Agronomics Ltd on Monday said it has invested in Clean Food Group Ltd, a fermentation-derived palm oil company.
The Isle of Man-based venture capital firm, with investments in the cellular agriculture field, has invested £700,000 in Clean Food as part of a £2.3 million ’pre series A’ funding round, subscribing for 4.2 million shares.
Executive Director Jim Mellon - who is also co-chair of Clean Food - participated in the funding round with a £50,000 investment.
Agronomics previously invested £900,500 in Clean Food in June 2022. It now hold 30% of the firm’s equity capital on a fully diluted basis.
Clean Food produces fermentation derived palm oil, which uses a non-genetically modified microorganism already being used on an industrial scale in the wine industry, meaning that the regulatory pathway in the UK and EU is expected to be less stringent.
In a separate release, Seed Innovations Ltd - in which Mellon has a 6.95% holding - said it has invested a total of £216,000 in Clean Food.
Following this investment, the Guernsey-based wellness and life sciences company will hold a total of 7.2 million Clean Food shares, representing a 5.8% stake, with an implied valuation of £1.2 million.
The cash will enable Clean Food to accelerate the scale-up of its technology platform, ahead of the planned completion of a Series A funding round next year to further develop its technology for production at a commercial scale, with the funds supporting the construction of a new manufacturing facility in the UK.
‘Agronomics’ portfolio speaks to the breadth of disruption emerging from bio-manufacturing on conventional agriculture and beyond. This fundraise marks an important milestone for Clean Food Group in the mission to drive transformative changes across the food industry by providing an alternative to palm oil in food and cosmetic production,’ said Mellon.
‘This funding takes CFG a step closer to commercialisation as we continue to unlock the potential for a future where our food choices will be more sustainable.’
Agronomics shares were trading 1.0% lower at 10.14 pence each in London on Monday morning, while Seed Innovations was 1.2% higher at 2.13p each.
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