HenArt launches Levendo dog food with Enifer mycoprotein

HenArt’s launch of Levendo gives Enifer’s PEKILO mycoprotein its highest-profile pet food debut yet: a complete dog food, not just an ingredient trial or limited treat application. Announced October 21, 2026, the product is positioned as a semi-moist, gently baked daily diet for adult and senior dogs, and PetfoodIndustry called it the first international consumer launch for Enifer’s fermented mycoprotein ingredient. (petfoodindustry.com)

The launch lands after a steady buildout for Enifer in pet nutrition. Earlier in 2026, the company completed its first commercial PEKILO Pet batch for formulation work, and it had already appeared in a commercial dog treat with Rovio Pet Foods. Enifer has also been advancing regulatory and scale-up efforts beyond Europe, including work tied to the U.S. market and broader production expansion. That sequence matters because it shows PEKILO moving from R&D validation, to pilot-scale output, to finished consumer products. (petfoodindustry.com)

On the product side, Levendo is being sold as a complete food formulated to FEDIAF guidance, with HenArt saying the recipe was developed in-house and manufactured in Europe. HenArt’s product materials emphasize a soft, aromatic, semi-moist format, added taurine and L-carnitine, and a protein system combining fermented proteins with pea and potato proteins. The company also frames the food as an option for dogs that are selective about dry food, while avoiding common animal proteins such as beef, dairy, chicken, lamb, and egg. (petfoodindustry.com)

The scientific backdrop is stronger than a typical ingredient-launch announcement. A 2026 paper in Frontiers in Veterinary Science evaluated diets containing 0% to 16% PEKILO mycoprotein in adult dogs and reported high nutrient digestibility and acceptable fecal characteristics, with the diets formulated to meet FEDIAF requirements. Separate reporting on earlier Enifer-backed research described 42-day feeding work in beagles with inclusion levels up to 20%, with findings suggesting shifts in gut microbiota and short-chain fatty acid production alongside good digestibility. Those studies don’t establish disease-treatment claims, but they do give veterinarians more than marketing language to work from when assessing the ingredient category. (frontiersin.org)

Industry reaction has centered on the idea that fermentation proteins are finally crossing into consumer-facing pet food. Protein Production Technology described the category as one under pressure to deliver functional benefits, manufacturing reliability, and ingredient differentiation, while also noting interest in novel proteins for exclusion-style and specialized nutrition products. HenArt founder Henk Verhoeven said pet parents want more feeding choices without giving up nutrition, quality, or enjoyment, framing PEKILO as a key enabler for an everyday food rather than a niche novelty. (proteinproductiontechnology.com)

Why it matters: For veterinarians and nutrition-focused teams, Levendo is less about one SKU and more about a pipeline shift. Fermentation-derived proteins are starting to show up in complete diets backed by digestibility and palatability data, which means clinics may increasingly need to evaluate questions around amino acid adequacy, stool tolerance, allergy relevance, cardiac nutrition, and how these foods compare with established hydrolyzed, insect-based, or plant-forward options. HenArt’s own materials are careful to position Levendo as a complete everyday food, not a prescription allergy diet, and they acknowledge the unresolved science around grain-free diets and DCM while noting added taurine and L-carnitine. That nuance will matter in client conversations. (henart.com)

There’s also a practical angle for the profession. If products like Levendo gain traction, veterinary teams may see more pet parents asking whether fermented or fungal proteins are “better” for gut health, more sustainable, or less likely to trigger adverse food reactions. The current evidence supports digestibility and palatability, with early microbiome and immune-support signals, but not broad clinical superiority across disease states. In other words, this is a category to watch closely, not one to overstate. (frontiersin.org)

What to watch: The next markers will be expanded retail distribution, additional peer-reviewed canine studies, and whether Enifer’s regulatory and manufacturing progress translates into wider availability of PEKILO-based diets in Europe, the UK, and eventually the U.S. (petfoodindustry.com)