Singapore-based Shiok Meats recently received USD 4.6 million (EUR 4.1 million) in funding to develop its cell-based shrimp.
The company is the only Southeast Asian company producing “clean meat” shrimp utilizing cellular technology, Shiok said on its web site. “A great eight months of hustling and working on clean cell-based shrimps! Looking forward to wonderful years ahead,” Shiok said on its Facebook page.
Shiok will use the funding to invest further in research and development, as well as hiring bioprocess engineers and scientists, Sandhya Sriram, PhD, co-founder and CEO, told SeafoodSource.
By the end of 2020, Shiok aims to have its shrimp featured in one or two premium restaurants in Singapore.
“It will take three to five years for mass-scale production and sale in a couple of Asian countries,” Sriram said.
The startup’s initial target markets are Singapore, Hong Kong, and Australia, according to Sriram. While Shiok will initially offer shrimp, it will expand to production of other shellfish in the future, according to news reports.
Shiok’s lead investor is Henry Soesanto, CEO of Mode Nissin Corporation, which acquired Quorn Foods a few years ago.
Other investors include: AiiM Partners; Big Idea Ventures; Ryan Bethencourt; Lawrence Wu; Simon Newstead; Julia Lipton, founder of Soundboard; John Friedman; Aera VC; Beyond Impact Advisors; Boom Capital; and Entrepreneur First, Shiok said on its Facebook page.
Sriram, a stem cell scientist, founded the company with Ka Yi Ling, PhD, who is chief scientific officer. “Sandhya is a vegetarian by choice and is passionate about employing biotechnology for a sustainable future,” the company’s web site said.
