daring, a company that manufactures plant-based protein, announces the close of an USD8 million Series A funding round led by Maveron, the prominent venture capital firm that invests in early-stage consumer brands. Additional investors include GoodFriends (from the founders of Allbirds, Harry’s and Warby Parker), Stray Dog Capital, Palm Tree Crew Investments (Kygo and Myles Shear), and private investors including Mike Smith (CFO of Stitch Fix) and Brian Swette (former Chair of Burger King). This round of funding is aimed at supporting daring’s mission to remove chicken from the food system, a statement reads.
“We are always looking to partner with entrepreneurs that are building the next generation in consumer products. daring’s co-founders have a massive mission and the product exceeded our expectations in every capacity – taste, texture, and clean ingredients,” Dan Levitan, managing partner and co-founder of Maveron said. “We are in the early innings of the plant-based movement. The next wave of plant-based alternatives need to be significantly less processed with a cleaner ingredient profile to win the hearts, minds and stomachs of consumers. We are confident that daring will emerge as a leader in the space.”
In conjunction with the investment round, daring is launching a brand new product, Breaded daring Pieces, available direct-to-consumer on daring.com. Free of GMOs and gluten, daring’s Breaded pieces adds to the existing line of high protein Original, Cajun, and Lemon & Herb flavors made from 100% plant-based ingredients. daring’s new Breaded pieces are available online at daring.com and in daring’s new retail locations including Gelson’s, Bristol Farms, and Fresh Thyme.
“At daring we’ve been able to create the cleanest plant-based chicken on the market that gets as close as possible to the taste and texture of the real thing,” daring’s CEO and co-founder, Ross Mackay commented. “We are excited to have attracted a group of investors that have been involved in building monumental consumer businesses and we will leverage this investment to continue our growth in an ever-changing, competitive landscape. This gets us a huge step closer to mitigating the negative impact of the poultry industry on the planet and human health.”