Tetra Pak expands into industrial fermentation with new bioreactor platform

Tetra Pak has entered the industrial bioreactor market with the launch of the Tetra Pak Bioreactor RF, marking a significant expansion of its capabilities in industrial fermentation and New Food production following its acquisition of Bioreactors.net in late 2025.

• Tetra Pak launches its first industrial bioreactor following the acquisition of Bioreactors.net
• Bioreactor RF is available in capacities from 10 to 50,000 liters and targets fermentation-derived food ingredients
• Company says the system can reduce operational costs by up to 12% and investment costs by up to 8%

The new bioreactor has been developed to support companies scaling fermentation processes from pilot production to full industrial manufacturing. Tetra Pak said demand for industrial fermentation systems is growing as producers increasingly use microorganisms such as yeast, bacteria and fungi to manufacture food ingredients while diversifying supply chains and improving resource efficiency.

According to the company, the Tetra Pak Bioreactor RF is designed to provide stable fermentation conditions while giving operators greater process visibility. The system is intended to deliver consistent performance across pilot validation, initial industrial production and commercial-scale manufacturing without increasing operational complexity.

"Industrial fermentation succeeds when performance is repeatable, day after day," said Rafael Barros, Director of the New Food Business Stream at Tetra Pak. "Tetra Pak Bioreactor RF is designed to reduce operational risk and remove complexity, helping operators stay in control."

The launch follows Tetra Pak's acquisition of Dutch bioprocess technology specialist Bioreactors.net in December 2025, strengthening the company's position in fermentation equipment as demand grows for precision fermentation and other microbial production technologies.

One of the system's distinguishing features is a patented magnetic agitation technology that eliminates the need for mechanical seals, which are widely regarded as a potential source of contamination and process instability in conventional bioreactors.

Tetra Pak said its agitation system is designed to maintain power transmission and oxygen transfer across the entire vessel size range, addressing a common limitation of traditional magnetic agitators as reactor volumes increase. Maintaining stable process conditions can help reduce the risk of batch failures, which the company estimates are typically valued at around €1,000 (US$1,170) per cubic metre.

The Bioreactor RF is also supplied pre-assembled and factory-tested, reducing installation time and commissioning requirements. Its integrated platform design removes the need for separate support structures, which the company said can reduce investment costs by up to 8% compared with conventional industrial bioreactors.

Automation is another key feature of the platform. Self-adjusting control functions are designed to stabilise fermentation conditions as processes change, reducing manual intervention. Predefined operating strategies and integrated process monitoring are intended to give operators greater visibility while simplifying day-to-day operation.

According to Tetra Pak, these features collectively can reduce operational costs by up to 12%.

The bioreactor range is available in capacities from 10 liters to 50,000 liters, with all units sharing the same design platform, control logic and operating philosophy. Tetra Pak said this common architecture is intended to simplify operator training and make it easier for manufacturers to scale production or operate multiple facilities using consistent equipment.

The modular design also enables producers to modify alarm settings, impellers and system configurations as production requirements evolve, without introducing additional complexity.

The company said the new platform is supported by its existing industrial processing expertise and global service network, positioning the Bioreactor RF as a solution for manufacturers producing fermentation-derived ingredients and other New Food products at industrial scale.