Table Of Content
The alternative protein sector saw notable investment activity in the first half of 2025, with 54 deals totaling $443.45 million. These investments spanned multiple technologies and product categories, reflecting a broad interest across the industry. The two main technology categories, plant-based and fermentation, attracted the largest share of funding, with cultivated protein remaining a smaller segment.
Investment breakdown by quarter and technology
Investment in alternative proteins showed variation across the two quarters of 2025. In the first quarter, $258.49 million was invested across 31 deals. In contrast, the second quarter saw a decrease to $184.96 million in 23 deals. Despite the quarterly drop, the overall investment total for the first half of the year reached $443.45 million.
Investment by technology also revealed trends in sector interest. Plant-based products received the largest share of funding, with $213.81 million allocated across 28 deals. Fermentation technologies, which are being used for the production of protein and dairy alternatives, secured $198.7 million from 19 deals. Cultivated protein, though an emerging technology, attracted $30.9 million spread over 7 deals.
Product categories and investment distribution
Investment distribution by product category showed a clear preference for meat substitutes, which garnered the most funding. A total of $211.57 million was invested in plant-based meat alternatives. Dairy substitutes followed with $65.9 million, while the input sector, which includes raw materials and components for alternative protein production, received $79.82 million. Smaller investments were made in other categories, such as seafood, egg substitutes, and pet food, which combined totaled $22.84 million.
Largest investments in 1H 2025
Several investments stood out in terms of size. Beyond Meat, a major player in the plant-based meat space, received $100 million in debt financing. Other significant investments included Liberation Labs (now Liberation Bioindustries), which raised $50.5 million for precision fermentation focused on inputs, and Formo, which secured $35.86 million in venture debt for its precision fermentation dairy production in Germany.
Other key investments included:
- Vivici: $34.12 million in Series A funding for fermentation in ingredients and dairy (Netherlands)
- Heura: $22.22 million in debt financing for plant-based meat (Spain)
- Aleph Farms: $22 million raised through a SAFE agreement for cultivated meat (Israel)
- Project Eaden: $15.66 million in Series A funding for plant-based meat (Germany)
- CarboCode: $15.37 million in Series C funding for fermentation-based dairy alternatives (Portugal)
- Rival Foods: $11.51 million in Series B funding for plant-based meat (Netherlands)
- Foodiq: $11.25 million in undisclosed funding for plant-based inputs (Finland)
The first half of 2025 demonstrated stable investment activity in the alternative protein sector. While plant-based products continue to attract the largest share of funding, there is growing interest in fermentation technologies, especially in the dairy and ingredient sectors. Cultivated meat remains a relatively small but notable part of the overall investment picture.
These insights were compiled by Nicholas Dahl. Explore further alternative protein investment data on the Alternative Proteins Global Substack.
No Comment! Be the first one.