Who We Are
Big Idea Ventures is solving the World’s Biggest Challenges by supporting the World’s Best Entrepreneurs. We’re a venture capital fund with startup accelerators in key locations, investing in and accelerating top performers in the new food space.
NEW PROTEIN FUND AND ACCELERATOR
Our first fund, The New Protein Fund I (size USD$50M), is investing in the most innovative companies working on plant-based meat, seafood and dairy products, cell-based meat, seafood and dairy products, as well as ingredients and technologies that facilitate the growth of these categories. We combine capital, mentorship and a strong ecosystem of partners to support and grow the world’s most compelling plant-based and cell-based alternative protein companies. If you are a young company focused on plant-based or cell-based foods, ingredients or technologies, apply here.
GENERATION FOOD FUND
Generation Food Fund I (size USD$250M) invests in Series A and later stage companies that will drive sustainability across the global food supply chain. With a focus on technologies to reduce plastics, carbon emissions, water and waste across the food chain, Generation Food will fuel the next generation of food technology companies that will transform the global food system. The fund will partner with the United Nations Development Programme to review portfolio companies for their sustainability impact both at the time of investment and at exit. If you are a later stage technology company in the food industry with the capability to reduce plastics, water, waste or carbon emissions, reach out here.
Our Limited Partners
We select our Limited Partners based on their leadership position and their ability to strategically contribute to our portfolio companies. We are the leader in our chosen stage and area of investment which ensures top quality deal flow and our ability to build the strongest coalition of global Limited Partners of our funds. If you are interested in investing, please reach out here.
Some of the largest multinationals, family offices and investors globally are also stakeholders in our funds.
Our Strategic Partners
We have and continue to build a consortium of trusted and valued partners that help our portfolio companies across all aspects of their business. These partners are a combination of corporate strategics, government departments, NGOs, family offices and business people who provide local and global expertise. If you have an interest in working more closely with Big Idea Ventures, contact us here.
New Protein Fund Accelerator
We invest USD$200K ($125K USD cash and $75K USD of in-kind value-adds) in the world’s best alternative protein companies twice per year. Over a 5 month period, we work side by side with our portfolio companies to help them prepare for massive growth and scale. Pre-Covid, our locations in New York City and Singapore allowed us to bring in world class mentors, advisors, investors, along with hungry customers. Post-Covid, we added a Paris accelerator location and have given our portfolio companies more access to global mentors and investors, providing all of our companies with the industry connections they need to make sure their products can scale to match their global ambitions.
Our cohorts begin each January and July annually, exact date TBA.
We are evaluating a combination of virtual/physical activities for our next program. To join our next cohort, apply here.
HOW
Success comes from a good strategy, working smart, being connected with the best experts and mentors, and funding. Our team has been in your shoes and has created a curriculum to make sure you get the support you need to succeed. The accelerator includes a blend of weekly board meetings, mentor engagement, peer support, team building, and access to an active network. Members of our team work directly with you and your company, adding our expertise to your team without reducing your bandwidth!
THE PROGRAM
Twice a year, we select the best alternative protein startups to undergo a rigorous 5-month accelerator program in New York City, Singapore or Paris. Through our program, we aim to help our companies break barriers on product development, scaling and distribution, market entry, channel development, pitching and fundraising. We make sure you have everything you need to succeed at scale both domestically and globally.
HOW
Having led other food accelerators, we went back to the drawing board and created a new approach to make sure you get the support you need to succeed. Our program combines capital and partnership in the form of mentor engagement, team building, peer support and access to an active network to help your company grow rapidly. Areas of focus include the whole spectrum of support for high growth food companies. Key areas of focus include those where young companies often have the toughest challenges. These areas of support include product improvement by leveraging on our in-house food scientists and also scaling production by bringing experts and partners in to support our portfolio companies.
THE DEAL
We invest USD$200K ($125K USD cash and $75K USD of in-kind services). Post-accelerator, we may invest up to USD$3.5M in our top performing companies. To join our next cohort, apply here.
EACH COMPANY RECEIVES
USD$125k Cash Investment & USD$75k
In-kind Investment
You Receive:
Office Space and Test Kitchen
We accelerate your business on both commercial and technical fronts - you get full access to our working spaces, studio and commercial kitchens, specialised laboratories and testing facilities regardless of which accelerator location you pick.
