Speciality food ingredients provider Tate & Lyle has invested in Zymtronix, a US-based start-up company, which develops enzyme immobilisation technologies.

Zymtronix will use the investment to enhance its enzyme immobilisation platform and increase its production capacity.

Neither company has divulged any financial information.

Tate & Lyle innovation and commercial development president Andrew Taylor said: “Consumers worldwide are looking for healthier food and drink and we are proud to have the ingredients to help deliver just that.

“Improving lives for generations is at the heart of what we do, so we are excited to harness the power of Zymtronix’s enzyme immobilisation platform, which will make our manufacturing processes more efficient.

“The platform also has the potential to accelerate our ability to make our ingredient solutions accessible to more consumers.”

Zymtronix has designed its enzyme immobilisation platform to transform ingredient manufacturing by improving the productivity of biocatalysis.

The company will work with Tate & Lyle to advance the use of enzymes in the production of ingredients and to improve its cost-efficiency.

Additionally, retired Tate & Lyle chief technology officer Michael Harrison will join the Zymtronix board and support the company by sharing his experience in the food and beverage ingredients market.

Zymtronix founder and CEO-CTO Stéphane Corgié said: “We are delighted to announce Tate & Lyle as our first corporate partner. Their investment will enable us to further scale up our enzyme immobilisation technology, advance our processes, develop our own target ingredients and grow our team.”

In April 2018, Tate & Lyle completed a major expansion of its food application laboratory and customer-facing facilities in Mexico City.

With this laboratory expansion, Tate & Lyle intends to help food manufacturers develop products that meet consumers’ preferences for healthier food and beverages.