Manufacturers in cosmetics, food, and coatings are facing regulatory challenges and supply chain risks related to titanium dioxide and fossil-based materials. There are a few bio-based alternatives that can match their performance at scale. At the same time, consumers want cleaner, more sustainable ingredients, adding to the pressure.
Seprify offers high-performance cellulose ingredients, validated at TRL 7-9, that can directly replace titanium dioxide. The Swiss biomaterials company recently raised €13.4M in a Series A round led by Una Terra Early Growth Fund, with Inter IKEA Group, Zürcher Kantonalbank, Cambridge Enterprise Ventures, Kickfund, and a roster of circular-economy backers joining.
This funding will help scale production to hundreds of tonnes per year through established partners. It will also help more than 100 customers move from pilot testing to commercial purchasing.
“The company has now raised more than €22 million in total funding to date,” shares Lukas Schertel, co-founder & CEO of Seprify, with TFN.
Turning cellulose into next-gen ingredients that rival synthetics
Seprify was co-founded by Lukas Schertel and Oliver Polcher, recognising cellulose as an underutilised resource for industrial applications. Using deep materials science expertise, they focused on substituting for titanium dioxide due to regulatory risks (EU scrutiny) and sustainability gaps in legacy supply chains.
“Seprify was founded to address a growing industrial need for high-performance alternatives to widely used materials with significant environmental or regulatory pressure, particularly titanium dioxide and certain fossil-derived functional additives. The company emerged from academic research into light management and structural materials,” shares Schertel.
Schertel adds, “By designing cellulose microstructures that scatter light efficiently, Seprify’s technology enables plant-derived particles to deliver optical functions such as whitening, opacity and UV boosting. The goal from the beginning was not simply to develop a new ingredient, but to build a scalable materials platform capable of delivering functional performance across multiple industries while integrating into existing manufacturing processes.”
Seprify’s platform employs proprietary processes to engineer cellulose into application-ready grades: SilvaLuma™ (100% natural SPF booster for suncare), SilvaAlba™ (TiO2 replacement for food whitening), and SilvaFolia™ (for coatings and inks). Available as powders or liquids, these integrate seamlessly into existing production lines, enabling energy-efficient manufacturing.
Schertel elaborates, “Seprify’s technology focuses on engineering the microstructure of cellulose so that it can perform optical and functional roles typically delivered by mineral or fossil-derived materials. By precisely controlling particle structure and size distribution, the technology enables cellulose particles to scatter light efficiently. This allows plant-derived materials to deliver properties such as whitening, opacity or UV boosting in formulations where these functions are traditionally provided by materials such as titanium dioxide.”
Seprify stands out with its TRL 7-9 maturity, strong intellectual property covering processes and products, and ability to scale with manufacturing partners. Unlike cellulose startups focused on textiles (such as Orange Fibre) or biofuels (such as Ensyn), Seprify targets high-value industrial markets.
It also goes beyond broader biomaterials companies such as Sulapac (which uses wood composites) by offering direct alternatives to titanium dioxide that meet regulatory standards.
What about diversity?
On diversity, Schertel notes, “Seprify is a multidisciplinary team combining expertise in materials science, photonics, chemistry, and industrial scale-up. The company brings together researchers, engineers and commercial specialists with backgrounds across academia and industry. “
“Today, the team includes employees from more than 12 nationalities, with 50% female representation and approximately 30% of the team holding PhDs. As the company grows, building a diverse and international team remains an important priority,” he adds.
What’s next?
The €13.4M funding accelerates the commercial rollout, enabling production of hundreds of tonnes per year with partners. It supports formal supplier qualification with over 100 customers across cosmetics, food and pet food, and coatings, while securing early contracts.
In the long run, Seprify plans to develop industrial-scale engineering with the potential to replace gigatonnes of materials, expanding its platform into pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals.
“The long-term objective is to establish cellulose as a reliable, scalable functional material platform capable of replacing high-impact incumbent ingredients across multiple industrial value chains,” concludes Schertel.
