Traction for sustainable healthcare plastics – BIOVOX successfully closes €2.2 million seed round

September 25, 2024

• BIOVOX, the pioneer of sustainable bioplastics for medical applications has closed its €2.2 million seed round led by HTGF.
• The company produces and supplies medically safe and sustainable plastics that meet current and future standards for the healthcare sector.
• BIOVOX’s bio-based plastics reduce the carbon footprint by 50 to 85% compared to conventional plastics and can be used in a wide range of medical applications.

Darmstadt, Germany – 25 September 2024 – BIOVOX GmbH, the Darmstadt, Germany-based company pioneering sustainable bioplastics for medical applications, today announced the successful closing of its €2.2 million seed round. The round was led by High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) with significant participation from Beteiligungs-Managementgesellschaft Hessen mbH (BMH) and a group of existing and new investors including Auxxo, Otto Braun, Petra Wörwag and Katharina Klohe as well members of the business angel club better ventures and Business Angels FrankfurtRheinMain. The investment will enable BIOVOX to accelerate the development and production of its portfolio of innovative bioplastic solutions designed to revolutionise the healthcare industry.

Transforming healthcare towards sustainability

The healthcare sector is – with 4.4% – a major contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions, with plastics in healthcare alone responsible for carbon emissions comparable to the total emissions of a Sweden or Denmark. Sterile single use medical products are essential for maintaining high hygiene standards and availability at a reasonable price point, yet healthcare cannot continue with the linear economy based on fossil resources, overstepping the boundaries of a healthy planet and therefore leading to more health problems in the long run.

BIOVOX is addressing this critical issue of a high-carbon linear economy in healthcare by having developed the world’s first sustainable medical-grade bioplastics for devices and packaging. The company produces and supplies biocompatible and sustainable plastics that meet the highest regulatory standards of today and tomorrow.

These innovative materials are bio-based, tested for biocompatibility, were developed and manufactured under BIOVOX’ ISO 13485-certified medical quality management system, and reduce the lifecycle carbon footprint by 50 to 85% compared to conventional virgin fossil plastics. BIOVOX’s line of bioplastics is designed for a wide range of medical, pharmaceutical and laboratory applications, including consumables, disposables, packaging, surgical instruments, and endoscopy devices. The materials meet the most stringent regulatory standards, ensuring high quality and patient safety.

Founded in 2021, BIOVOX is at the forefront of the sustainable healthcare market, setting the standard for bioplastic compounds made from renewable resources. More than 50 customers, including many segment leaders in medical devices, are working with BIOVOX to develop green healthcare solutions. One customer has already launched its first product using BIOVOX materials.

The newly secured funding enables BIOVOX headed by founders and mechanical engineers CEO Julian Lotz, CTO Vinzenz Nienhaus and COO Carmen Rommel to scale operations by establishing a proprietary technical centre and to expand the sales and customer success team.

With the support of our new and existing investors, we will scale the organisation to cater to all the customers currently waiting for our sustainable materials. Our pioneering products have already created a strong brand and a rich pipeline. Now we have the financial means to support our customers even better in developing a more environment friendly product range ready for the circular economy. Let’s create full traction for sustainable healthcare plastics.

Dr.-Ing. Julian Lotz, CEO of BIOVOX GmbH

With BIOVOX, we are funding a team of visionaries whose technological brilliance and deep understanding of regulatory affairs are revolutionising the development of sustainable plastics for the life sciences industry. Not only do they speak the customers’ language, but they have validated their solutions through numerous successful pilot projects and have already brought a product to market. Their contribution to reducing the carbon footprint in healthcare will be immense and we at HTGF are proud to support such a technology for a better environment and make it commercially successful.

Tilmann Petersen, Investment Manager at HTGF

About BIOVOX GmbH
BIOVOX GmbH is the trailblazer in the development of sustainable medical grade bioplastics. The company’s mission is to lead the way in providing high-quality, low-carbon and biocompatible materials for the healthcare industry, according to the VDI 2017 standard. BIOVOX’s innovative bioplastics can be used in a wide range of medical applications, offering a sustainable alternative to conventional plastics and ensuring patient safety. www.biovox.systems

Media contact
Dr.-Ing. Julian Lotz, CEO BIOVOX GmbH
Email: be-green@biovox.systems
http://www.biovox.systems

About BMH
Beteiligungs-Managementgesellschaft Hessen mbH (“BMH”), based in Wiesbaden, Germany, was founded in 2001 and is a subsidiary of the Landesbank Hessen-Thüringen Girozentrale (Helaba), the joint state bank of the German states of Hesse and Thuringia. As a mid-sized investment and venture capital organization, BMH combines public investment interests and financing instruments for early-stage, growth and medium-sized businesses in Hesse. BMH currently manages six investment funds with a volume of more than EUR 200 million. Since its founding, BMH has invested in more than 500 companies. BMH’s focus areas of investment: Software/Analytics; Fintech/Insuretech; Life Science; Deep Tech; IoT/IndustrialTech; Hardware/ IndustrialTech and Cleantech.
For more information, please visit www.bmh-hessen.de

About HTGF – High-Tech Gründerfonds  
HTGF is one of the leading and most active early-stage investors in Germany and Europe, financing start-ups in the fields of Deep Tech, Industrial Tech, Climate Tech, Digital Tech, Life Sciences and Chemistry. With its experienced investment team, HTGF supports start-ups in all phases of their development into international market leaders. HTGF invests in pre-seed and seed phases and can participate significantly in later-stage financing rounds. Across its funds, HTGF has over 2 billion euros under management. Since its inception in 2005, HTGF has financed more than 750 start-ups and successfully sold shares in more than 180 companies.  
Fund investors in the public-private partnership include the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Action, KfW Capital and 45 companies.  For more information, please visit HTGF.de or follow us on LinkedIn.  

Media contact 
High-Tech Gründerfonds Management GmbH 
Tobias Jacob, Senior Marketing & Communications Manager  
T.: +49 228 – 82300 – 121
t.jacob@htgf.de