Human-milk bioactive proteins are difficult to obtain safely and at scale for nutrition products.
R&D Focus
Precision-fermented human milk proteins
Innovative Solution
Helaina is a biotechnology company that produces milk-equivalent baby formula to offer breast milk alternatives. It produces bioactive proteins through fermentation to offer a new category of functional food products with immune benefits and nutritional options closest to breast milk.
Solution Effectiveness
Company reports effera® reduced inflammatory signaling by 63% in ex vivo immune-cell studies and showed up to 4x better uptake than bovine lactoferrin; final product purity exceeds 99%.
Helaina is a biotechnology company that produces milk-equivalent baby formula to offer breast milk alternatives. It produces bioactive proteins through fermentation to offer a new category of functional food products with immune benefits and nutritional options closest to breast milk. Its technology platform replicates functional proteins found in the human body, making them available as new nutrients.
Products
Product
effera® – bio-identical human lactoferrin produced by precision fermentation for supplements and functional foods.
Star Product
effera® – Helaina’s first commercial bio-identical human protein ingredient.
Demo Product or Complete Product?
Complete B2B ingredient – effera® reached metric-ton manufacturing scale and entered multiple consumer products in 2025.
Future Plan
Market Expansion
Transitioned from R&D to global commercial supply, with 75,000-liter production scale and launches across women’s health, active nutrition, gut health and longevity.
Investment Funding
$45M Series B (2024); company reports more than $83M raised in total.
M&A and Collabs
Collab
Nestlé – multi-year strategic innovation collaboration on bioactive proteins for early-life nutrition (2026).
Collab
Consumer brand partners include Kroma Wellness, Desert Harvest, Levelle, Healthgevity and others using effera® in finished products.
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