GVFL Backs Biokraft’s Vision for Ethical Protein with ₹2 Cr Bet on 3D Bioprinting Breakthrough

GVFL, one of India’s pioneering venture capital firms, has invested Rs. 2 crore in a pre-seed round in Biokraft Foods, a next-generation food-tech startup developing structured cultivated meat using cutting-edge biotechnology and 3D bioprinting.

Founded in 2023 by Kamalnayan Tibrewal, an alumnus of the Institute of Chemical Technology Mumbai, Biokraft Foods aims to redefine how meat is produced and consumed. The startup is developing India’s first sustainable, slaughter-free, high-quality cultivated meat products using cutting-edge 3D bioprinting technology. For consumers, this means the same taste and experience as conventional meat, a breakthrough in the country’s alt-protein space.

Biokraft Foods, which has previously received support and grants from leading incubators iCREATE, SPTBI, and ICT-NICE, has adopted a hybrid approach that combines cultivated meat with food-safe ingredients, improving affordability, texture, and scalability. The company aims to be the first company to commercialize cultivated meat in India and has conducted over 400 consumer trials with positive feedback.

Commenting on the investment, Mihir Joshi, Managing Director of GVFL, said, “Biokraft Foods is at the forefront of a paradigm shift in the protein ecosystem. Their science-led approach to cultivated meat aligns with GVFL’s focus on backing disruptive technologies with societal impact. We are thrilled to support Biokraft’s vision of ethical and affordable food solutions.”

Kamalnayan Tibrewal, Founder & CEO of Biokraft Foods, said, “Our mission is to leverage biotechnology to craft sustainable food solutions by addressing issues such as climate impact, animal welfare concerns, and inefficiencies of conventional meat production. In the next three to five years, our goal is to make cultivated meat affordable and accessible starting with India and expanding to APAC region. GVFL’s backing is a strong validation of our science, strategy, and vision, and with its support, we are one step closer to bringing real, ethical meat to consumers.”

Biokraft Foods’ products are targeted at consumers who want sustainable choices without sacrificing taste, as well as food manufacturers, restaurants, and retailers looking to overcome the inefficiency of conventional meat and introduce next-generation proteins. Its future product pipeline comprises cultivated seafood and pet food applications using cultivated meat.

The cultivated meat sector is gaining global momentum with regulatory approvals in the US, Singapore, and Israel. In India, the cultivated meat segment is still nascent, but Biokraft Foods is emerging as a first-mover.

12 Food Tech Startups from Around the World Join the ProVeg Incubator

The 10th cohort focuses on high-impact technologies, regions, and solutions

Twelve pioneering, impact-driven startups, hailing from Thailand, Singapore, China, Israel, Argentina, Mexico, Chile, South Africa, the Netherlands, Ireland, the UK and the US, have joined the ProVeg Incubator for the 10th edition of its world-renowned accelerator programme for plant-based, fermentation and cultured food startups.

The team were looking for the most impactful food tech and biotech as well as ingredients solutions to speed up the transformation of our unsustainable food system. Here’s who they found.

The 12 startups joining Cohort 10:

Be Better My Friend (Netherlands, 2021): Founders Marikevan Beurden and Joost Lindeman have developed plant-based butter and cream alternatives for professional pastry chefs. Find out more at bebettermyfriend.com

FoodSquared (UK, 2021): Founders Frankie Fox, Wesley Yland, and Abi Aspen Glencross are using a ‘patent pending’ process and proprietary ingredient formulations to create next-generation plant-based shellfish, starting with plant-based shrimp. Find out more at foodsquared.earth

Ergo Bioscience (Argentina/US, 2020): Founders Alejandro Barbarini, Maria Laura Garcia, and Eduardo Peña develop complex animal proteins by plant cell precision fermentation. Find out more at ergofoods.com

Plant Origin (Thailand, 2022): Founders Pasakorn Niratbhand, Patarachet Soodsaguan, Panu Srisawasdi, and Akkasit Jongjareonrak are developing plant-based protein alternatives using hydrolyzed rice bran protein, which is extracted from byproducts of rice production. Find out more at plantorigin.co

Fattastic Technologies (Singapore, 2022): Founder Satnam Singh is developing a plant-based fat alternative that improves the sensory properties of alternative protein products with its innovative ‘oil structuring technology’. Find out more at fattastic.tech

