Our
Story

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Our Story began with two Copenhagen food science students passionate about koji. Through R&D, they discovered its potential to tackle food waste with local restaurants. An engineer then joined to build and maintain a top-tier incubator, and in 2024, a business student came on board to scale operations. Together, we’re reimagining Copenhagen’s food scene, one ferment at a time.

Koji Copenhagen's Origin Story

Winter 2021

Elias, Simon, and Frederik meet at the Copenhagen University while studying Food and Nutrition. Bonded by a shared passion for fermentation, they start brewing kombucha together as a hobby. What began as a fun experiment soon became methodical, sparking the idea to start a company focused on fermentation innovation.

February 2022

Inspired by Frederik’s koji experiments and the Noma Guide to Fermentation, we dive into making our first batch using a DIY incubator. Afterward, Elias and Frederik chat about starting a company in the rain and call Simon on the bus—he’s in. Soon, we join the Science Innovation Hub at UCPH, initially set on launching a kombucha brewery.

April 2022

We design and build our own wooden incubator, steamer, and dryer for koji production. By the end of April, KojiCopenhagen ApS is officially established, marking the start of our journey.

March 2023

Thanks to a university project, we got extra time to focus on the company and conduct a market analysis, meeting amazing people like Kevin Jeung from Noma. We even set up shop in some empty university rooms to finalize our prototypes—though just for a few months. In March, we were rewarded a grant from Fonden for Entreprenørskab, which let us build an incubator and invest in much-needed gear.

December 2023

Klemens officially joins the team, and we move out of the basement to our first food-grade space at Kitchen Collective in Copenhagen’s meat-packing district. Finally, we’re ready to start selling koji! That same month, we land our very first customer: the green Michelin-starred restaurant Ark, who is eager to experiment with koji for their New Year’s menu.

Spring & Summer 2024

We focus on research and development, working to create a versatile, shelf-stable koji product with broad appeal. Meanwhile, we maintain a steady weekly production as more restaurants discover the magic of koji and join in.

September 2024

Robert then joins the team, bringing a focus on marketing and economics to help drive our growth. With a solid foundation in place, we’re gearing up for the future with plans to expand to serve both consumer markets and B2B sales, offering sustainable koji products made from upcycled resources. As we continue to innovate, our mission is to make koji accessible to more people and businesses, while championing sustainability and culinary creativity.