evergreen (a yeast solution for sustainable bio-ethanol), was co-developed with Leaf by Lesaffre.

Product overview

Recombia Biosciences operates as a metabolic engineering platform that unlocks the potential of microorganisms through advanced genetic engineering. The platform comprises three integrated capabilities: Multiplex Genome Editing (high-throughput DNA sequence modification), Natural Product Pathway Discovery (biosynthetic pathway engineering), and Lesaffre Biofoundry Services (industrial-scale biomanufacturing). The company delivers solutions across multiple sectors including natural products, proteins and enzymes, biobased chemicals, yeast for bread making, extracts, feed, biofuels, distillers, and winemaking and brewing. Evolve Evergreen, co-developed with Lesaffre subsidiary Leaf, represents their first commercial product targeting bio-ethanol applications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Lesaffre Biofoundry Services: Biofoundry services offered through the partnership with Lesaffre Group providing industrial organism development and fermentation solutions.

Products and services

• Multiplex Genome Editing
• Natural Product Pathway Discovery
• Lesaffre Biofoundry Services
• Evolve Evergreen The first product co-developed by Recombia and launched by Leaf by Lesaffre, targeting bio-ethanol innovation. A yeast-based solution for sustainable ethanol production. Targeted at biofuel and ethanol producers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Successfully launched Evolve Evergreen bio-ethanol product co-developed with Lesaffre

Named customers1 record

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability1 record

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• LesaffrecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 October 2020Joint venture established October 2020 creating a joint bioengineering platform between Recombia Biosciences and Lesaffre Institute of Science and Technology (LIST). The partnership combines Recombia's genome editing technologies with Lesaffre's fermentation and industrial biomanufacturing expertise. Lesaffre subsequently acquired Recombia in September 2022, deepening the strategic relationship into full integration.
• Lesaffre Institute of Science and Technology (LIST)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic and R&D arm of Lesaffre Group that co-developed the joint bioengineering platform with Recombia, providing scientific expertise and facilities for strain development and fermentation research.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Chr. Hansen (now Novonesis): Novonesis (formerly Chr. Hansen + Novozymes) is a global bioscience incumbent producing cultures, enzymes, and microbial solutions for food, agriculture, and health. Like Lesaffre, it is a major industrial fermentation incumbent that both partners with and competes against strain engineering platforms in the same verticals as Recombia.

Direct peers

• Codexis: Codexis engineers enzymes and microbial strains for pharmaceutical, food, and industrial applications using proprietary protein engineering platforms. Recombia overlaps directly in industrial enzyme production and protein/yeast strain engineering for commercial customers.
• Ginkgo Bioworks: Ginkgo Bioworks is a leading synthetic biology platform that engineers microorganisms for industrial customers across food, agriculture, and chemicals. Like Recombia, it offers B2B strain engineering services and operates a high-throughput biofoundry, but at significantly greater scale (cell engineering programs and Codebase).
• Zymergen (Ginkgo): Originally an independent synbio company, Zymergen was acquired by Ginkgo Bioworks and continues to provide automated strain engineering services. It overlaps with Recombia in combining genome editing, automation, and biofoundry-style services for industrial customers.
• Conagen: Conagen is a synthetic biology company that develops engineered microorganisms for producing food ingredients, flavors, fragrances, and specialty chemicals. It shares Recombia's fermentation-based, customer-funded strain engineering model and focus on bio-based ingredients.
• Amyris: Amyris engineers yeast strains to produce biobased ingredients, particularly in flavors, fragrances, cosmetics, and sweeteners. It is a direct competitor in yeast-based metabolic engineering for industrial ingredient production.

Emerging players

• Inscripta (now part of New England Biolabs): Inscripta developed automated genome editing platforms (Onyx) for industrial microbial engineering. It is now part of NEB, but its prior positioning as a multiplexed, automated strain engineering platform makes it comparable to Recombia's core offering.
• TeselaGen: TeselaGen provides software and data infrastructure for synthetic biology design-build-test workflows, including strain engineering process management. It is adjacent rather than directly competitive but overlaps in serving industrial synbio R&D teams.
• LanzaTech: LanzaTech engineers gas-fermenting microorganisms (Clostridium autoethanogenum) to convert industrial waste gases into fuels and chemicals. While focused on gas fermentation, it overlaps with Recombia in commercializing engineered microbial strains for sustainable industrial production.

Others

• Berkeley Lights (now PhenomeX): Berkeley Lights/PhenomeX provides automated cell screening and selection platforms used in microbial strain engineering workflows. It is an enabling technology provider for synbio service platforms like Recombia rather than a direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/recombiabio
• Facebookfacebook.com/RecombiaBio
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/recombiabio

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Recombia Bio