Propel Foods (Mexico, 2022): Founders Joel González Gómez and Jayat Elena González Palomeras are using artificial intelligence to produce frozen, ready-to-eat, plant-based meals including tacos, burgers and chorizos with a strong emphasis on health and nutrition. Find out more at propelfoods.com

Algrow Biosciences (Singapore, 2022): Founders Sudhir Kumar Pasupuleti and Sukhi Wei create sustainable and nutritious protein using microalgae. Their clean-label process for removing chlorophyll results in a taste- and colour-neutral protein-rich biomass with a complete amino acid profile, packed with omega-3, iron, and potassium, that can be produced at a cost that is 85% compared to its competitors. Find out more at algrowbiosciences.co

MycoSure (South Africa, 2021): Founders Charles Reed, Greg Brown and James McLaren are developing mycelium-based fermentation technology to provide nutraceutical ingredients in a scalable and cost-effective way. Their B2B platform strategy is to supply branded ingredients to the food and beverage sector. Find out more at mycosure.co.za

StarPlants (China/Israel, 2021): Founders Eran Dubovi and Udi Baran run a plant-based food company specialising in chick pea milk and snacks. The company, which is based in China and led by owners based in Israel, develops, manufactures, and sells the products. Find out more at starplants.com.cn

SomaTech (Ireland, 2023): Founders Dr Tony Martin Callaghan and Dr Alejandra Omarini have developed a scalable solid state fermentation platform that uses fungal mycelium to upcycle locally produced side streams, creating affordable, functional protein-rich food ingredients. (No website currently).

Sticta Biologicals (Chile, 2021): Founders Eduardo Agosin and Andres Ariztia have developed a proprietary microbial platform that uses precision fermentation to produce proteins and natural biochemicals for the food, agriculture and wellbeing sectors. The company’s SmartSerumTM, all-in–one, customised serum-free culture media includes proteins and ingredients for the mass production of cultivated meats. Find out more at sticta.com

Bygg Foods (US, 2022): Founder Smári Ásmundsson is developing a product line including plant-based milk and vegan protein powder, created from upcycled ingredients. Bygg aims to cater to millennials and Gen Z consumers who prioritise health and environmental consciousness. The company aims to expand to a range of plant-based food and beverage categories. Find out more at byggfoods.com

Cohort 10 in Numbers

• 12 startups under 3 years old
• 4 startups from the Asia-Pacific region
• 4 startups from North and Latin America
• 3 startups from Europe
• 1 startup from Africa
• 7 are ingredients companies
• 5 are consumer products companies
• 5 are precision and biomass fermentation companies

Applicants came from 42 countries around the world. Startups in Asia and Europe led the charge, with 29% based in Asia, 29% in Europe, 21% in North America (including Mexico), 12% in South America, 4% in Africa, and 3% in the Australian continent.

Trends we’re seeing:

Next-gen nutrition. The ultra-processed argument against many plant-based products is a hot topic. By applying AI, upcycling side streams of the food industry and leveraging new ingredients, the startups in our cohort aim to provide clean label, nutritious, healthy and less-processed solutions, as this is top of the list for consumers, food producers, retail and food service.

The rise of Asia Pacific. We’re increasingly speaking to startups in this region, echoing the recent findings by the Good Food Institute APAC that investments into alternative protein companies in Asia Pacific rose by 43% from 2021 to 2022 in all three pillars of alternative proteins: plant-based, fermentation, and cultivated.

Precision and biomass fermentation (mycelium). The trend to leverage different fermentation approaches continues to be strong. We’re seeing more startups developing products and enabling tech in these areas. The offerings are promising in terms of impact, potential scale-up and sustainability.

Precision fermentation platforms as enablers. This is an exciting area and we’re seeing more startups exploring it for creating cultivated meat mediums, and plant cell cultivation as a new way to express complex animal proteins like caseins and myoglobin.

Innovative plant-based solutions to replace conventional ingredients. We’re seeing new and promising alternatives coming through, combined with B2B models, including butter, egg, milk and seafood, both for food producers and food service.

Tough investment landscape. Startups are finding it harder to find lead investors and close rounds, while rounds and due diligence are taking longer. Many investors are less active and are focusing on portfolio support.

