◥ Good Startup Raises US$25M to Build Sustainable Food Ecosystems via Alternative Proteins
Good Protein Fund I will channel investment raised in the first close to help alternative protein startups improve food and ecological sustainability
SINGAPORE, 3 June 2021 – Good Startup, a venture capital firm seeking to remove animals from the food system, announced that it has successfully raised US$25 million following the first close of its Good Protein Fund I. The first close of the Fund – a cross-border venture capital fund that invests in alternative protein companies – exclusively comprises individual investors and family offices.
Notable investors who took part in this round include Anil Thadani (Chairman, Symphony Asia Holdings Pte. Ltd.), Tan Kim Seng (Chairman, Kim Seng Holdings Pte. Ltd.) and a consortium of senior partners from one of the big 3 premium consulting firms who have invested in their individual capacity as angel investors.
Good Startup believes that sustainable innovation must happen in the global food ecosystem. This is not only to feed the world’s estimated 10 billion population by 2050 1 and a simultaneous 70 percent increase in protein demand, but to also use methods that are also less environmentally demanding. It has been found that animal food production contributes more to global warming than even transportation and is the leading cause of deforestation, ocean dead zones and species extinction.
The continued reliance on animals for food has also raised human exposure to zoonotic diseases. The United Nations’ Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) found that most human diseases originate in animals and most antibiotics globally need to be administered to animals. 2
“For years, food ecosystem stakeholders had to balance the need to meet food security needs while also balancing the toll that animal food production takes on our world. Yet, the growing role of the biotechnology sector in producing alternative proteins can give us the same food we enjoy with less impact on our environment. This can only be achieved by supporting biotech food companies to scale globally, especially in markets that still depend heavily on meat,” said Gautam Godhwani, Managing Partner, Good Startup.
Good Startup will use the capital raised from Good Protein Fund I’s to invest in a total of 32 companies. To date, the company has invested in six alternative protein startups which include Eat Just, TurtleTree Labs (“TurtleTree”), Avant Meats, Rebellyous Foods, Cultured Decadence, and Novel Farms. In addition to funding, Good Protein Fund I will actively work with these companies in a range of operational areas. These include IP protection, organisation design, scaling-up, hiring, and fundraising strategies.
“The future of the world’s food ecosystem rests on these next generation companies. In order for them to meet their sustainable food production goals, they require investors and partners that can guide them throughout their journey. Being a cross-border fund that invests in alternative protein companies globally, we are especially excited about alternative protein ecosystem’s potential in rapidly emerging markets like Southeast Asia where we currently have a rich pipeline of deals that we are actively working on and expect to make announcements soon,” said Jayesh Parekh, Managing Partner, Good Startup.
With its strategic location within the Southeast Asian market – which is experiencing a surge in demand for protein alternatives due to growing health and environmental consciousness 3 – Good Startup recently received its Venture Capital Fund Management license in Singapore by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
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About Good Startup
Good Startup is a venture capital firm with a mission to remove animals from the global food ecosystem. Led by a team of globally experienced entrepreneurial and impact investment experts, the firm manages Good Protein Fund I, which invests in alternative protein companies seeking to create a sustainable future for all by using biotechnology to solve food challenges while leaving minimal environmental footprints.
As a firm that is serving as a bridge between growing alternative protein ecosystems in the US and Asia, Good Startup has invested in a variety of global alternative proteins startups around the world which include Eat Just, Rebellyous Foods, Avant Meats, Turtletree Labs, Cultured Decadence, and Novel Farms. The firm is also a Venture Capital Fund Management entity licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
For more information, please visit: http://www.goodstartup.com