The new funding will initially go toward continuing the development of the company's platform technology and accelerate from lab to pilot scale
Start-up Meala FoodTech, Ltd., the developer of a functional protein platform, announced the close of $1.9M in pre-seed investment. The round was led by The Kitchen FoodTech Hub, part of The Strauss-Group and DSM Venturing (the corporate venture arm of the Dutch multinational Royal DSM); with participation of Milk & Honey Ventures, specializing in alt-protein investments DSM Venturing's contribution marks its third investment in the Israeli FoodTech ecosystem in 2022.
While the plant-based category continues to gain momentum, alt-protein food formulators still struggle to improve the labels and mouthfeel of their products to match traditional, animal-based counterparts. Currently, popular meat alternatives such as veggie burgers and sausages, typically contain a long list of ingredients, some with complex chemical names unfamiliar to consumers.