California cannabinoid producer Nalu Bio wants to raise the bar for cannabinoid production standards in the United States and elsewhere.
Today, the San-Francisco-based company announced that it raised $12 million in Series A funding to achieve its goal.
Intrinsic Capital Partners led the funding round with Golden Seeds, Sacramento Angels, L37 Ventures, and others.
Nalu Bio says it will use the funds to scale consumer product & therapeutics-focused cannabinoid production and accelerate growth.
The company says the funding follows Nalu Bio’s breakthrough in cost-effective tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV) synthesis.
CEO Caitlyn Krebs says Nalu Bio’s platform produces ultra-pure, cost-effective, non-hemp-derived cannabinoids, providing safer, more-reliable products that improve everyday life.
“Intrinsic’s belief in our chemistry-based approach and their leadership investing in cannabinoids and life sciences make them the ideal partner for us,” says Krebs. “This investment allows us to aggressively expand the business world-wide, own the category, and bring high quality cannabinoids to manufacturers who want cost-effective THC-free ingredients for their products.”
Nalu Bio has a cannabinoid synthesis approach that it created after its founding in 2019.
According to the company, the method utilizes organic non-hemp inputs and converts them into the desired cannabinoid ingredient.
Nalu Bio says it performs the entire process without the stigma of the plant.
The resulting cannabinoids are molecularly-identical to their naturally occurring equivalents, but cleaner.
The company says that the cannabinoids do not contain contaminants found in hemp-extracted cannabinoids.
Intrinsic Capital Managing Partner Howard Goodwin, M.D. says chemistry-based cannabinoid production is important for the market’s future.
“We believe that chemistry-based production of cannabinoids will play a significant role in the evolution of the cannabinoid market, and we have spent years looking for the ideal investment opportunity,” says Goodwin. “The team and the technology are top-notch and Nalu Bio is poised for large-scale commercial expansion and aggressive growth.”
Nalu Bio says it uses its patent-pending platform to produce a range of cannabinoids, including CBN, CBC, and CBD.
The company says it will continue to grow its scientific and commercial teams to match global market demand.