Oxford-based Modern Baker, the food-as-medicine startup behind SUPERLOAF, has raised €2.8 million in Series A funding to reframe the narrative around ultra-processed food (UPF) as a healthy innovation – delivered through nutrient density, without sacrificing taste or convenience.
The round was led by impact investor network Adjuvo.
Co-founder Melissa Sharp, whose experience in a chemo ward led to their six-year mission of rethinking food’s role in illness, said: “This is about fixing UPFs, not fighting them. The real enemy isn’t processing or additives – it’s nutrient poverty. We’re proving UPFs can be actively healthy, if done right.”
Founded in 2017, Modern Baker aims to redefine ultra-processed food as a force for preventive health. Founded by Leo Campbell and Melissa Sharp, the company has secured seven UK government grants and worked with university labs to develop its nutrient-density platform and IP.
SUPERLOAF – Modern Baker’s proof-of-concept product, made by Hovis – is now stocked in major UK retailers such as M&S, Sainsbury’s and Ocado. It reportedly brings “radical blood glucose and gut health benefits” to everyday bread, and validates the wider potential to transform other staples while shifting population health at scale.
“Adjuvo’s backing brings not only capital, but also a strategic network with deep influence across retail, food, and consumer tech sectors,” said Co-founder Leo Campbell. “The idea of a ‘healthy UPF’ may sound audacious – but it’s the only credible solution to the trillion-pound cost of poor diet. And we have living proof in SUPERLOAF and its lab-validated data. This is transformative – for public health, and for UK PLC as a new global hub of health innovation.”
Adjuvo CEO Mark Foster-Brown added: “Modern Baker exemplifies the kind of purposeful, IP-rich innovation we back – ambitious, disruptive, and grounded in real science. Their ability to reframe a global health challenge through food tech is as inspiring as it is investable.”
Modern Baker explains that they don’t operate like a traditional food company. Its capital-light, SaaS-style model lets manufacturers upgrade everyday brands – and break them out of the unhealthy food narrative.
“Our model is to work with the food industry, not against it,” said Campbell. “While others attack UPFs from the outside, we’re building the fix from within – staying lean and agile, while our partners scale globally.”
Hovis is the first licensee, with the wider pipeline targeting biscuits, sweet bakery, breakfast cereals, ready meals and beverages – all ultra-processed categories currently under scrutiny.
“With global food players and public health bodies now talking to us, the Series A will accelerate our commercial rollout and deepen the scientific case. But this is bigger than one product or company. The UK government is actively seeking progressive solutions for population health – alongside innovation-led economic growth. Nutrient density delivers both. It’s a scalable fix for the food system – and a serious opportunity for UK PLC,” added Campbell.