Cultivated meat and fish products are quickly establishing themselves as a promising alternative for consumers with the market expected to be worth over $370 billion by 2030. Proving it right, we have seen multiple startups in this sector such as plant-based protein specialist Meati raise $100 million, and Heura Foods close €40 million for its meat alternative.
One of the key factors to realise and unlock this growth potential is technological improvements in the texture and variety of meat and fish products on the market. Earlier, these were limited to sausages and minced meat but deep tech sallea’s discovery will enable the production of whole-cut premium fish and meat products.
Plans to accelerate production
Now, the Swiss deeptech startup sallea has secured $2.6 million in a pre-seed funding round led by Founderful (which recently invested in Apheros and NetFabric) with participation from Kost Capital. This is the company’s first equity investment, building on the $1.8 million in non-dilutive funding previously secured through research and startup grants.
With this investment, the company will help manufacturers of cultivated foods accelerate the production of premium whole cuts like steaks and filets without the need for animal farming. The team has created innovative edible scaffolds that promise to unlock the potential of cellular agriculture.
Antonia Albert, Principal at Founderful commented: “Sallea unlocks the potential of cultivated meat, paving the way for a sustainable, cruelty-free future. With the cultivated meat market expected to surpass $370 billion by 2030, we are thrilled to partner with Simona, Anna, and Nicole as they redefine the future of food.”
“At Kost, we are passionate about providing better food for more people, and we’re proud to be backing sallea,” said Bodil Sidén, General Partner at Kost Capital. “With strong leadership from Simona, Anna, and Nicole, combined with groundbreaking technology aimed at setting a new standard in sustainable meat production, sallea is gearing up for success”
How does it work?
Founded in November 2023 by Dr. Nicole Kleger, Simona Fehlmann, and Anna Bünter (ex-McKinsey), sallea’s technology developed at ETH Zurich enables the creation of precisely structured, edible, and porous 3D grids called scaffolds. This serves as the foundation for cultivating textured whole cuts of meat and fish. These scaffolds are added to bioreactors containing cells. These cells will then attach to scaffolds and grow in three dimensions into whole cuts thereby improving the nutritional profile and texture of the end product.
Manufacturers of cultivated foods will now not only be able to tailor the size and shape but also the nutritional profile of their scaffolds to the end product.
“Cultivated foods have been limited to sausages and minced meat. Our technology has the potential to kick-start cellular agriculture by accelerating time to market and lowering the production costs for cultivated whole cuts such as steaks and fillets,” said Simona Fehlmann, CEO and co-founder of sallea. “This funding round allows us to advance our mission of setting the industry standard for edible scaffolds in cellular agriculture. We can now upgrade our production capacity, enter partnerships for product co-development, and double down on our development efforts.”
Reduces emissions by up to 90%
Cellular agriculture offers a sustainable and cruelty-free alternative to traditional livestock farming, with the potential to reduce emissions by up to 90%. For instance, the beef production industry has thus far been limited to low-margin, unstructured products like sausages. Sallea’s scaffolds address this limitation to help the industry to get to market faster.
“While the potential of cellular agriculture is clear, scaling it effectively demands not only capital and expertise but also innovative solutions like sallea’s, which enable the production of high-quality products that can accelerate the path to price parity and fully satisfy consumer expectations” commented Robin Matthew, CEO of Elsa-Group (Migros Industrie), a leading group in the Swiss dairy and alternative protein industry.
Dr. James Ryall, ex-Chief Scientific Officer at cultured meat company Vow added: “With cultivated meat now regulated and consumed globally, the industry is poised for its next evolutionary leap. Sallea is at the forefront of this advancement, developing next-generation scaffolds that address two critical challenges: cost reduction and enhanced structural complexity. Sallea’s edible scaffolds not only opens the door to premium cultivated meat products with superior texture but also significantly lowers production costs – offering consumers a wider range of high-quality, sustainable protein options.”
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