Team of Internal Experts
We have brought together a diverse team with experience leading other accelerators and strong credentials in scaling innovative food production to work hand-in-hand with you. We have team members with PhDs in Food Science and Technology who can provide technical support, as well as in-house experts on fundraising, marketing and publicity and legal issues. We empower startups via a wealth of resources, conducting weekly strategy meetings and inviting industry experts from our extensive network to hold sessions. We are invested in your success and continue our strategic support post-acceleration. Many of our companies have gained considerable traction since joining our program and raised substantial funding.
Wide Ecosystem of Connections
We currently run two accelerator programs, which gives you access to experts, mentors and alumni around the world. As you grow your business, we have the network to help you do so with impact and efficiency.
PR and Media Exposure
As the leading investor and accelerator in the alternative protein categories, we are central to the thought leadership happening daily. Take a look at our Media page and see the traction and exposure we and our portfolio companies are getting around the world.
Curated Investor Network
We have a strong ecosystem of investors in plant-based foods, cell-based foods, technologies and ingredient areas worldwide. Through introductions to investors in this ecosystem, many of our portfolio companies found the investors who participated in their six and seven figure rounds.
Discounts
Being a portfolio company under the leading investor and accelerator in plant-based and cell-based companies has its perks. We have relationships with world class service providers who want to do business with you and would offer discounts and incentives to get you onboard as customers.
Follow-on Investment
We invest up to USD$3.5M follow-on funding for our top performing companies.
Portfolio
We will invest in the best companies, with the most innovative technologies, around the world and have already made investments in the Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceania. Approximately half of our portfolio companies are led by female founders and our portfolio includes founders-of-colour as well. If you have a Minimum Viable Product in the plant-based or cell-based sector and would like support and funding, or are a later stage technology company in the food industry with the capability to reduce plastics, water, waste or carbon emissions, apply here.
Actual Veggies' mission is to provide vegans, flexitarians, and carnivores alike, with healthy, satisfying, environmentally friendly and delicious meal options. Their first product line is an always fresh, large 5oz vegetarian burger made with only real vegetables, natural binding units, no preservatives, and no additives. Their first four burgers are vibrantly color based and showcase their farm fresh veggies by looking and tasting like works of art.
Biftek.co utilizes a novel culture medium supplement formula to grow muscle stem cells. Currently, growing stem cells requires conventional fetal-bovine-serum (FBS) which makes up 80% to 90% of production costs. Biftek.co’s formulation will dramatically decrease the expenses related to creating cellular agriculture products, taking cultivated meats mainstream and delivering it to the masses!
Through a unique, analytical chemistry process, Black Sheep Foods is figuring out why wild and heritage meats taste the way they do. They are currently developing a method to generate flavor compounds using cellular agriculture and fermentation, to grow flavor compounds from specialized cells, isolate and purify each component of their flavor mixture, before finally combining this mixture with nutrients to create the unique flavors of the most delicious meats. Their first product, a New Zealand heritage lamb, puts the proof on the plate.
Confetti Fine Foods crafts marvellous, award-winning vegetable chips dressed in exotic, adventurous flavours. Venture-backed and based in Singapore and NYC, their scrumptious plant-based gourmet snacks are up-cycled from ugly produce, and deliver a punch of veggie goodness. A portion of all their proceeds go to the fight to end global hunger, and also contribute to efforts for environmental causes, with the support of 1 for a Better Planet, the Center for Responsible Future, and Business for Good.
Evo Foods is an Indian clean protein company, focused on recreating the foods we all love using indigenous plants. All of their products are going to be sustainable, healthy and tasty. First on the menu? Asia's first plant-based liquid eggs! To make their vision a reality, Evo Foods is leveraging India's crop biodiversity to create amazing products in India where they aim to partner with local chefs, high-end restaurants, and celebrities, to distribute and promote their product. Having partnered with more than 20+ brands of restaurants pre-launch, they aim to become the most trusted alternative protein company for 1 billion people of India.
