Ummino going global with gut health supplement

Hippocrates, the “father of modern medicine,” is credited with the admonition that “Our food should be our medicine, and our medicine should be our food.”

Embracing that belief, a North Carolina State University spinout company founded in 2019 is launching a new kind of “boost” to foods and beverages that captures unique and elusive benefits in human breast milk, to maximize gut health.

The Durham company, Ummino, is targeting the sharp rise in consumer demand for fortified food and beverage products. Its patented precision fermentation technology uses a yeast-bound recombinant enzyme to biomanufacture a human milk oligosaccharide prevalent in breast milk, and a prebiotic that previously couldn't be produced at commercial scale.

Ummino has figured out how to produce this precious commodity in large quantities so food producers can incorporate it into the products they sell around the world. 

Ummino's technology platform originated with research and innovation developed at NC State by cofounder and Chief Science Officer Jose Bruno, Ph.D. The company is also partnering with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on a human safety clinical trial through another cofounder, Andrea Azcarate, Ph.D., director of UNC’s Microbiome Core Research Program.

Charles Dykes, Ummino’s chief executive officer, says his company’s product, named Hummino, is a non-prescription food ingredient that can help people establish or re-establish healthy gut microbiota.

Here’s how Dykes recently described Ummino’s “Ah-Ha!” technology to NCBiotech:

“We have developed a proprietary precision fermentation process to produce Hummino. The proprietary composition unlocks a vital prebiotic that is bio-identical to that found in natural human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs), which are known to nourish keystone gut microbes and support the immune system.

“The ‘Ah-Ha!’ technology enables the efficient and scalable production of this vital prebiotic bioactive, which restores balance in the adult microbiome and enhances gut barrier function. By leveraging this technology, Ummino seeks to disrupt current HMO manufacturing methods, significantly reducing production costs and making it feasible to include HMOs in staple functional foods.”

And there’s another bonus. “Hummino can be incorporated into various food products as a scientifically validated, clinically backed prebiotic to enhance gut health, without the need to undergo the extensive clinical trials required for therapeutic drugs,” noted Dykes. “Yet our applications can include functional nutrition, clinical nutrition and specialty supplements.”

He says Ummino’s primary customers are existing food companies “motivated by the opportunity to enhance their product offerings and capture a larger share of the rapidly growing functional-foods market.”

He sees Ummino’s economics as a key driver in enabling next-generation gut-health products, particularly for existing food companies that must constantly compete to differentiate their offerings. Strategic partners can incorporate Hummino in their current product lines, such as yogurt and protein drinks, to provide convenient access to beneficial innovations.

“By using Hummino, they can create products with cutting-edge gut health benefits that appeal to health-conscious consumers, promote microbiome health, support immunity, and improve overall wellness,” said Dykes.

Experts at the North Carolina Biotechnology Center were impressed by the platform, and helped bootstrap the growth of the nine-employee company with a $500,000 Strategic Growth Loan in 2024.

“This loan plays a pivotal role in supporting our commercialization efforts,” said Dykes. He cites the fact that the company is hiring, has support from multinational partners and investors, and is raising a Series A round of funding. The company plans to grow its workforce by up to 20 employees over the next three years and anticipates hiring for those roles locally.

The company has also been working with NC State’s Golden LEAF Biomanufacturing Training and Education Center (BTEC) and the Bezos Center for Sustainable Protein at NC State, in Raleigh, and the NC Food Innovation Lab in Kannapolis, which has enabled it to conduct 300-liter pilot-scale production runs and product drying for feasibility testing by its partners.

All are examples of North Carolina’s leading-edge ability to train and educate bioprocessing workers, from technicians to FDA inspectors, while also supporting North Carolina startup companies like Ummino with proof-of-concept biotechnology manufacturing.

“Ummino represents an important convergence of North Carolina’s strengths in precision fermentation and food tech,” said Jen Greenstein, Ph.D., senior director of investments in NCBiotech’s emerging company development group. Greenstein worked with Ummino on its loan process.

“It’s a homegrown startup capitalizing on the unique array of scientific capabilities at our amazing research universities, complemented by an excellent team experienced in product commercialization and fundraising. The NCBiotech loan is designed to accelerate Ummino toward establishing commercial agreements with multinational food and nutrition companies.”