Finnish food technology company
Onego Bio has signed a letter of intent to purchase 25.9 acres of land located within Jefferson County’s Food and Beverage Innovation Campus on the south side of the City of Jefferson.
Onego Bio plans to spend $777,000 to purchase the land, according to Jefferson County Board documents. The sale will be considered at Tuesday’s County Board meeting.
No additional information about the company's plans for the site were included in the county documents, and officials could not immediately be reached for comment.
Onego Bio is an international food ingredient company founded in February 2022 by Maija Itkonen, a leader in the alternative protein industry, and Christopher Landowski, a molecular biologist and expert in precision fermentation.
The duo joined forces to commercialize Bioalbumen, an animal-free egg protein that provides the same nutritional and functional benefits of egg whites, but without the environmental, ethical, safety and supply chain concerns. To date, Onego Bio has raised $70.8 million in funding to scale up production of Bioalbumen.
As the global demand for eggs continues to increase, Onego Bio says it is committed to "future-proofing" the supply of the world’s most popular protein.
The company also has a U.S. headquarters located in San Diego, which opened last month.
Representatives with Onego Bio did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday.
Jefferson County secured an anchor tenant for its 175-acre FaB Innovation Campus earlier this year, with Tokyo-based Kikkoman Corp. unveiling plans to build
a $560 million plant.
The FaB Innovation Campus is bordered by Highway 26 on the west and a Union Pacific railroad to the east, going as far north as Collins Road. The county has been evaluating the development potential of this property since 1994.
Food and beverage manufacturing in Jefferson County has seen significant growth in the past few years. Palermo’s began operations in the county
in 2023, Nestle Purina announced a $195 million expansion project at its Jefferson plant
in April, and Aztalan Bio announced in March plans to
invest $500 million in a former ethanol facility in Johnson Creek.
[caption id="attachment_589200" align="aligncenter" width="1252"]
This map shows plans for Jefferson County's new Food and Beverage Innovation Campus. (submitted)[/caption]
