Berlin-based ProVeg Incubator today reveals the five impact-driven startups that have been selected for the 12th cohort of its accelerator programme, designed for alt-protein startups driving food system transformation.
This year’s programme has been revised and improved in order to create more opportunities for the participants to take their business to the next level. With an extension from 12 weeks to 20 weeks, the incubator now offers a kick-off week in Berlin for the founders to meet and attend workshops and events in-person, as well as additional mentoring and business support. The startups will take part in a series of workshops, fireside chats, and speaker-led sessions throughout the 20-week programme.
ProVeg Incubator alumni that have gone on to succeed in their respective fields include Better Nature tempeh, Omni pet food, Hooked alt seafood; and vly Foods plant milk, to name a few. Better Nature in particular has seen immense success in its domestic market and recently became the UK’s fastest-growing wholefood protein brand.
The 12th cohort
The five selected startups are working on the development of cultivated wild-caught marine white fish; a novel mycelium delivery platform enabling technologies for cultivated meat and seafood; pet food featuring cultivated ingredients; and B2B protein ingredients made with microalgae and water lentils.
Friends & Family Pet Food Company (USA)
Co-founded by Joshua Errett, formerly of Because, Animals, along with Jonny Cruz and Dr Sarah Dodd, this new startup is working on the development of next-gen pet food leveraging yeast and cultivated ingredients, with an emphasis on nutrition. The products are designed to meet the protein requirements for both cats and dogs and are said to contain essential amino acids.
Atlantic Fish Co (USA)
Atlantic Fish Co was founded in 2022 by Doug Grant and Trevor Ham and focuses on the cultivation of wild-caught marine white fish such as sea bass, snapper, flounder, and grouper.
This April, the North Carolina startup unveiled what it claims to be the world’s first cultivated black sea bass product. Read our recent interview with Doug Grant here.
Fisheroo (Singapore)
Singapore’s Fisheroo claims to be Southeast Asia’s first cell-based fish company and focuses on the $5 billion surimi industry. Currently in R&D, the startup says it developed a proprietary cell line within one month at its Singapore facility.
Founder Aaron Chua Yu Xiang is a biotechnologist by training and worked in the cultivated industry for three years, before going on to establish Fisheroo to develop enabling technologies for manufacturing companies to cultivate meat and seafood from cells in a more efficient and economical way.
Optimized Foods (USA)
Optimized Foods has developed a mycelium-based MycoCarrier technology platform, converting readily available food and ag feedstocks into high-value superfoods. Through the proprietary platform, founders Zane Starkewolfe, Cody Yothers, Minami Ogawa, Maja Segerman Nielsen, and Lynn Hanson are able to tune the texture, taste, and nutritional value of alternative protein products by encapsulating fats, flavours and nutrients.
AlProtein (Egypt/United States)
AIProtein says its “vision is to combat world hunger and leave a positive imprint on our climate by reducing the need for animal-based food. We’re dedicated to providing an eco-friendly, plant-based organic resource that caters to the nutritional needs of individuals globally”.
Founded by Omar Zaghloul and Mohamed Almoatasem, the startup develops protein ingredients using microalgae and water lentils, for use by plant-based meat and cheese manufacturers. Its AI-powered biomanufacturing technology produces high-quality proteins at scale, replacing synthetic additives and binders, without using any freshwater or arable land.
A new approach
The programme will conclude with an investor-focused demo day on Tuesday, 3 September 2024, at ProVeg International’s annual New Food Conference in Berlin. The startups will pitch on stage to an audience of investors, media, retailers, distributors, and other food-tech industry professionals from all over the world. Some of the Incubator’s alumni startups will also pitch on stage at the event.
“We’re delighted to introduce this new-look programme for our 12th cohort. The new approach allows us to spend more time working with each startup, and really leverage our resources to bring more value to each of them. The companies will also have more time to apply their learnings and build relationships with their mentors and the incubator’s network,” explains Antje Räuscher, Co-head at the ProVeg Incubator.
“We’ve been continuously improving and evolving the programme over the past five years. These changes further underpin our commitment to offering the best experience for our startups,” she adds.
For more information and to book a free ticket, visit new-food-conference.com/berlin.
