MAASTRICHT, Netherlands, Sept. 25, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Mosa Meat, the European food technology company which introduced the world's first cultured beef hamburger in 2013, announced the first closing of $55M as part of a larger Series B funding round.
Mosa Meat will use the funds to extend its current pilot production facility at its home in Maastricht, develop an industrial-sized production line, expand its team, and introduce delicious cultivated beef to consumers. While no date has been announced for an introduction to consumers, the company will work with regulators to demonstrate the safety of cultivated beef, in order to achieve regulatory approval to serve consumers in Europe who are craving change.
The Series B funding round is led by Luxembourg-based Blue Horizon Ventures, the food technology fund that aims to support and promote a positive global impact on the environment, human health, and animal welfare. Dr. Regina Hecker is joining the board with special focus on science, scaling and regulatory. They are joined by Bell Food Group, M Ventures and other mission-based investors and advisors.
Mosa Meat, which now has a team of 50 scientists, engineers and food-lovers, has reached critical technical milestones in 2019 and 2020 including an 88x reduction in growth medium cost, and removing Fetal Bovine Serum from the production process.
"We are very excited to welcome our new partners and see existing partners continue our journey together" said Maarten Bosch, CEO of Mosa Meat. "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".
"We are excited to be joining Mosa Meat as lead investor in this round" said Dr. Regina Hecker, Partner at Blue Horizon Ventures. "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".
This funding round follows a successful Series A round in 2018, which included investments by M Ventures, Bell Food Group, Nutreco and Lowercarbon Capital.
PRESS CONTACT
For more information and interview requests, please contact:
[English] Sarah Lucas: +44 7828 362 223, sarah@mosameat.com
[Dutch] Tim van de Rijdt: +316 1241 2434, tim@mosameat.com
Photographs and videos are available for media use at Mosa Meat's press kit, and in highest resolution in this folder.
ABOUT MOSA MEAT
Mosa Meat is a Netherlands-based food technology company pioneering a cleaner, kinder way of making real beef. Mosa Meat's founders, Mark Post and Peter Verstrate, introduced the world's first cultivated beef hamburger in 2013, by growing it naturally from cow cells. Founded in 2016, Mosa Meat is now scaling up production of the same beef that people love, but that's kinder to animals, better for the environment, and safer to eat. A diverse and growing team of food-loving problem-solvers, they are united in their mission to fundamentally reshape the global food system. ''
Learn more at www.mosameat.com.
ABOUT BLUE HORIZON VENTURES
Blue Horizon Ventures was founded in 2018 by serial entrepreneurs and investors Roger Lienhard and Michael Kleindl with €150M assets under management. The fund aims to support the movement towards a more sustainable food system through innovation, technology and entrepreneurship. It puts special focus on plant-based, cultured meat, synthetic biology, and sustainability. The underlying mission of the fund is to promote a positive global impact on the environment, human health and animal welfare. One of its requirements is that all its portfolio companies contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals 2030 set by the UN General Assembly.
Learn more at www.bluehorizonventures.com.
ABOUT M VENTURES
M Ventures is the strategic, corporate venture capital arm of Merck. Its mandate is to invest in
innovative technologies and products with the potential to significantly impact Merck's core
business areas. From our headquarters in Amsterdam and offices in the US and Israel we
invest globally in transformational ideas driven by great entrepreneurs. M Ventures takes an
active role in its portfolio companies and teams up with entrepreneurs and co-investors to
translate innovation towards commercial success. M Ventures has a significant focus on early stage investing and company creation including the creation of spin-offs to leverage Merck's
science and technology base.
Learn more at www.m-ventures.com
ABOUT BELL FOOD GROUP
The Bell Food Group is one of the leading meat processors and convenience specialists in
Europe. Its range of products includes meat, poultry, charcuterie, seafood as well as fresh and
non-perishable convenience products. With the brands Bell, Hilcona, Eisberg and Hügli, the
Group meets a diversity of customer needs. Its customers include the retail trade as well as the
food service sector and the food processing industry. More than 12,000 employees generate
annual revenues of around CHF 4 billion. The Bell Food Group is listed on the Swiss stock
exchange.
Learn more at www.bellfoodgroup.com
