Cell-Based Pioneer Mosa Meat Closes US$55 Series B Round

Mosa Meat, the Dutch company behind the world’s first cell-based beef burger which the startup debuted in 2013, has just announced the closing of a US$55 million Series B round. The company will be using the capital injection to develop an industrial production line and expand its team, bringing it one step closer towards commercialisation. 

The Series B financing was led by Luxembourg-based alternative protein fund Blue Horizon Ventures, with participation from Bell Food Group, M Ventures, Nutreco, Merck Ventures and Agronomics. Dr. Regina Hecker, partner at Blue Horizon Ventures, will be joining Mosa Meat’s board with a “special focus on science, scaling and regulatory” issues.

With their support and capabilities, we have the opportunity to take the next concrete steps to scale production, make progress towards a cleaner, kinder way of making real beef, and ultimately increase the resilience, sustainability, and safety of our global food system.

Maarten Bosch, CEO of Mosa Meat

The food tech says that it will be using the funds to extend its existing Maastricht-based pilot production facility with an industrial-sized production line and grow its team. While no specific date has been set for the company to bring its products to market, Mosa Meat says that the funds marks a step forward in this direction and that it will begin working with regulators to achieve approval in the European market. 

“We are very excited to welcome our new partners and see existing partners continue our journey together,” said Maarten Bosch, CEO of Mosa Meat, in a press release.

“With their support and capabilities, we have the opportunity to take the next concrete steps to scale production, make progress towards a cleaner, kinder way of making real beef, and ultimately increase the resilience, sustainability, and safety of our global food system.” 

“Following a thorough investigation of its technology and team, we are convinced that Mosa Meat is strongly placed to pioneer the scale-up of cultured meat,” added Hecker. 

Since its inception in 2013, the company has made headlines for unveiling the world’s first cruelty-free cultivated beef hamburger made using cow’s cells, without the need for slaughter. The food tech’s team has now grown to 50 scientists and engineers, and has achieved critical milestones in the past year, including the feat of reducing the cost of its growth medium by 88-fold, and removing fetal bovine serum from the process to ensure a 100% animal-free product.

Following a thorough investigation of its technology and team, we are convinced that Mosa Meat is strongly placed to pioneer the scale-up of cultured meat.

Dr. Regina Hecker, Partner at Blue Horizon Ventures

The funding news follows multiple plant-based and cultivated food tech investment announcements in recent months. Investor sentiment for traditional animal agriculture companies has gone awry, especially in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, which has exposed severe vulnerabilities in the global food supply chain. 

In just the first quarter of 2020 alone, plant-based and cell-based protein companies in the United States together have raised a total of US$930 million in investment, according to a Good Food Institute report. 

Lead image courtesy of Mosa Meat.