Mushrooms continue to be an important area for alternative proteins. Canada-based Maia Farms recently raised $1.7 million to develop a blend of mushrooms and plant-based protein using biomass fermentation. There are also MyForest Foods and Fable Food.
Then there’s Meati Foods, which claims it’s no other alternative protein. The company makes schnitzels and steaks from mycelium, or mushroom roots.
“It’s truly a revolutionary next-generation protein,” CEO Phil Graves told TechCrunch. “It is a product rooted in nature. It is not genetically modified. We simply take something from nature, channel it, and give it the nutrients and minerals it needs to thrive. Then in four or five days we get the equivalent of hundreds of cows’ worth of protein.”
Perhaps that’s why Meati continues to secure major funding.
Carne Asada Steaks product from Meati Foods. (Image credit: Meati Foods)
On Wednesday, the Boulder, Colorado-based company announced it would raise an additional $100 million in a C-1 round. Existing investor Grosvenor Food & AgTech led the round and was supported by other existing investors including Prelude Ventures, BOND, Revolution Growth and Congruent. Grosvenor is a major food and agricultural investor and has previously backed companies such as AgriWebb and The Every Co.
These large rounds add to the significant amount of venture capital Meati Foods has raised over the past two years. An initial $150 million was announced in July 2022, and this round raised an additional $22 million in January 2023, before finally closing a $200 million Series C later in 2023.
Much of the company’s investment went into the 100,000 square foot “Mega Ranch” facility, which allows Meati to produce tens of millions of pounds of protein annually.
However, not everything was rosy for the company. This new funding comes three months after Meati Foods laid off 13% of its employees. At the same time, the company’s co-founder, Tyler Huggins, stepped down as CEO and moved into the role of Chief Innovation Officer. That’s when Graves, the company’s chief financial officer at the time, took the helm.
After this latest round, Huggins, who co-founded the company with Justin Whiteley, will move into an advisory role.
In addition to the funding, Meati Foods is adding 2,000 retail locations carrying its products and will now join Kroger’s family of stores starting in April. Three products from the Eat Meati line will be available, including the Classic Schnitzel and Classic and Carne Asada steaks.
In just over a year, the company grew from six retail locations to nearly 7,000 stores nationwide. It is also available at Super Target, Whole Foods Market, Sprouts Farmers Market, Meijer and Wegmans.
The company is usually silent about its growth, and this time was no different. Graves said the Mega Ranch facility is fully operational. Last year, Huggins told TechCrunch that at full capacity the facility would be capable of producing 45 million pounds of product annually.
“Capital is basically accelerating that growth trajectory,” Graves said. “We will continue this rapid pace of growth. We are thrilled that our growth is still underway despite all the headwinds. And our investors understand that. The product is best in class and the growth is there. We need to connect the capital with the business to continue the momentum.”
As part of the new investment, Mark Cupta from Prelude Ventures and Katrin Burt from Grosvenor Food & AgTech have joined the company as new board members.