The Spanish plant-based meat startup Heura Foods has successfully closed its Series B, securing €40 (£34.2) million, in what is one of the largest investments in a vegan company in 2023. Marking a milestone in the company’s trajectory, this investment will allow Heura to accelerate its business vision to increase profitability, drive innovation and expand it’s portfolio of tech patents.
Participants in the Series B round include Upfield, Unovis Asset Management, European Circular Bioeconomy Fund (ECBF VC), and New Tree Impact; a strategic coalition that builds one of the biggest plant-based alliances, forming a board that will focus on top-noch tech, setting new industry standards, accelerate international expansion, explore new collaboration models and ultimately allow Heura to boost its impact in the food industry.
David Haines, Group CEO of Upfield said, “We’re excited to be leading Heura’s latest investment round and partnering with a pioneering food-tech focused on making waves with clean label technologies that deliver both on nutrition and taste”.
He added; ‘We look forward to supporting Heura’s team in accelerating the plant-based transition, aligned on a joint mission to transform the global food system to one that offers consumers more affordable and delicious plant-based options, shaping the Future of Food.”
Founded in 2017, Heura makes clean plant-based protein substitutes for chicken, beef, pork and fish with a nod to Mediterranean cuisine throughout their 19-strong line-up. High quality ingredients like extra virgin olive oil, clean labels, high nutritional values, and an incredible flavours all contribute to the Mediterranean culinary heritage of the brand.
In April, the company filed its first patent for a pioneering thermomechanical processing technique that creates vegan products which are free from additives, with a shorter ingredients list and higher nutritional value, creating plant-based alternatives with superior taste and texture.
Within a mere five months of filing for this patent, this method has been applied in producing the first additive-free “york-style” deli meats, which in just three months is the top rotating product per store/day.
Currently, Heura is present in over 22,000 points of sale in 20 countries across the world – leading the alternative protein sector growth in Spain, and rapidly consolidating their footprint across key markets such as the United Kingdom, France and Italy. This funding injection will drive the company to profitability and solidify its position as an industry frontrunner, confirming Heura’s tech as a unique competitive advantage and prospective to become the European Champion.
“We are thrilled as this is a recognition of Heura’s vision at the forefront of Europe’s protein transition” stated Marc Coloma CEO and co-founder of Heura Foods, “this new chapter will drive us to profitability while allowing us to develop breakthrough tech to tackle the key challenges within the industry in an scalable way”.
