THE MOMENT TEXTURE
BECAME REAL
For years, Taherzadeh wrestled with the challenges of liquid fermentation —high energy use, watery substrates, and limited textures. Convinced fermentation could achieve more, he set out to invent a method designed to use fewer resources and deliver richer textures. In 2013, he cracked the code on controlling fungal growth. Through precise techniques, he shaped mycelium into fibrous, meat-like textures. This breakthrough unlocked mycelium’s potential as a rival to meat in both taste and feel.
2013
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2010
FROM LAB TO FARM
Taherzadeh partnered with a leading Nordic grain cooperative to scale his lab insights in the field. Agricultural leftovers like oat hulls became valuable fungi-powered biofuel. The pilot proved grain byproducts could reliably support large-scale industrial processes —evidence that his method works outside the lab.
MYCELIUM MEETS
THE MASSES
A century and a half later, mycelium leaped onto supermarket shelves. Marlow Foods launched Quorn in the UK with two savoury pies made from Fusarium grown in deep-tank fermenters. Shoppers loved mycoprotein, but the process guzzled resources and yielded only one spongy texture —prompting a new question: could mycelium do better?
1985
1815
FROM FLAVOUR TO
FOOD SECURITY
Mycelium’s journey reached Java, where villagers wrapped cooked soybeans in banana leaves. Overnight, white Rhizopus threads knitted the beans into nourishing protein cakes they named “tempeh.” Long before anyone coined the term “plant-based,” tempeh was quietly feeding entire communities.
FLAVOURS FIT FOR
AN EMPEROR
Centuries later, Japanese artisans perfected the art of cultivating grains wrapped in silky mold. Known as “koji,” this mycelium released flavours previously unimaginable —rich, deep umami notes that transformed rice into saké, miso, and soy sauce. Early imperial brewing scrolls documented the method, spreading the fungi gospel across Asia.
715 BCE
KOJI
SAKE
THE MOMENT TEXTURE
BECAME REAL
For years, Taherzadeh wrestled with the challenges of liquid fermentation —high energy use, watery substrates, and limited textures. Convinced fermentation could achieve more, he set out to invent a method designed to use fewer resources and deliver richer textures. In 2013, he cracked the code on controlling fungi growth. Through precise techniques, he shaped mycelium into fibrous, meat-like textures. This breakthrough unlocked mycelium’s potential as a rival to meat in both taste and feel.
2013
THE PROFESSOR
STEPS UP
Taherzadeh co-edited the influential textbook Industrial Biorefineries & White Biotechnology and was appointed Associate Editor of Bioresource Technology. These roles helped advance the recognition of filamentous fungi, alongside yeast and bacteria, in sustainable biorefineries and underscored his growing influence across academia and industry.
2015
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ANCIENT MYCELIUM, TOMORROW’S PROTEIN
Rain-fed organic Swedish oat farms enabling Millow to be a Gluten-Free, GMO-free meat alternative option that is genuinely good for the body and the planet.
Scroll down to follow the threads of history
— from ancient fermentation to tomorrow’s sustainable food.
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RESIDUALS TO
FLAVOUR
Taherzadeh led Ways2Taste, a three-year EU consortium of 30 industry and academic partners. The project demonstrated how low-value food-industry residuals like bakery residuals, spent grain, and oat hulls could efficiently become high-protein fungi ingredients, suitable for food and feed. Successful pilot-scale trials and industry partnerships set the stage for commercial fungi-protein production.
2019
500 BCE
AN ACCIDENTAL
CULINARY REVOLUTION
In ancient China, brewers observed fuzzy white threads spreading through grain bricks. Instead of discarding them, they tasted a sweet, fragrant brew— what we now know as huangjiu. Without knowing it, they harnessed mycelium’s hidden power, turning humble grains into flavourful wines, marking the start of an extraordinary culinary partnership.
A BREAKTHROUGH
FROM THE LAB
Fresh from his PhD, Mohammad Taherzadeh —Millow’s inventor — wondered if fungi could thrive sustainably on inexpensive biomass instead of costly sugars. He successfully used Rhizopus mold (the same mold used for tempeh), proving that mycelium could efficiently upcycle sawdust and pulp residuals into bioethanol and protein-rich biomass, giving industry its first proof that fungi sidestream valorisation could drive a sustainable future.
1999–2003
Professor
Mohammad Taherzadeh
2020
Animal-Free
gluten-free
gmo-free
high protein
high fibre
clean label
low calorie
no binders
no additiues
THE COMPANY
COMES TO LIFE
By 2020, Taherzadeh had authored more than 200 papers, making him one of the world’s foremost experts in fungi biotechnology. That year, he joined forces with his top doctoral alumni and seasoned food-and-biotech executives to found Svampsson in Gothenburg. The cross-functional team set out to develop a novel dry-state fermentation process that grows nutritious, edible mycelium on Nordic grains —no binders or additives, and a minimal environmental footprint.
INVENTION,
PROTECTED
Svampsson unveiled its first continuous dry-state bioreactor, the S-Unit, and secured European patent EP 4307913. The system grows edible mycelium directly on grain sidestreams, delivering higher yields while significantly cutting energy use, water use, and CO₂ emissions compared with liquid fermentation.
2021 – 2022
MEET MILLOW
After two years of brand development with renowned designer Rob Janoff, Svampsson became Millow —a new name, logo, and design system that gives Nordic clarity and fungi innovation a voice.
Rob Janoff
Designer of the Apple Logo
2023
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2025
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A FACTORY 30 YEARS
IN THE MAKING
Building on three decades of fungal science, Millow converts a former LEGO hall in Gothenburg into the world’s first oat-and-mycelium factory. The 2,500 m² site houses an advanced lab and a suite of patented S-Unit bioreactors, each designed to produce up to 500 kg of clean-label, beef-like product per day.
EU BACKS
MILLOW
Millow won a landmark €17.5 million blended finance package from the European Innovation Council. That same year, additional wins at MassChallenge Switzerland and EU Horizon underscored its market potential and led to Millow’s first commercial partnership with a global food brand.
2024
2025
A FACTORY 30 YEARS
IN THE MAKING
Building on three decades of fungi science, Millow converts a former LEGO hall in Gothenburg into the world’s first oat-and-mycelium factory. The 2,500 m² site houses an advanced lab and a suite of patented S-Unit bioreactors, each designed to produce up to 500 kg of clean-label, beef-like product per day.
COMING SOON:
MILLOW ON YOUR MENU
Millow is set to launch first in Northern Europe through foodservice collaborations and co-branded retail partnerships. Stay tuned —the white threads that once nourished emperors will soon be on your plate.
2024
© Copyright 2025 Millow.
Millow® is a registered trademark of Millow Holdings A/B in Sweden.
© Copyright 2025 Millow.
Millow® is a registered trademark of Millow Holdings A/B in Sweden.
Millow® is a registered trademark
of Millow Holding AB
© Copyright 2025 Millow
