KBW Ventures, the VC firm owned by Saudi entrepreneur and investor HRH Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal, who’s also a prince of the House of Saud, and son of businessman Al-Waleed bin Talal, announces the pre-seed investment into Singapore-based biotech company TurtleTree.
Entrepreneur reported that the pre-seed round is led by US-Hong Kong venture capital fund specialising in alternative protein investments, Lever VC, and includes KBW Ventures and Silicon Valley-based K2 Global.
TurtleTree uses technology to create real milk from animal cells, with no animal required.
The company is co-founded by CEO Fengru Lin, Chief Scientist Officer Rabail Toor, and Chief Strategist Max Rye. Its proprietary technology allows the use of mammary cells to produce full milk in clean food production facilities.
The end product has the functionality of dairy milk, as well as the potential to bring a breakthrough in the current baby formula industry.
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“This is a long-term investment; we’re not in this for the quick win,” said HRH Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud.
The Prince noted that investing in the development of alternative protein sources that use less natural resources by biotech startups is one way to play a role in solving the climate crisis.
According to Rye, the seed funding will be used to build the company’s scientific team and to create additional prototypes.
TurtleTree Labs plans to launch the first cultivated milk products in the spring this year. “We believe the entire landscape of traditional bovine milk will be transformed as a result of our technology,” Lin added.
The Prince added that the decision to support the company is also because of the market potential it harbours.
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“Not all the companies KBW Ventures invests in have a sustainability element; we choose good, solid business models, and if they also have a sustainability element, then all the better,” Prince Khaled said.
The Prince, who’s known for his veganism further added: “Now is the time of plant-based products going big, and soon, we will be saying the same for cellag companies. The technology that TurtleTree is working with its proprietary, so much of the value of biotech and food tech companies is found in their technology-based answers to seemingly futuristic needs.”
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Picture Credit: Unsplash.com/Evi T
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