About the ProVeg Incubator

The ProVeg Incubator is designed to support mission-driven startups working on plant-based, fermentation, and cultured-food products and technologies. Startups must have the potential to remove animals from the global food system, either by providing alternatives or with supporting technology.

The ProVeg Incubator, which is based in Berlin, Germany, is particularly interested in startups developing egg, seafood, and chicken alternatives, as well as other meat and dairy alternatives, ingredients and technologies that can help substitute animal-derived staple products on a mass scale. Focus areas include functional ingredients, precision fermentation and biomass fermentation, cell-cultivation and molecular farming, along with the enabling tech, processes, and platforms.

What does the programme include?

Startups that join the ProVeg Incubator are supported with a tailor-made accelerator programme, one-on-one expert mentoring, access to the Incubator’s extensive networks of industry contacts, and up to €300,000 in funding and in-kind services.

Since its launch in late 2018, the ProVeg Incubator has supported more than 80 startups from around the world, including Remilk, Better Nature, Vly Foods, Bosque Foods, Haofood, Omni, Kern Tec, Greenwise, Mushlabs, Formo, Hooked, the Live Green Company, and the Nu Company.

Collectively, the ProVeg Incubator’s alumni have raised more than €250 million, with products stocked in over 15,000 stores worldwide.

Startups that join have access to a global network including mentors such as Lisa Feria (Stray Dog Capital), Mark Post (Mosa Meat), Ryan Bethencourt (Wild Earth), David Benzaquen (Mission: Plant LLC), David Brandes (Peace of Meat), Frank Cordesmeyer (Good Seed Ventures), among many others.

ProVeg Incubator facts and figures

• Number 1: ProVeg Incubator was the first incubator for plant-based and cultured food startups when it began in 2018 and continues to lead the charge
• Mission-driven: ProVeg Incubator is part of the not-for-profit food awareness organisation ProVeg International https://proveg.com/
• Not-for-profit: All funds are reinvested in ProVeg’s overarching mission to reduce global animal consumption by 50% by the year 2040.
• Unique: ProVeg Incubator is the only accelerator programme with a mission to take animals out of the value chain, with all potential gains reinvested in charitable work
• Focused on startups: The team has screened more than 1,000 startups and worked with more than 80 alumni companies from all over the world through its programmes

More than the sum of its parts: ProVeg Incubator is not just an accelerator, or an investor, but a global organisation with partners across industries, spanning both commercial and Not-for-profit. 

US-based Silicon Road and NUMA Launches India Accelerator for Startups in Retail-Tech & FoodTech

Silicon Road US , a US-based Venture Fund and a RetailTech Accelerator, is launching Silicon Road India Retail & FoodTech Accelerator, a unique startup acceleration program conceptualized by Silicon Road and powered by NUMA , a France-based international innovation hub & startup accelerator.

Silicon Road and NUMA are partnering to launch a 4-month startup acceleration program providing international funded support and infrastructure for startups, particularly in Retail & FoodTech to fast-track startup growth.

Silicon Road empowers retailers to take charge of their own future, through investment in transformative innovation. We bring together industry, academia, and startups to co-create next-gen retail technologies.

Our unique program combines four key elements to create a maximum synergy:

• A strategic US fund financed by retailers; India fund comprising of GPs, LPs and other investors


• An accelerator program for early stage startups in India, and early & growth stage startups in the US


• A shared innovation lab and advisory services provided by Georgia Tech in the US


• Partnership agreements with CFTRI from a FoodTech standpoint

Funding and Support: Silicon Road will invest an initial seed amount of money (INR 25L) in all startups joining the program. Startups will also get access to the €700k worth of perks and to international & local investors for fundraising support with a further round of funding opportunity from Silicon Road for eligible startups during or after the program.

Access to international & local networks around the Retail & Food Tech industries: An actionable network is a key feature of any startup program. The selected startups will be introduced to the local & international network of food and retail tech corporates, mentors, research infrastructure, industry experts, founders, partners & foreign official delegations to enable the startups to build their own networks.

Tailored program to accelerate the Startup growth: In the beginning, startups will be taken through multiple bootcamps on the various core functions of a business including Design, Technology/Product, Growth Hacking, etc. to help startups strengthen their product and build a business strategy. At the end of these bootcamps, we will be helping each startup to create their OKR/roadmap with clear KPIs and in the next 3 months, we will support them on the execution of this roadmap.

