Swiss cultivated meat company MIRAI FOODS increases funding to $4.5 million
Closing a new $2.2 million round
MIRAI FOODS, Switzerland’s first and to date only cultivated meat start-up, has raised an additional $2.2 million in the second closing of Seed financing. This brings the total funding of the Seed round to $4.5 million.
The new and existing backers of the company include German Family Office FRIBA Investment, Swiss Advanced Nutrition & Biotech VC Skyviews Life Science, Zürich based serial entrepreneur and tech investor Ulf Claesson, food company Paulig through its venture arm PINC, and technology investor Team Europe.
“With the additional investment, we are in an excellent position to strengthen the team and speed up our research. This investment is critical for our mission to provide delicious, high-quality cultivated meat at a fair price. Our partners not only share our mission but also have great strategic and operational capabilities”, said Christoph Mayr, Co-Founder and CEO of MIRAI.
“Cultivated meat will be a key contributor to 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”, added Stefan Catsicas, Managing Partner at Skyviews Life Science.
The company will use the funds to accelerate product development through expanding the team, improving in-house lab capabilities, and building a pilot production plant. MIRAI will move into their new lab and office space this summer.
MIRAI’s long-term goal is to produce natural meat without the need for slaughtering animals. Importantly, no genetic modification is used in the company’s proprietary process. The company is creating its products with EU consumer preferences in mind, with a focus on producing a healthy product. Whilst the company aims to produce a variety of product lines to maximize the impact of cellular agriculture on animal welfare and environmental goals, their first product will be beef, as it has the largest greenhouse gas footprint.
