Rebellyous Foods, a startup developing production technology in the plant-based meat industry, announced that it has raised USD6m in Series A funding co-led by Clear Current Capital, Fifty Years, Liquid 2 Ventures, and other investors that include Vulcan Capital, the investment arm of Vulcan Inc., the company founded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen.
Founded and led by Christie Lagally, a former Boeing engineer, Rebellyous develops next-generation plant-based nuggets. The company says it will use this investment to accelerate its development of replicable, novel equipment and standardized facilities; fast-track its manufacturing scaleup; immediately hire equipment and mechanical engineers at its Seattle research facility; and expand product development to broaden its portfolio. As a part of the investment round, Ela Madej, founding partner at Fifty Years, was added to Rebellyous Foods’ board.
“Bird flu, swine flu, and now COVID-19 demonstrate that keeping large numbers of animals in close contact with one another presents a tremendous risk for global health”, Christie Lagally, Rebellyous founder and CEO said. “However, to transition away from our heavy dependence on meat, it’s critical that we make plant-based meat affordable and widely available through innovative production technology. At Rebellyous, our mission is to make plant-based meat that is better than animal meat in every way, from price and convenience to taste and nutrition.”
Plant-based chicken is poised for a significant segment growth, but only if it can be produced at a cost and in quantities that rival the poultry industry.