NanoStruct, a Würzburg-based startup offering an analysis platform for the rapid identification of harmful bacteria in food, has closed a Seed funding round of €2.6 million to enable pilot projects in the food analysis market, the development of a structured sales organisation, and team expansion.
The round was led by High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF), Bayern Kapital, and the AUXXO Female Catalyst Fund. The funding builds on previous grants from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE) and the European Union.
Dr Henriette Maaß, CEO of NanoStruct, said, “With HTGF, Bayern Kapital, and AUXXO, we have found exactly the partners we need for this next step: experienced, well-networked, and convinced of our vision. Now we are bringing rapid bacterial analytics to the food industry.”
NanoStruct was spun out of Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg in 2021 by Dr Henriette Maaß, Enno Schatz, and Kai Leibfried. The company aims to make food safer by rapidly, easily, and securely detecting pathogenic bacteria. It develops nanostructured sensor chips for the rapid identification of dangerous pathogens in food.
According to the company, the current methods for detecting dangerous bacteria in food take several days, which is too long to prevent harmful pathogens from reaching consumers. Meanwhile, regulatory standards are tightening to improve consumer safety. As a result, demand for faster and automated analysis from food manufacturers and testing laboratories is high.
NanoStruct claims that it has developed a process that reduces detection to just a few hours by combining optical measurement technology with nanotechnology, biotechnology, and machine learning. The technology reduces the detection of dangerous pathogens such as Listeria and Salmonella from 2–3 days to just a few hours, using nanostructured sensor chips and AI
“For the food market, this represents a complete rethinking of microbial analysis. Results can be obtained on the same day, recalls are avoided, food waste is reduced, and food safety is significantly improved,” the company mentioned in the press release.
The company’s technology also has the potential to accelerate and simplify processes in additional fields such as veterinary and human diagnostics, as well as bacterial monitoring in sensitive production environments.
Dr Stephan Ruck, Investment Analyst at HTGF, said, “The technological breakthrough NanoStruct has achieved in sensor development is remarkable. In addition to the platform technology, we were convinced by the company’s strong network in the target market and, above all, by the team. I very much look forward to working with Henriette and the entire founding team.”
With the fresh funding, the company plans to validate its system through pilot projects in the food analysis market, build a structured sales organisation, and capture its first target market.
Read the orginal article: https://www.eu-startups.com/2026/05/wurzburg-based-nanostruct-raises-e2-6-million-to-detect-harmful-bacteria-in-food-within-hours/
