Solazyme

Solazyme was a biotechnology company founded on March 31, 2003, by Jonathan S. Wolfson and Harrison Dillon, who met at Emory University. They launched the company from a garage in Palo Alto with the initial mission to produce renewable energy and transportation fuels from microalgae. Wolfson, who served as CEO, brought a background in finance, business, and law, having previously co-founded a financial services software company. The company's core technology revolved around a proprietary fermentation process, growing microalgae in the dark in large stainless-steel containers and feeding them plant-based sugars to produce oils. This method was developed to be more efficient than common open-pond approaches.

Initially focused on biofuels, Solazyme secured approximately $22 million in grants from the U.S. Department of Energy and high-profile partnerships with entities like the US Navy and United Airlines. However, the business model proved challenging, particularly as oil prices fell, rendering their biofuel production costs uncompetitive. This led to a strategic pivot towards higher-value, lower-volume products. The company expanded into specialty chemicals, personal care, and food ingredients. A significant portion of its revenue at one point came from its anti-aging skincare brand, Algenist, which utilized alguronic acid. It also formed a joint venture with agribusiness giant Bunge to produce renewable oils in Brazil.

In March 2016, to reflect its new primary focus on food and nutrition, Solazyme officially rebranded as TerraVia. The industrial products portfolio, including fuels and the drilling lubricant brand Encapso, was separated into a unit named Solazyme Industrials, with the intention of finding strategic partners or buyers. As TerraVia, the company marketed products such as AlgaVia® whole algae ingredients, AlgaWise™ algae oils, and the consumer-facing Thrive® Culinary Algae Oil. It supplied ingredients to food manufacturers like Hormel and plant-based brands such as Soylent. Despite these efforts, the company faced persistent financial difficulties, including manufacturing scalability issues and high costs. After failing to make debt payments, TerraVia filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in August 2017. Subsequently, its assets were acquired by the Dutch biotechnology company Corbion for approximately $20 million in a deal completed in September 2017.

Keywords: Solazyme, TerraVia, Corbion, microalgae technology, algae oil, renewable oil, biofuels, Jonathan Wolfson, Harrison Dillon, industrial fermentation, sustainable ingredients, food ingredients, specialty chemicals, personal care, Algenist, AlgaVia, AlgaWise, Thrive Algae Oil, Bunge joint venture, biotechnology, Chapter 11 bankruptcy, asset acquisition, alguronic acid, Encapso, aquaculture feed, AlgaPrime DHA