SeafoodSource is closely following the plant-based and cell-based seafood alternatives market by compiling a regular round-up of updates from the sector. If you have an announcement, please send it to [email protected].
– Steakholder Foods, a Rehovot, Israel-based alternative protein company, has announced a funding package from technology investor Alumni Capital that includes a private placement of USD 1.25 million (EUR 1.19 million) and an equity line of credit (ELOC) for USD 8 million (EUR 7.63 million).
The USD 8 million ELOC is intended to provide the company with what it called, in a release, a “flexible funding mechanism to support its strategic growth initiatives while flexibly minimizing dilution to existing shareholders.”
Steakholder Foods CEO Arik Kaufman said that the agreements represent a key milestone in the company's growth strategy.
"They are designed with the best interests of our shareholders in mind, offering immediate funds for our continued strategic growth, as well as offering us the ability to access capital efficiently while mitigating dilution," Kaufman said. "We are grateful for the strong support and confidence from Alumni Capital and welcome them to the Steakholder Foods family.”
“We look forward to supporting their efforts to drive sustainable value creation," Alumni Capital Portfolio Manager Ashkan Mapar said.
– The Canadian government has awarded CAN 5 million (USD 3.4 million, EUR 3.3 million) to Richmond, British Columbia-based startup Konscious Foods, aiming to support both the alt-protein sector and the prosperity of the province.
Pacific Economic Development Canada (PacifiCan), the federal agency devoted to economic development in B.C., said that the funding “will help advance innovative, Canadian-made sustainable food products, create quality jobs, and grow regional prosperity.”
“Just like so many communities across Canada, Richmond is home to entrepreneurs who are developing the creative, sustainable products that the world demands,” Small Business Minister Rechie Valdez said. “PacifiCan’s support means that businesses such as Konscious Foods can continue to grow locally, creating quality jobs here at home, feeding our communities, and competing on the global stage.”
The company, which makes plant-based frozen sushi, was founded by Yves Potvin, who also founded Gardein, a successful meat alternative company. Konscious supplies 4,500 supermarkets in Canada and the U.S. with its plant-based seafood analogue sushi.
President and COO of Konscious Foods, Michael Watt, said that the PacifiCan “investment has allowed us to grow quickly, win on a global stage and accelerate the next wave of innovation including plant-based Smoked Salm’n, Sno’Crab Cakes and Shr’mp.”
– Helsinki, Finland-based Solar Foods and Piedmont, Italy-based KelpEat have announced a partnership that will add Solar’s innovative protein Solein to KelpEat’s seaweed snacks.
Solein is a novel protein which Solar Foods markets as being made “out of thin air.” It is produced from a yeast-based single-celled fermented microbe fed with carbon dioxide, hydrogen, and mineral nutrients.
“Using Solein enables us to create a truly disruptive innovation – one that delivers complete nutrition, environmental responsibility and a bold step towards food sovereignty,” KelpEat CEO Luca Cerruti said. “Combined with Solein, whose production is independent of land use, weather or climate conditions, the crackers represent a radical sustainability statement, ushering in a new era of climate-positive foods and setting a new benchmark for sustainable food solutions”.
Solar Foods CCO Juan Manuel Benítez-García said the new KelpEat product demonstrates how Solein can work in real-world applications and in the healthy snacking segment.
“Solein fits seamlessly into existing consumer product categories, adding protein and other nutrients while minimizing the environmental impact without losing the tastes people are accustomed to,” he said.