With celebrated chef Alejandro Cancino at the helm, Fënn Foods has paved the way forwards toward a healthy, plant-based future for Australians since 2015. Their natural, high-quality and seriously delicious vegan fare puts sustainability at the heart of every decision - in fact, they are the first producer of carbon-neutral plant-based mince beef. Their smoky vEEF patties are already available in stores in Australia and Singapore, and they’re set to appeal to (and surprise) everyone.
Gaia Foods is South East Asia's first cultivated red meat company, aiming to provide meats that are clean and guilt-free for Asian consumers. They are using Stem Cells technology to produce meat that tastes and feels exactly like the meat that you love eating, without killing any animals in the process. Founded and led by Vinayaka Srinivas and Thanh Hung Nguyen, scientists by training with over 20+ years experience in Biological research, Gaia Foods is here to cater for the conscious consumer.
Gathered Foods
GOURMEY is France's first cultured meat company, reinventing France's most iconic delicacy: foie gras. Its mission is to accelerate the world’s transition toward humane, sustainable and healthy meat by harvesting it from animal cells. They aim to be a vertically integrated company, ‘from cells to fork’. Its business strategy consists of building a technology platform around duck stem cells that will give life to meat products sold under its consumer brand, which will be first distributed in premium channels like high-end restaurants.
Grounded Foods Co. creates Cheese-Free Cheeses using two of nature's superfoods: fermented cauliflower and hemp seed. Their products are free from dairy, nuts, soy, gluten and GMOs. The company will launch their first range of products via direct to consumer sales in November 2020, and quickly follow up with the release of their second-tier range, developed specifically for retail and convenience outlets.
Jellatech is the world’s first cell-based collagen and gelatin ingredient B2B company. Its mission is to efficiently produce pure, high quality, sustainable and customizable collagen and gelatin. With the proprietary technology, the company is building the supply chain of the future for these two ingredients without compromising animals in the process.
Karana is a whole-plant meat company with a vision for a world where plants dominate our plates. Where you don’t have to choose between taste, health or sustainability. Karana takes natural, whole-plant ingredients and does extraordinary things with them, creating irresistibly meaty products without the need for heavy processing or artificial nasties. Starting with a pork alternative which they also turn into delicious Asian Dim Sum, your favourite dumplings and baos now made from whole-plants...No protein isolates, concentrates or texturates...No preservatives or artificial flavors...No long ingredient lists...Whole-plant, no meat, all taste.
LVL Life produces functional and convenient plant-based superfood products to get us through our every day, at our very best. LVL is focused on their growing e-commerce and direct-to-consumer channels which have proved effective for sales, retention and feedback. In parallel, they are building demand by pushing products through offline retail as well as B2B channels such as Gyms, Corporate Offices and HoReCa (Hotels, Restaurants & Cafes). With the plant based beverages and functional beverages markets growing at CAGRs of 12% and 8.6% respectively, LVL Life is poised for success!
MeliBio is harnessing the power of microbiology to grow sustainable and clean honey, while positively impacting pollinator diversity. They are a B2B food ingredient biotechnology company. They deliver sustainable solutions for producing honey, found as a valuable ingredient across many FMCG categories. Their team has both business and scientific expertise, combined with a shared passion for food, ecological diversity, sustainability, and innovation.
New Wave Foods produces sustainable, plant-based shrimp that are every bit as delicious, and healthier for you and the environment. It contains zero cholesterol, and is 100% plant-based, sustainable, vegetarian and soon, kosher. The company hopes that eating New Wave Shrimp will allow each of us to make small changes in our lives that have big environmental impacts.
Novel Farms is serving a marbled, exquisite cultured meat product to the dinner table that is hard to resist: the next generation of Jamon Ibérico. They use synthetic biology to develop cruelty-free, affordable and tunable 3D scaffolds for the production of structured cell-based meat products. Not only will the technology improve the structure and marbling of cell-based meat, it will also have the potential to reduce manufacturing costs and make clean eating truly accessible for all.
Orbillion Bio is creating premium cell-based meat products from heritage cell lines, directly sourced from farmers. They are overcoming the biggest bottleneck hindering scale up of the cultivated meat industry by providing scalable cell lines from different breeds. Orbillion Bio sources cell lines from the best breeds through their tight collaborations with farmers, and are using synthetic biology and high throughput screening to find cell lines that are superior in nutrition, flavor, and their suitability to grow in cell culture.
