Folia ©Matthew Kenney Cuisine

Gastronomy & Food Service

Vegan Prince Khaled and Chef Matthew Kenney Launch Folia Plant-Based Menus Across Saudi Arabia

Two leading lights in the global vegan scene, Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed and Matthew Kenney, have teamed up to launch “Folia” multi-course plant-based menus in Saudi Arabia. Folia is a collaborative menu between Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed’s KBW Ventures and Matthew Kenney Cuisine, and will be launched for Riyadh Season – the two-month-long city-wide celebrations of the Saudi Arabian capital.  “On a personal level, the launch of Folia for Riyadh Season is truly the biggest moment in our collaboration with Chef Kenney to date” – Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed Using local Saudi ingredients to create multi-course dining experiences at the Kingdom Centre Four Seasons Hotel Riyadh, Matthew Kenney embraces the concept that “the future of food is plant-based,” and elevates healthy dining in settings of …

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Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud(1)

HRH Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud © KBW Ventures

Fairs & Events

Vegan Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed to Join Panel on Promoting Food Security Through Agri-Food Innovation

KBW Ventures founder and CEO, Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed, will join industry experts next month for the 2021 World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit on a panel discussion under the banner of Accessing New Market Opportunities. The vegan Prince and his VC firm have funded the future of plant-based business on a global level through investments such as Rebellyous Foods; the Furahaa Group, which aims to be the first plant-based fast food chain in France; plant-based jerky producer Moku Foods; and Singapore’s Turtle Tree Labs, amongst many others. Speaking in interview with vegconomist last year, Prince Khaled enthused: “I advocate for realistic progress; not crazy ideas that will never happen. I believe that having this discussion rationally and presenting people with options that taste great – not …

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©Furahaa Group

Investments & Finance

Furahaa Group Receives Investment From Prince Khaled, Aims to Be First Plant-Based Chain in France

KBW Ventures, founded by CEO Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed, today announced its investment in French startup Furahaa Group, marking the first investment made in France by KBW Ventures. Based in Paris, the mission-driven startup is an inclusive workplace addressing the French market’s need for plant-based options and alternative proteins at price parity. “It’s simple: we want to be everywhere that mainstream fast food is.” Furahaa Group is a three-pronged entity that has both B2B and B2C segment, founded in 2015 by young entrepreneur Arthur Devillers, which has three operating subsidiaries: PlantB2B, ViVeg, and its eponymous dining venue, Furahaa. Plant B2B is a supply chain and distribution entity that also stocks the Group’s restaurants, while ViVeg is one of the company’s B2C arms with a vegan …

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Moku jerky

©Moku Foods

Startups, Accelerators & Incubators

Matt Feldman of Moku Foods: How to Create an Investible Plant-Based Brand

Matt Feldman is the CEO and co-founder of Moku Foods, a meat alternative brand turning clean label, plant-based ingredients into products that emulate the taste and texture of meat. Moku launched its first product, a plant-based jerky, in December 2020. Moku is backed by the founders of Thrive Market, Casper, Soylent, and Mendocino Farms as well as VC heavyweights, Siddhi Capital and Vanterra Capital. Additional investors include Mana Ventures, Barrel Ventures and KBW Ventures.  In 2020, Moku earned a coveted spot in Amazon’s invitation-only Emerging Brands Program and Matt was listed on Forbes 30 Under 30. Here Matt offers insight into how up-and-coming product founders can create a brand designed to attract investors. How I Created an Investable Food Brand – and How You Can, Too …

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HRH Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud, founder and CEO, KBW Ventures

HRH Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud © KBW Ventures

Interviews

Vegconomist in Conversation With Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed

HRH Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of KBW Ventures and the Founding Chairman of KBW Investments, which has funded extensively in the area of alternative proteins through a portfolio that includes several vegconomist favourites such as Rebellyous Foods, Turtle Tree Labs, Matthew Kenney, BlueNalu, Memphis Meats, Moku Foods, and Bond Pet Foods

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Moku Foods plant-based jerky

© Moku Foods

Company News

Moku: Forbes Under 30 Entreprenreur and Former JUST Head Chef Create Plant-Based Beef

Hawaiian brand Moku, producer of plant-based beef jerky, has received financial backing from a plethora of investors from the plant-based world, including KBW Ventures, the VC firm headed by Saudi Arabia’s vegan Prince Khaled Alwaleed bin Talal. Moku explains to vegconomist that the jerky goes through a three-step proprietary process which is similar to how a chef would prepare meat.

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TurtleTree Labs

©TurtleTree Labs

Company News

TurtleTree Labs, World’s First Company to Create Milk From Cells, Closes Pre Seed Round

Biotech startup TurtleTree Labs, has announced a pre-seed round to create real milk from animal cells, with no animals required. The investment round, led by Lever VC and with participation from vegan Prince Khaled’s KBW Ventures, will be used to acquire additional scientists and to create additional prototypes.

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HRH Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud, founder and Chief Executive of KBW Ventures

HRH Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud, founder and Chief Executive of KBW Ventures

Society

Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed to Open 30 Vegan Restaurants in Middle East

Vegan Prince Khaled, prolific investor of numerous vegan businesses across the world, has revealed plans to open 30 restaurants across the middle east. The plans are part of the Folia partnership, Prince Khaled’s consultancy and teaching partnership with vegan chef Matthew Kenney. Folia’s first plant-based menu – with ten items created by chef Kenney – became available earlier this year at the Four Seasons Hotel in Los Angeles.

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