Wide Open Agriculture (WOA) will wind down its German production facility immediately and shift to a contract manufacturing model, as the ASX‑listed lupin ingredients company looks to cut costs and scale more efficiently.
The move is the first of a four‑stage pathway the company has mapped out to take its lupin protein, oil and fibre business from its current base toward large scale industrial production of more than 10,000 tonnes per annum.
WOA said idling the German facility would deliver a near‑term reduction in its fixed cost base progressively from the third to fourth quarter of this calendar year, with no material ongoing costs anticipated after December 2026. The wind down is expected to be complete by mid‑2027. The company’s German subsidiary, Wide Open Agriculture Germany GmbH, will be wound up through a managed liquidation process, with the employee team transitioned, lease obligations finalised and production equipment sold, with proceeds expected to cover associated wind down costs.
The facility, secured through WOA’s acquisition of Prolupin, served as a commercial scale proof of concept, the company said, enabling it to demonstrate lupin protein isolate production at volume, validate its processing technology and secure regulatory approvals including access to the Chinese market. But elevated EU energy and operating costs, and a facility not designed for integrated whole‑of‑lupin processing, meant continued owner operated production in Germany was no longer consistent with the company’s scale up plans.
In its place, WOA will move to a contract manufacturing model, initially targeting 500 to 1000 tonnes per annum of lupin protein isolate, with a preference for Asia based production given proximity to growth markets and a more favourable cost structure.
The Company said it is in discussions with a number of potential production partners across Asia and evaluating a shortlist of preferred suppliers, while working to protect its intellectual property.
Execution of the strategy will be led by chief executive Craig Swan, who commenced the role in April after senior B2B food ingredients roles at Givaudan, Goodman Fielder Ingredients and Nutrasweet, including leadership positions across Singapore and China.
WOA chair, Justin Brown, said the company had reached an important point in its development.
“WOA has reached an exciting point in its development, with strong foundations now in place, including proprietary technology, regulatory approvals in key markets, and a global distribution network. I look forward to working alongside Craig and the management team to support the execution of the company’s commercial strategy, with a clear focus on translating these foundations into long term value for shareholders,” Brown said.
WOA will retain its whole‑of‑seed strategy alongside the manufacturing shift, aiming to commercialise lupin oil and lupin fibre next to its protein isolate business to broaden its revenue base.
It said early sales of lupin oil have been secured for cosmetic and personal care applications, while lupin fibre samples have been supplied to universities, research bodies and potential commercial partners for further testing.
A pre‑feasibility study is also underway for a potential 10,000 plus tonnes per annum Australian production facility, though WOA said this remains a longer-term consideration, with stages one through three the near‑term focus.
The reset follows a period of leadership change at WOA, including the departure of former chief executive, Jay Albany, and the sale of Dirty Clean Food in 2024, followed by board and management changes that installed Yaxi Zhan as chair. It also builds on the company’s recent lupin milk formulation breakthrough, as WOA works to broaden the commercial applications of its Buntine Protein platform.
