Enifer’s PEKILO reaches European pet-food market in HenArt dog food launch

Enifer’s PEKILO mycoprotein has reached its first international consumer launch through LEVENDO, a complete dog food from Dutch pet-food company HenArt that is now available across Europe and the UK.

• HenArt has launched LEVENDO, a complete, semi-moist food for adult and senior dogs containing Enifer’s PEKILO mycoprotein, across Europe and the UK.
• The gently baked recipe uses HenArt’s proprietary blend of fermented proteins and is formulated to FEDIAF guidelines.
• Enifer is commissioning its 3,000-ton factory ahead of planned full-scale production in 2027, while HenArt develops wet-food products.

The semi-moist food is designed for adult and senior dogs and uses a proprietary blend of complementary fermented proteins, with PEKILO as its core ingredient. HenArt developed the blend and recipe in-house, while production is handled by established European manufacturers. The food is gently baked rather than extruded and formulated to FEDIAF guidelines as a complete and balanced everyday diet.

For Enifer, the launch gives its ingredient a commercial outlet in a finished pet-food product as the company commissions its 3,000-ton PEKILO factory ahead of planned full-scale production in 2027. It also puts the ingredient into a category where manufacturers must demonstrate that a new protein source can work within a complete recipe, as well as deliver the required nutritional performance.

HenArt is selling LEVENDO through its online store and specialist distribution partners across Europe and the UK. It is also opening the range to national pet-retail chains, online pet retailers and grocery retail partners across Europe. The announcement did not name those prospective retail partners or disclose sales volumes.

“Dog owners are looking for more choice in how they feed their pets, but they do not want to compromise on nutrition, quality or enjoyment. With LEVENDO, we wanted to create an everyday food that could meet those expectations in its own right. PEKILO was a key part of making that possible,” said Henk Verhoeven, founder of HenArt.

PEKILO contains all essential amino acids and naturally occurring beta-glucans, as well as nutrients including B vitamins and spermidine. Enifer has been building its evidence base for use in pet food through canine feeding research examining digestibility, palatability and other measures relevant to formulation.

That work includes a canine feeding study reporting strong protein digestibility and a separate 60-day study that, according to Enifer, showed high digestibility and palatability, with no negative impact on stool quality. The latter also identified early signs of potential immune-support benefits. Those findings concern the ingredient’s performance in the research; the announcement did not report a feeding trial of the finished LEVENDO recipe.

The distinction is relevant to the commercial task facing both companies. HenArt has combined PEKILO with other fermented proteins in its own formulation, rather than selling the mycoprotein as a standalone supplement. LEVENDO is being offered as an everyday diet, with the recipe developed to meet dogs’ nutritional requirements under the FEDIAF guidelines.

“We have spent years showing that PEKILO can deliver the nutrition, digestibility and palatability pet-food manufacturers need. LEVENDO is an important next step: it shows that PEKILO performs in formulation and production. That is a significant milestone in moving mycoprotein from promising ingredient technology into mainstream pet nutrition,” said Simo Ellilä, CEO of Enifer.

Nutritional adequacy remains a central consideration for owners weighing up alternative diets. A 2025 international survey of more than 2,600 dog owners, cited in the launch announcement, found that 85% of respondents considering alternative diets identified nutritional adequacy as the most important factor influencing whether they would buy one. The finding relates to that group of respondents, rather than to all dog owners surveyed.

The companies are entering a substantial established market. Grand View Research estimated the global dog-food market at US$48.1 billion in 2025, with premium and nutritionally differentiated products among the factors shaping demand. HenArt’s offer combines a fermented protein recipe with a semi-moist format and gentle baking, giving the company several product characteristics to present to retailers and owners.

For Enifer, the timing links the consumer launch with preparations for a larger manufacturing operation. Its factory remains in the commissioning stage, with full-scale production planned for 2027. The announcement did not disclose how much PEKILO HenArt expects to purchase, the ingredient’s inclusion rate in LEVENDO, or what proportion of the factory’s output the partnership could account for.

HenArt intends LEVENDO to be the first of several products using its fermentation blend. Wet-food recipes are already in development using the company’s TenderCraft technology alongside that blend. The LEVENDO name draws on 'leaven', the starter used in sourdough bread, and 'levend', the Dutch word meaning 'alive'. HenArt has not announced a launch date for the wet-food products.

(All photos courtesy of Iiro Rautiainen)

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