Congruent Ventures has returned for a $50m series B round that will allow Meati to complete a commercial production plant in time for a market launch next year.

Meati, a US-based alternative meat producer, has raised $50m in a series B round backed by Congruent Ventures, the sustainability-focused venture capital fund aligned with University of California, Forbes reported yesterday. Acre Venture Partners co-led the round together with venture capital firm Bond. The round also attracted Prelude Ventures and Tao Capital. Founded in 2016, Meati creates vegetarian versions of food items such as steaks and chicken breasts by fermenting mycelium – essentially the roots of mushrooms. Meati is set up as a public benefit corporation, reportedly the only one in the sector. The company was co-founded by chief executive Tyler Huggins and chief technology officer Justin Whiteley following their PhDs at University of Colorado Boulder. The series B capital has been allocated to the completion of an 80,000-square-foot production facility ahead of a commercial launch next year. Meati previously obtained $28m in a series A round backed by Congruent Ventures, Acre Venture Partners, Prelude Ventures, Tao Capital and private investors in November 2020. Congruent had already led a $4.8m round in 2019, with participation from Prelude Ventures, Better Ventures, 50 Years, New Crop Capital, The March Fund I, Trust Ventures, Bluestein & Associates and unnamed others. Social Starts is also a shareholder. – This article was amended on July 7, 2021 to remove a reference to Campbell Soup, which has sold its stake in Acre Venture Partners since the firm made its initial investment.

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Thierry Heles

Thierry Heles is the editor of Global University Venturing, host of the Beyond the Breakthrough interview podcast and responsible for the monthly GUV Gazette (sign up here for free).