UK tempeh brand Better Nature has launched a crowdfunding campaign on Seedrs with the aim of raising over £1 million. The campaign opened to the public yesterday (October 2).
The funding will be used to drive mainstream retail growth for Better Nature, consolidating its position as a leading European tempeh brand. The company aims to “transform the meat-free aisle”, as consumers increasingly seek less processed plant-based options.
The news follows a hugely successful year for Better Nature, with the company launching in Germany and securing its first UK supermarket listing at Tesco. Better Nature also launched a £3 million Series A round in May, and rolled out at all 966 UK Lidl stores in July as part of the retailer’s Vegan Week.
“There’s a growing demand for brands that can offer natural and nutritious plant-forward foods with recognisable ingredients that shoppers can trust, and our Seedrs raise is an exciting opportunity to lead the charge into this new plant-forward era,” said Better Nature Co-Founder and CEO Christopher Kong. “We’d love as many people as possible to join our mission to get 500 million people eating tempeh by 2030.”
New appointment
As Better Nature enters its next stage of growth, the company has appointed Fiona Fitzpatrick — a business coach and the founder of Brand Growth Heroes — as Non-Executive Director. Fitzpatrick has previously helped companies such as dessert brand Gü and frozen plant-based producer Strong Roots to scale globally, along with mentoring over 300 scaling brands through accelerator programmes.
“It’s fantastic to be joining Better Nature at this crucial stage in their journey,” said Fitzpatrick. “As a plant-based brand championing natural and nutritious foods, the business is perfectly poised to steer the meat-free category into a new phase of growth.
“I met Christopher, Elin, Fabio, and Driando on a trip to London earlier this year and was struck by their incredible intelligence, passion, values, and determination to make tempeh the mainstream choice for people looking for better sources of plant protein. I’m looking forward to sharing my 25 years’ experience in driving growth and building leaders in the food industry, and supporting these incredible founders on their journey.”
