UAE’s KBW Ventures Invests $161 Million in American Cell-Based Meat Startup
The funding round is considered the largest ever investment in the cell-based meat industry.
UAE-based KBW Ventures, the venture capital (VC) firm founded by Prince Khaled bin Alwaleedbin Talal, has invested in a $161 million Series B for US-based cell-based meat, poultry and seafood company Memphis Meats. The funding round is considered to be the largest ever investment in the cell-based meat industry, enabling Memphis Meats to bring its products to consumers. To date, the company has raised more than $180 million in total funding.
The round was led by SoftBank Group, Norwest and Temasek, and was joined by other new and existing investors including Richard Branson, Bill Gates, Threshold Ventures, Cargill, Tyson Foods, Finistere, Future Ventures, Kimbal Musk, Fifty Years, CPT Capital and Vulcan Capital.
Memphis Meats plans to use the funding to build a pilot production facility, continue to grow its team and launch its products into the market. The company has not yet announced a date for product launch, and is working with regulatory agencies to ensure a timely and safe market entry.
“Memphis Meats is revolutionising how meat is brought to every table around the world. We are providing compelling and delicious choices by producing real meat from animal cells, its natural building blocks,” saysUma Valeti, co-founder and CEO of Memphis Meats. “Cell-based meat is poised to dramatically expand humanity’s capacity to feed a growing global population while preserving our culinary traditions and protecting our planet,”she adds.
Previously, the VC recently invested in Singapore-based TurtleTree Labs, a bio-tech company that leverages technology to create real milk from animal cells.
