Emergence client, Delta, BC-based Mazza Innovation Ltd. has announced that it has raised $3 million from existing and new shareholders to fund an expansion of operations at its PhytoClean™ extraction facility.
The company has also announced the appointment of three highly experienced senior executives to manage rapidly expanding customer demand for its solvent-free ingredients and PhytoClean™ extraction process.
Mazza’s financing round was comprised of several institutional and individual investors, including Natural Products Canada (NPC), a not-for-profit corporation that streamlines commercialization of natural products.
“NPC is very proud to partner with Mazza and the other investors in this opportunity,” Shelley King, chief executive officer of Natural Products Canada told us. “Mazza has a proven technology, high-growth potential in an expanding market, and a service that can benefit the whole natural products industry.”
Mazza Innovation CEO Benjamin Lightburn told us that “Demand for Mazza’s botanical ingredients has been growing at a rapid pace since our opening last year, and experienced senior executives are now required to help us manage that growth. Enabled by this new financing, we’re pleased to welcome Chris Tower, Andry Tjahyana and Jim Pratt to our management team.
This financing will also fund a number of accompanying expansion programs in service, sales and marketing, and extraction capability. These changes will enable us to meet rising customer demand from around the world.”
Chris Tower, VP, Sales
Chris Tower joins the Mazza Innovation executive team as vice president of sales. Chris is a highly experienced, senior-level sales executive with an extensive range of skills and more than two decades’ sales and operations expertise in the U.S. and global ingredients market.
Andy Tjahyana, VP, Business Development
As vice president of business development, Andy Tjahyana will apply his more than 25 years’ experience in B2B business development. Drawn to innovative, first-to-market and advanced technology projects, Andy has held leading positions in a number of different industries, among them fast ferries, green building construction, and commercial stevia production.
Jim Pratt, President
After graduating from the University of Western Ontario with an MBA, Jim Pratt became an investment banker at a national investment dealer in Toronto. In his early work, he invested in Sepp’s Gourmet Foods, a food manufacturing company located in Vancouver. The company grew from $1 million in sales to $88 million, and was listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Jim held various positions over the years, including CFO and, ultimately, CEO.
About the PhytoClean™ Method
The PhytoClean™ Method water-based extraction process concentrates bioactives by pressurizing water at moderate temperatures; this greatly increases the water’s ability to solubilize bioactive compounds. In effect, this extraction process generally provides better yields and purities than industrial solvents. This environmentally friendly, clean process can be applied to extract a wide range of compounds for use in nutraceuticals, cosmetics, flavourings, colourings, pharmaceuticals, and functional foods and beverages. Mazza is working with a number of leading companies, among them Naturex, which has exclusively contracted Mazza’s award-winning cranberry extract production, and Chromadex, which is partnering in the expanded use of the PhytoClean™ Method. Read more here!
About Mazza Innovation
The science of healthy and clean plant extracts is the core of Mazza Innovation. The company’s PhytoClean™ Method – the earth-friendly way to extract bioactives from plants using only water – produces clean ingredients. Mazza specializes in extracting bioactive compounds including polyphenols, alkaloids, glycosides, and specialty carbohydrates – ideal ingredients for functional foods, dietary supplements, and beauty products. The company’s commitment to environmental integrity is driven by founder Dr. Giuseppe (Joe) Mazza’s vision to “produce the cleanest, greenest ingredients that benefit our health while preserving a healthy planet”. Click here to learn more about Mazza Innovation!