TurtleTree Raises $30M First Tranche of Series A

November 5, 2021

By Lynda Kiernan-Stone, Global AgInvesting Media

Co-founded by company CEO Fengru Lin and Chief Strategist Max Rye, Singapore-based TurtleTree Labs is one of the world’s first startups to apply the latest cutting-edge advancements in biotechnology to create real milk from cells. 

Highly acknowledged for its novel use of cell biology technology, TurtleTree announced it has raised $30 million in the first tranche of Series A funding led by VERSO Capital, representing one of the largest round to-date in Asia’s cell-based food sector, and bringing funding to-date for the company to exceed $40 million. 

“We are incredibly touched by the degree of faith all our investors have placed in TurtleTree and our unique vision of food,” said Fengru Lin, CEO, TurtleTree. “Amplified by the relentless backing of parties like VERSO Capital, the Series A funds will allow us to scale up our processes and come a huge step closer to creating a new era of sustainable nutrition.”

Protein alternatives, both plant-based and cell-cultivated, have been receiving a lot of attention and investor capital in recent years. Startups are in the trenches working to develop lab-created beef, poultry, and seafood, however, lab-cultivated dairy is a relative newcomer.

Using a unique proprietary technology that uses mammary cells, TurtleTree Labs has achieved a significant breakthrough – the ability to create real milk without animals or humans. This development has the potential to disrupt not only the multi-billion dollar global dairy industry, but the infant formula industry as well, all while reducing the global carbon footprint.

Reflective of its intentions for a U.S. expansion, last month the company announced the opening of its 24,000 square-foot R&D facility in Sacramento, California. The world-class research hub was created to drive the development of precision fermentation technologies used to produce dairy ingredients.

In addition to driving R&D, the facility also will act as a conduit for TurtleTree to engage and partner with educational institutions, investors, research partners such as JSBiosciences and Dyadic International, strategic partners such as Solar Biotech, and potential customers. 

“Establishing this R&D facility in Greater Sacramento marks the first step towards bringing our unique products from development to market, one that we’re very glad will help unlock new opportunities within the local community,” said Lin. “We’re eagerly looking forward to working with the brilliant talent in the area and building a future generation of nutrition that we can all enjoy for decades to come.”

Having established this facility, the funds raised through this tranche will be used by the company to continue advancing its portfolio of sustainable, better-for-you foods. Funds also will be earmarked for technology development and the acquisition of more talent as it grows its R&D teams.

“The funding received has truly opened up a new world of possibility,” said Max Rye, chief strategy officer, TurtleTree. “We can now set our sights on turning ambitions to reality, starting with our U.S.-based expansion plans and then moving on to the development and manufacture of our first consumer-ready products.”

Combined, the opening of its new facility and the funds raised through this round will serve TurtleTree as it scales up both its research and the production of the highly functional ingredients found in human milk. These ingredients deliver proven benefits for immune system functions, gut health, and cognitive development. One such ingredient – lactoferrin, a bioactive protein found in both human and cow milk – is the pipeline for launch as TurtleTree’s first commercial product targeting both the infant nutrition and sports nutrition categories as soon as mid-2022.

Julien Machot, managing partner at VERSO Capital, commented on TurtleTree’s great prospects, saying,  “At VERSO, we highly value TurtleTree’s unique positioning in the industry and its farsighted mission of creating a sustainable and cruelty-free food system. After developing a deep understanding of the company and its team, we are confident in TurtleTree’s potential as a cell-based technology platform that will transform the food industry. VERSO Capital will share its wealth of knowledge in corporate finance and operations to help the company validate its unit economics and the overall business plan with its very first key accounts.”

Looking to the future, TurtleTree said it plans to expand into a global biotechnology platform with a mission to transform cellular agriculture, food systems, and performance nutrition. Ultimately, the company envisions a future where it delivers scalable solutions to the cell-based food industry that will ensure that all people have affordable and sustainable access to nutritious mammalian milk.

 

– Lynda Kiernan-Stone is editor with GAI Media, and is managing editor and daily contributor for Global AgInvesting’s AgInvesting Weekly News and  Agtech Intel News, as well as HighQuest Group’s Oilseed & Grain NewsShe can be reached at lkiernan-stone@globalaginvesting.com

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