MicroSalt, the low-sodium food technology company, had a storming introduction to London’s AIM on Thursday as the company raised £3.1m to fund the roll-out of their low-sodium salt technology.
MicroSalt shares were changing hands for 51.5p in London on Thursday, a 19% increase on the 43p admission price.
MicroSalt has developed a salt that dissolves on the tongue faster than traditional salt to deliver the same taste with less sodium. The World Health Organisation says 1.8m people die each year due to the overconsumption of salt.
The company has already secured deals with one of the world’s largest snack food businesses and is undergoing testing with a range of major food companies with the aim of reformulating their recipes using MicroSalt’s products.
MicroSalt is also in discussions with a number of UK supermarkets about reformulating their own-label food lines.
“We are delighted to announce our successful fundraise and admission to AIM, which is an important step in our development and provides an excellent platform for growth,” said Rick Guiney, CEO of MicroSalt.
Guiney continued to explain the importance of achieving their growth strategy to support global low-sodium targets that are designed to help premature deaths due to the overconsumption of salt.
“The World Health Organisation has stated ambitions to reduce sodium intake by 30% by 2025, and MicroSalt is extremely well placed to capitalise upon rising demand for lower sodium products with our disruptive, proprietary product and manufacturing process.”
The first AIM IPO of 2024
MicroSalt was the first company to list in London this year and its success demonstrates London is still a viable option for innovative companies to raise capital.
London-listed Tekcapital founded MicroSalt and remains the largest shareholder with a 77% stake in the company.
“Tekcapital’s mission is to commercialise new technologies that can improve the quality of life of the customers we serve,” said Dr Clifford Gross, CEO of Tekcapital.
“MicroSalt has established a new category of full-flavour, low sodium salt, and has demonstrated initial success in onboarding two major B2B companies to incorporate MicroSalt into their existing products and has placed its saltshakers and crisps in hundreds of stores.
“It’s become clear to us, that up until now, there hasn’t been a food ingredient that could accomplish sodium reduction without sacrificing flavour. That has now changed. We’re excited that MicroSalt has completed its IPO and we are looking forward to their future growth and success.”