Quality mentoring by some of the best mentors & in-house experts: The startups will be surrounded by some of the best in-house experts and introduced to the right mentors. In addition to the team, an Entrepreneur in Residence and Growth Hacker in Residence will support the startups to execute their product and growth strategy.

Free office space and infrastructure in Mysuru: The selected startups (at least one of the founders) will be working out of the Silicon Road campus and they will get a world class office infrastructure at Silver Spirit Tech Park for 6 months in the royal city Mysuru.

Silicon Road will be taking equity stake in exchange for the funding and acceleration program.

Call for application has been kickstarted for the first cohort, and startups can apply here by 20th April 2019, the program will kickoff in May 2019.

[Via Business Wire India]

Top Featured Image by Rama Khandkar from Pexels

Foodtech Startup IdeaChakki Raises Funding from Ratan Tata

Idea Chakki Private Limited, a Delhi based food tech startup, has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from Ratan Tata. The startup is the brain child of 3 former NDTV executives - Monica Narula, Noopur Tiwari and Gunjan Mehrish, with over 20 years of television experience.

The newly raised funding will primarily be used for expansion into new geography along with building the in-house team and strengthening the technology, said the company.

Idea Chakki's app Dash.Menu allows the diner to preview his/her meal visually. It gives a quick, visual preview of dishes on restaurant menus using 10-15 second “Fideos” (food videos). 
It sorts the menu out in innovative ways and collates valuable diner data.

According to a global report on Food Tourism presented by the UN, More and more tourists in the world are looking for concrete learning experiences, and in this endeavour the gastronomic experience, in highly diverse ways, is playing an increasingly prominent part. Gastronomic tourism is an emerging phenomenon that is being developed as a new tourism product due to the fact that according to the specialized literature over a third of tourist spending is devoted to food. Therefore, the cuisine of the destination is an aspect of utmost importance in the quality of the holiday experience.

Dash is the world’s first in-restaurant luxury dining app that makes the menu dynamic.

Idea Chakki is currently targetting premium restaurants in Delhi NCR. It aims to expand its operations in the country and plans to set up its first international office in Paris.

Prior to this in June 2016, Ratan Tata invested an undisclosed amount in e-ticketing portal Kyazoonga. The investment was made in his personal capacity. Other startups that have raised funding from Ratan Tata this year include MUrgency Inc., NestAway technologies, FirstCry, CashKaro, Tracxn, Dogspot, Lenskart, Teabox, Invictus Technology, SnapBizz, and Moglix.

Foodtech Startup IdeaChakki Raises Funding from Ratan Tata

Idea Chakki Private Limited, a Delhi based food tech startup, has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from Ratan Tata. The startup is the brain child of 3 former NDTV executives - Monica Narula, Noopur Tiwari and Gunjan Mehrish, with over 20 years of television experience.

The newly raised funding will primarily be used for expansion into new geography along with building the in-house team and strengthening the technology, said the company.

Idea Chakki's app Dash.Menu allows the diner to preview his/her meal visually. It gives a quick, visual preview of dishes on restaurant menus using 10-15 second “Fideos” (food videos). 
It sorts the menu out in innovative ways and collates valuable diner data.

According to a global report on Food Tourism presented by the UN, More and more tourists in the world are looking for concrete learning experiences, and in this endeavour the gastronomic experience, in highly diverse ways, is playing an increasingly prominent part. Gastronomic tourism is an emerging phenomenon that is being developed as a new tourism product due to the fact that according to the specialized literature over a third of tourist spending is devoted to food. Therefore, the cuisine of the destination is an aspect of utmost importance in the quality of the holiday experience.

Dash is the world’s first in-restaurant luxury dining app that makes the menu dynamic.

Idea Chakki is currently targetting premium restaurants in Delhi NCR. It aims to expand its operations in the country and plans to set up its first international office in Paris.

Prior to this in June 2016, Ratan Tata invested an undisclosed amount in e-ticketing portal Kyazoonga. The investment was made in his personal capacity. Other startups that have raised funding from Ratan Tata this year include MUrgency Inc., NestAway technologies, FirstCry, CashKaro, Tracxn, Dogspot, Lenskart, Teabox, Invictus Technology, SnapBizz, and Moglix.