Exclusive: Liven Proteins seeking $500k SAFE round to scale plant-based gelatine

  • 8 March 2022
  • Funding
Funds to make up initial tranche of larger $2m Pre-seed raise, as start-up seeks lead investor 
Fei Luo is co-founder of cell-based gelatine start-up Liven Proteins

Precision fermentation gelatine start-up Liven Proteins is currently raising a $500,000 SAFE (Simple Agreement for Future Equity) tranche (portion of a security) as part of a larger $2 million Pre-seed fundraise. 

The company, established in 2021, has developed a lab-grown gelatine that can be added to alt-protein foods to replicate the texture of real animal products.

It is seeking to secure part of a $2 million capital raise to scale production and generate larger amounts of its ingredient. 

“We are raising $500,000 right now to reach the next milestone,” Liven Proteins co-founder Fei Luo told NutritionInvestor. 

“The funds will help us to provide our first sample to customers. Additional tranches will further support scaling production and expanding the team behind it,” Luo said. 

The company is seeking an investor to lead the round and expects to close this initial tranche in April.

“After that we will hold off for some time, just because we want to reach some other milestones and open another tranche in the summer,” she added. 
Liven Proteins last year secured an initial investment from foodtech accelerator Big Idea Ventures, which enabled the company to hire two full-time employees and increase its R&D efforts.

“When we joined Big Idea Ventures, we had just opened a lab and were looking to hire our first employee,” Luo said. 

“For the majority of investors, we were too young at the time, so we really appreciate Big Idea Ventures for seeing our potential.”

Liven Proteins has claimed to be the first precision formulation company to bring a circle economy element to the space as its product is created using the by-product from pulse protein production.