News for August 29, 2024

Pluri Inc. invests $10 million in cultivated meat company Ever After Foods

Pluri Inc, a joint owner with Tnuva Food-Tech Incubator of Ever After Foods, has invested $10 million in Ever After Foods to advance the company’s cultivated meat program. The bioreactors that Ever After Foods uses to produce muscle and fat tissues from animal cells are powered by Pluri’s technology. The technology could multiply the production of protein by six times and lipids by 700 times per cell and lead to increased capacity for meat cultivation.

Singapore plant-based milk leader Oatside lands $35.5M

Private equity firm TR Capital and VC investor Granite Asia led a Series B for plant-milk company Oatside that netted $35.5 million. The round has the potential to reach $74 million. The latest injections of capital bring Oatside’s total investment to $114 million. Plant-based milks are especially popular in Asia, where sales reached $9.8 billion in 2023. That’s twice as high as Europe and triple sales in the United States.

Series A round of $5.8 million bolsters Amulet’s drive to launch portable food allergen sensors

A Series A raise of $5.8 million, led by HealthX Ventures, will support Amulet’s drive to introduce its portable food allergen sensors to a waitlist of consumers and businesses. Amulet’s mission is to enhance food safety through the development and commercialization of detection technologies. A diversity of investors participated in the round, including Incite Ventures, AllerFund, Mendota Venture Capital, Great Oaks Venture Capital and individual investors. The company’s most well-known product, Allergy Amulet, is a device customers wear to test for food allergens. Another product, Amulet Scientific, targets restaurants, food suppliers and others involved in the food industry.

Intimacy care company vH Essentials gets scooped up by personal care company Wellspring Consumer Healthcare

Marketer of OTC and personal care brands Wellspring Consumer Healthcare has expanded its presence in the intimacy market with the purchase of vH Essentials. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Products sold by vH Essentials are distributed through both brick-and-mortar and e-commerce shops. With the exception of one other intimacy brand, Wellspring’s offerings revolve around therapeutic skincare, digestion and overall women’s health.

Investment firm Humble Growth offers strategic financial backing to fragrance body care brand Salt & Stone

Salt & Stone, a fast-rising fragrance-oriented body care brand founded by former pro snowboarder Nima Jalali, has received a “significant” investment from investment firm Humble Growth. Terms were not disclosed. Salt & Stone, launched in 2017, has grown into a robust player in the personal care segment, following a successful global rollout with Sephora. The company reported that it consistently achieves triple-digit year-over-year revenue growth. The company’s most recent release, Salt & Stone Body Mist, incorporates nutrients, including those from red algae, into the fragrance mist. Salt & Stone anticipates using the investment for staffing growth and a strengthened partnership with Sephora.

Science-backed children’s food brand Mission MightyMe lands $2.35M in funding round

With the recent closing of a $2.35 million funding round, Mission MightyMe, which leans into science for the sake of ending the food allergy epidemic, will expand and pursue fresh research and development. In addition, the company announced that its Nutty Puffs product will be launching in select Target stores this week. More than half of the ingredients in Nutty Puffs are nuts, and they do not contain artificial flavors, palm oil or cane sugar. All MightyMe products have received Clean Label Project Purity Awards.

Buzzy functional mushroom company Alice Mushrooms nets investments from L Catterton, celebrities

Alice Mushrooms, a company launched in 2022 that manufactures chocolates spiked with mushrooms to achieve wellness goals like improved sleep and boosted energy, has received investments from firm L Catterton as well as actors Zac Efron and Pedro Pascal, and comedian Kevin Hart. Terms of the investments were not disclosed. In addition to sleep and energy chocolates, Alice Mushrooms also offers a “Happy Ending” product that aims to ripen “arousal.” The organic chocolates are vegan and gluten-free. In addition to mushrooms, the chocolates contain ingredients like L-theanine, magnesium and zinc. The funding will allow the company to expand and continue developing new products. To date, Alice Mushrooms products are available in more than 400 retailers, including Erewhon and Pop Up Grocer. The company hopes to find shelf space at 1,000 stores by the end of 2024.

MaryRuth Organics Investor Butterfly exits majority of its stake

Private equity firm Butterfly announced that it has closed the sale of its stake in MaryRuth Organics, a fast-rising vitamins, minerals and supplements brand. Butterfly focuses its investment activity on the food sector. Butterfly remains as an active MaryRuth Organics investor and retains representation on the company’s board of directors. Since first gaining its stake of MaryRuth Organics in 2021, the supplements company has tripled in size and quadrupled its profitability. MaryRuth and her family hold significant majority ownership in the business. Global investment firm King Street will provide financing to MaryRuth Organics and King Street partner Ed Testerman will join the board.

High-protein startup David raises $10M in seed round

In its drive to develop a line of high-protein foods, the company David raised $10 million in a seed investment round. David, which targets consumers seeking muscle growth and fat reduction, will use the capital to continue investing in science-backed launches and to build its team. The company’s chief executive officer and co-founder, Peter Rahal, led the round, with participation from the company’s chief science officer Peter Attia, neuroscientist Andrew Huberman and Valor Siren Ventures. The company’s first product, a bar, will include more whey protein per calorie than any other bar on the market. In addition, the bar will contain no sugar, gluten and artificial sweeteners or flavors.

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