ProVeg Incubator launches new startup cohort led by women

The ProVeg Incubator has announced the six trail-blazing startups to join the latest round of its programme –  in a cohort where women are in the majority for the first time.

The companies that comprise the Incubator’s fifth cohort come from all over the world, and are working on projects as diverse as peanut-based chicken, algae-based dairy alternatives, and a new generation of plant-based chocolate.

Of the 17 entrepreneurs in the latest batch of startups, which launched this week, 10 (59%) are women.

The ProVeg Incubator is the world’s leading incubator of plant-based and cultured food startups and exclusively supports companies developing innovative alternatives to animal-based products and supporting technologies.

Every startup that joins the ProVeg Incubator receives a grant of €20,000, with the possibility of securing further funding of up to €180,000, following the completion of the programme.

The accelerator programme runs for three months. Startups are supported with individual mentoring, expert-led workshops, exclusive events, marketing and media relations, and access to the Incubator’s extensive network of industry contacts.

The six startups in this cohort, the fifth since the ProVeg Incubator launched, were selected from a record number of applications. The programme officially kicked off on Monday, 26 October 2020.

Let’s meet the startups:

  • Haofood (China) is one of the first startups in the world to develop chicken and other meat alternatives based on peanut protein.
  • Pow! Foods (Chile) has developed a unique biotech process for producing plant-based-meat products.
  • The Fast Good Company (The Netherlands) is an impact-driven company focusing on plant-based ready meals.
  • Update Foods (France) is working on animal-free milk and other plant-based dairy alternatives.
  • Fellow Creatures (Scotland, UK) is a plant-based chocolate company.
  • Naka Foods (India) produces plant-based-meat products and algae-based nutrition bars.

Albrecht Wolfmeyer, Head of the ProVeg Incubator, said: “We are delighted that increasing numbers of women are moving into and being supported by what is still a male-dominated industry.

“The majority of startup founders in the food industry are men – research has shown that only 1% of VC funding goes to women. With every cohort that we run at the ProVeg Incubator, we are extremely happy to be receiving applications from more and more startups with female entrepreneurs and scientists on the team and to be playing an active role in working towards achieving gender parity in this industry.

“Of course, our cohort is not only gender-diverse –  the six startups that we’ll be supporting come from six different countries and represent a wide range of product types. These startups have real potential to disrupt the global food system in a meaningful way and we are looking forward to working with them to help them achieve their ambitious goals.”

Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, this edition of the ProVeg Incubator programme is being hosted online. This format has already been successfully used for the previous batch of startups that joined the ProVeg Incubator in April 2020.

Since its launch in November 2018, the ProVeg Incubator has supported over 50 startups from around the world. Between them, they have raised more than €18 million and launched over 40 products.

Support for startups from the ProVeg Incubator does not end with the completion of the accelerator programme –  the team continues to support its alumni for as long as they need it.

To stay up to date with all the latest news about the ProVeg Incubator, please go to our website or follow us @provegincubator on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram.

Notes:

  1. For more information about the ProVeg Incubator, check out www.provegincubator.com
  2. The ProVeg Incubator is part of ProVeg International, a leading food awareness organisation working across four continents. ProVeg’s mission is to reduce the global consumption of animals by 50% by the year 2040. More information can be found at www.proveg.com
  3. The ProVeg Incubator works with a number of investors and other partners, including Atlantic Food Labs, Beyond Advisors, Blue Horizon, European Institute of Innovation and Technology, Good Seed Ventures, Katjesgreenfood, New Crop Capital, NX-Food, Purple Orange Ventures, Vegconomist, and Veginvest.

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