Fermentalg: Record Revenue of €13.4M but Cash Reserves Halve
Fermentalg ended 2025 with a record revenue of €13.4M, up by 17%, due to diversifying its clientele beyond dietary supplements. However, the company remains significantly unprofitable with a stable operating result at -€9.4M, and its cash reserves have more than halved. To accelerate its expected growth in 2026, the company is relying on a €4M loan from its major shareholder, Huvepharma.
Record Growth Driven by Diversification
Fermentalg recorded revenue of €13.4M in 2025, surpassing the €11.5M from 2024. This 17% increase is attributed to the expansion of its customer base into segments other than dietary supplements. Sales aimed at infant nutrition and aquaculture now represent 43% of the revenue, up from just 5% in 2024. However, this commercial expansion was achieved 'at the cost of pricing efforts' which reduced the gross margin from 22% to 17%. Excluding aquaculture (a 'opportunity' market with low margins), the gross margin slightly improved, reflecting a 'structural improvement' in strategic markets. The company's target for 2026 is to accelerate to a revenue of €20M, marking a further increase of 49%.
Stable Operating Results Amid Financial Adjustments
The operating result after non-recurring items stood at -€9.4M in 2025, compared to -€9.2M in 2024. This stability conceals two movements: on one hand, a 9% increase in research and development expenses, linked to the depreciation of the Galdieria Blue program since October 2025, offset by a 4% decrease in other operating expenses. On the other hand, total operational expenses (including R&D) remained at €13.3M. However, the net result of the group improved from -€12.8M to -€9.4M. This improvement primarily stems from a reduction in the consolidated loss from the CarbonWorks participation (equity method), which amounted to -€2.1M in 2025 compared to -€8.3M in 2024. Net financial debt worsened, moving from a cost of -€36K in 2024 to -€200K in 2025.
Significant Reduction in Cash Reserves
Fermentalg's gross cash reserves decreased by €14.0M during the fiscal year 2025, dropping from €20.6M to €6.6M. This contraction is explained by operational needs (negative cash flow of -€6.6M), investments (-€1.8M), as well as voluntary debt reduction of €5.7M, including the repayment of €4M in convertible bonds. Concurrently, equity decreased by €7.6M to reach €25.2M. At the end of 2025, the group had €5.0M in financial debts (€3.7M long-term). To support the anticipated acceleration in growth, Huvepharma, holding 19.49% of the capital, granted a loan of €4M in April 2026, with an annual interest rate of 5% and a term of 24 months. This financing can be partially or fully repaid in shares during a capital increase, which limits the mandatory cash repayment. Fermentalg indicates it has sufficient means to cover its needs beyond the next 12 months.
