22 October 2025 | 4 min.
Startup Nature’s Principles is a pioneer in circular lactic acid production and relies heavily on innovation and research. That’s one of the reasons the company chose to establish itself at the open innovation hub Planet B.io on the Biotech Campus Delft. “Here, we not only find other innovative companies, but also the partners we can collaborate with,” says Jules Rombouts, CEO at Nature’s Principles.
Nature’s Principles rents a 26-square-meter space at the Biotech Campus Delft, an initiative of the ASR Dutch Science Park Fund and dsm-firmenich. “Renting space at the Biotech Campus Delft for our business activities was an obvious choice for us,” Jules explains. “We’ve developed a patented fermentation technology to produce lactic acid directly from unrefined raw materials. The foundation of this is biotechnology, chemistry, and scientific research, so this environment fits perfectly. Here, you’ll find startups and scale-ups in industrial biotechnology, as well as supporting knowledge institutions. In addition, we find the partners here with whom we collaborate to further develop our product.”
Collaborating in the building
Nature’s Principles has devised a new way to produce lactic acid. “We focus on the circular production of bio-based chemicals using unique fermentation technologies. From our office space at the Biotech Campus Delft, we handle business development and administration. In Rotterdam, we have a shared laboratory, but we’ll soon be moving our lab activities to Delft as well. We currently have four employees. I mainly focus on technology development and raising funds from investors. My co-founder, Jan-Pieter van Tilburg, leads commercial development. Our business partners are also located in this building. With startup ExCulture, we share the use and cost of the chromatography device (HPLC), which is used to analyze and measure substances. We also collaborate with two researchers from dsm-firmenich on the LCA, a Life Cycle Assessment to calculate environmental impacts, and on R&D.”
After filing his patent at university, Jules started the company with his former business partner Harman Korte. “We first conducted market validation. We investigated whether more robust fermentation and the use of cheaper and more sustainable raw materials would be of interest to lactic acid producers. The responses were positive. With the first grant we received, we conducted industrial trials that turned out well. We further developed this process using sugar beets as the initial raw material. In 2023, we ran a pilot at scale—1,000 times larger than in the lab—in a one-cubic-meter tank. That’s when we also produced our first concentrate product.”
Biodegradable plastics
With their technology, Nature’s Principles contributes to the Sustainable Development Goals. “Our technology can be used to produce bio-based and biodegradable plastics,” Jules explains. “Plastics made from lactic acid can last up to 100 years if they are of high quality. They are used in construction, transportation, and various consumer products. Lactic acid is made from carbohydrates in biomass, which can come from agricultural crops or residual streams. That makes it a circular process. With our technology, lactic acid can be produced with lower CO₂ emissions and at a lower cost. This contributes to climate mitigation and helps reduce pollution from fossil-based plastics.
We have big plans for the future. We’re working on starting our own factory, either in Europe or India. It should be operational within five years and produce 25,000 tons of lactic acid. In ten years, we hope to produce about 7% of the global lactic acid supply using our fermentation technology. That’s a great goal to grow toward. The Biotech Campus Delft remains the best place for this. The combination of fermentation and bioscience with commercial activities here acts as a catalyst. Being part of the innovation hub Planet B.io, which actively connects entrepreneurs with each other and with partners in the ecosystem, makes this location especially valuable.”
