Enifer's PEKILO mycoprotein appears in first European pet food brand

A Finnish biotech ingredient that spent years in validation studies just made its first appearance on a European pet food shelf. The brand that took it built an entire line around it rather than adding it as a secondary protein.

The ingredient supplier now has a reference customer

Enifer, a Finnish biotech company, placed its PEKILO mycoprotein in HenArt's LEVENDO dog food, a complete diet for adult and senior dogs that launched in the Netherlands and is now available through HenArt's online store and through specialist distribution partners in Europe and the UK. HenArt said it is making LEVENDO available to national pet retail chains, online pet retailers, and grocery retail partners throughout Europe.

PEKILO is a fermented fungal protein. Enifer describes it as highly digestible, with all essential amino acids plus naturally occurring beta-glucans, B vitamins, and spermidide. A 60-day canine feeding study found strong protein digestibility, good palatability, no negative effects on stool quality, and early indications of potential immune-support benefits, according to Enifer. The company is commissioning a facility with 3,000-ton annual capacity, targeting full commercial production in 2027.

HenArt created the fermentation blend and the recipe internally, then contracted production to existing European manufacturers. LEVENDO uses a gentle baking process instead of extrusion and meets FEDIAF standards for a complete and balanced everyday diet. HenArt said it is developing wet-food products using its TenderCraft technology with the same fermentation blend.

The alt-protein field now has another positioning option

LEVENDO enters a premium dog food market increasingly shaped by nutritionally differentiated products. Market research cited in the announcement valued the global dog food market at $48.1 billion in 2025. A 2025 international survey covering more than 2,600 dog owners found that among respondents considering alternative diets, 85% ranked nutritional adequacy as the most important factor in a purchase decision.

For alternative proteins, that puts the burden on digestibility and amino acid profile, not on the sustainability story alone. Mycoprotein sits in a different regulatory and consumer-perception space than insect meal: it is fermented fungal protein, closer in process to how yogurt or sourdough is made than to black soldier fly larvae. Brands get a novel-protein story without the compliance risk or the customer confusion that insect-based SKUs sometimes carry.

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Our read: the first brand is the proof point the next ten will cite

Enifer spent years showing that PEKILO could deliver on nutrition and palatability in controlled studies. LEVENDO is the shift from ingredient validation to commercial formulation, and that is the milestone ingredient suppliers need to cross before buyers take them seriously. Simo Ellilä, Enifer's CEO, said the launch "shows that PEKILO performs in formulation and production," and that is the line a rep will quote when pitching the next brand.

For HenArt, fermented protein becomes a premium differentiator in a crowded field. Henk Verhoeven, HenArt's founder, said dog owners are looking for more choice without compromising on nutrition, quality, or enjoyment, and PEKILO was "a key part of making that possible." The name LEVENDO references leaven, the culture used to start sourdough bread, and levend, the Dutch term for alive. The fermentation story is the brand story.

The pattern we're watching: ingredient suppliers that land one reference customer in premium retail tend to land more, because the first brand absorbs the formulation risk and the next ones get a working recipe to adapt. If LEVENDO holds shelf space and Enifer's facility with 3,000-ton capacity comes online in 2027, mycoprotein moves from promising ingredient technology into a sourceable option for brands that want novel-protein positioning without going full insect.

What would prove us wrong: if supply constraints or formulation complexity keep PEKILO confined to a single premium brand, or if customer confusion around "fermented fungal protein" produces the same shelf friction insect meal sometimes does. The 85% of alt-protein buyers who prioritize nutritional adequacy will not care about the fermentation story if the price or the palatability does not hold.

What changes on the shelf this week

If you stock premium dog food and a customer asks about fermented protein or mycoprotein, LEVENDO is the first European retail answer you can point to. If you are a brand operator sourcing novel ingredients, Enifer now has a reference customer and European supply, which makes PEKILO a conversation worth having if you want alt-protein differentiation without insect meal.

For buyers evaluating the alt-protein category, watch whether HenArt's wet-food line using the same fermentation platform launches, and whether other brands start citing PEKILO in their formulations. The first brand is the proof point. The second and third brands show the ingredient is moving from niche to viable.

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