Investors pledge 4.5 million US dollars for cultivated meat

Mirai Foods has raised a total of 4.5 million US dollars in fresh capital from investors. As the clean meat start-up announced at the end of January, it successfully raised around 2.4 million US dollars in a first seed round tranche. The start-up has now provided an update after generating additional investment totaling roughly 2.2 million US dollars in a second tranche.

Mirai Foods produces meat in laboratory settings. This ensures that its products are free from animal cruelty. To achieve this, muscle and fat cells are reproduced for the cultivation of GM-free meat. With the additional funding, product development is to be further accelerated, while new team members will also be brought on board, according to a press release issued on Monday. Furthermore, Mirai Foods is planning to expand its proprietary lab in Wädenswil in the canton of Zurich as well as constructing a pilot production system. “This investment is critical for our mission to provide delicious, high quality cultivated meat at a fair price”, comments Christoph Mayr, co-founder and CEO of Mirai Foods, in the press release.

In addition to existing investors from the first seed round in January, namely the venture capital arm of the Finnish food producers Paulig, PINC, and the global technology holding Team Europe, a further three investors have now participated in Mirai Foods: the Zurich-based serial entrepreneur Ulf Claesson, Friba Investment from northern Germany and the consultancy firm Skyviews Life Science, which specializes in the fields of biotechnology, nutrition and digital health.

Stefan Catsicas, Managing Partner at Skyviews Life Science, is anticipating that cultivated meat will become a cornerstone of a sustainable global food system. “At the interface between food science and tissue engineering, MIRAI is one of the leading next generation companies and we are delighted to be part of their journey”, he explains.