Introducing the original pumpkin seed milk: Patch Organics is providing an organic, plant-based alternative milk, in five great-tasting flavors. Their milks are allergen-friendly, and have a low carbon footprint. Their products were developed for the growing population of people (of all ages) who are embracing smart food decisions based on taste, ingredients, environmental and social awareness. Their Go-to-Market strategy is B2B focused, initially targeting Food Service in the Health and Wellness sector, in a 3 Phased approach.
Peace of Meat is a B2B supplier of tasty cultured fat, produced directly from animal cells without harming the animal or the environment. Animal fat is the missing ingredient for creating juicy plant-based meats which truly measure up to the taste & texture of conventional meats. Peace of Meat’s cultured fat is the key to creating alternative meats that carnivores crave.
Phuture Foods is a plant-based food company, pioneering meat substitutes to cater to the diverse needs of the Asian market. Its flagship product - Phuture Mince, is a substitute for ground pork made with a variety of plant-based ingredients which include non-GMO soy protein, pea protein, chickpea protein and rice. Phuture Mince has recently been soft launched in Singapore and is working with local chefs to showcase the ease and versatility of how the product can be incorporated in Asian cuisine. They aim to address the long-term sustainability and security of pork supply since it is the most common meat consumed in Asia, yet very susceptible to disruptions such as the African Swine Flu.
PlantKind strives to make the best-tasting plant-based spreads around. Their products make the foods people love, but BETTER. PlantKind’s primary focus is on the food service industry, particularly large institutions and restaurant chains. They will be launching first on their D2C channels and retail CPG on the US East Coast. Their products are competitive in both cost and quality with current plant-based offerings, and at scale, they aim to compete directly with their animal-based counterparts.
Pleese Cheese is helping people transition away from traditional dairy, with a plant-based cheese made from a unique blend of all-natural ingredients. Their first year strategy is to sell directly to consumers through grocery stores and specialty markets, in order to build brand recognition and to produce volume. In their second year, they plan on growing the business further through food service for restaurants, as they expand their distribution network and production output.
Shiok Meats, the first cell-based meat company in SEA and Singapore, is a clean meat company employing cellular technology to produce seafood sustainably, specifically crustaceans like shrimp, prawn, crab, lobster. In Singapore English slang (“Singlish”), “Shiok” means very fantastic and delicious - all that Shiok Meat’s products will be. Their mission is to bring delicious and healthy meat to consumers by harvesting and cultivating seafood from cells instead of animals, for products that are animal-friendly, health-friendly and environment-friendly - all with the same taste, same texture, and even more nutrients.
Wild For helps active families eat healthier through a line of high-protein, low-fat gluten-free chips based on the ancient grain superfood, teff. Wild For Teff Chips have more than twice the protein and half the fat of typical chips, solving the problem of the lack of healthy, tasty, in the convenient snack market. For example, many protein bars actually have more sugar than protein.
WTH Foods is a plant-based alternative protein company from the Philippines giving farm-to-table a new meaning, by transforming produce that would otherwise go to waste into delicious Filipino favorites. They aim to lead Asia’s transition to sustainable meat alternatives by innovating with carefully-sourced local produce and taking inspiration from local flavors. Currently, their product offering includes mung bean ground beef and jackfruit pulled pork with many more innovative products in the pipeline.
Yoconut is the premier platform for gut health in dairy alternatives. Today’s yogurt market is full of dairy, sugar, and fat. Consumers are actively looking for healthy, tasty, plant-based products, as evidenced by the 55% growth of plant-based yogurt. Enter Yoconut. Yoconut is changing gut health in America with its irresistibly tasty, creamy, livecultured coconut yogurt.
Zhenmeat, meaning precious meat in mandarin, is a plant-based company in China. They are mainly focused on creating the plant-based meat suitable for Chinese cooking styles, such as for hotpot. Their make delicious vegetarian products which are not only healthier and nutritious, but also better for the environment by eliminating the impact of commercial farming. Zhenmeat portfolio includes the 1st Plant Fresh Meat Moon Cake, vegetable steak, plant-based cray fish and coming soon Zhenwei Xo Meat Sauce.
