Perfect Day is ranked #1 as the most funded alternative protein fermentation company in a compelling report released by the Good Food Institute, detailing record-breaking investments in the space and establishing the role of fermentation in the alternative protein industry. With over $360M in total funding, lead investors in Perfect Day, including Temasek, Horizons Ventures, and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), are helping drive the industry forward.
The fermentation state of the industry report will confirm that Perfect Day ranks #1 as the most funded alternative protein fermentation company. Here are some other key highlights from an investment perspective:
- Globally, fermentation companies devoted to alternative proteins received more than $274 million in venture capital funding in 2019 and $435 million in the first seven months of 2020, even as Covid-19 disrupted global markets.
- Fermentation companies have raised more than $837 million in venture capital funding, starting with an investment in 2013. They raised 85 percent of this funding in 2019 and in the first seven months of 2020 alone.
- Globally in 2019, fermentation companies raised over 3.5 times more capital than cultivated meat companies worldwide and close to 60% as much as U.S. plant-based meat, egg, and dairy companies that year.
- This large capital influx in 2019 was driven by fundraising rounds, including Perfect Day
- In 2020, investment into fermentation accelerated to the highest level ever
- Perfect Day is the clear leader in the fermentation space and is continuing to pioneer the industry with the category creation of animal-free dairy. As it relates to the fermentation state of the industry report, here are some key Perfect Day highlights from an investment standpoint:
- Of the total Venture Capital ($837 million) in fermentation companies (from 2013 – July 15, 2020):
- Perfect Day represents about 43% (nearly HALF) of the total VC funding in fermentation companies
- Of the total Venture Capital ($837 million) in fermentation companies (from 2013 – July 15, 2020):
- Accounts for Perfect Day’s total funding raised to date ($361.48M), with support from lead investors Temasek, Horizons Ventures and CPPIB
- Perfect Day’s initial Series C round of $140M was the largest funding round in this industry in 2019. Of the TOTAL funding in fermentation companies in 2019 ($274M); Perfect Day’s $140M accounts for over half.
- Even amid COVID-19, venture capital funding in the first half of 2020 (through July 15) surpassed ALL other years combined.
- This includes the largest venture capital fundraising round in the fermentation industry’s history, a $300M series C by Perfect Day. (*Note, the GFI report categorizes the full series C as closing in July 2020.)
- And finally, to round out that fermentation companies are just starting to heat up and prove tons of opportunity space, 85% of the total VC funding represented in this report was raised in the last year and a half (2019 and the first half of 2020 – up to July 15); Perfect Day’s $300M Series C represents about 42% of the $709M raised in that time frame so ranks #1 in totality and in the 2019-1H2020 timeframe.
While fermentation is an age-old process, using it to replicate dairy protein without using a single cow is where Perfect Day is revolutionizing the space and creating a completely new category: Animal-Free Dairy. Grocery aisles, and especially the dairy aisle, will start to see this emerging category come to life as Perfect Day continues to partner with food companies to bring products to life with its dairy protein. As the number of companies emerging in the fermentation space continues and investment increases, Perfect Day is driving the use case forward and is on a mission to educate on this new category of animal-free dairy and how fermentation makes it possible.
“We use fermentation to make the foods people love while delivering the same taste, texture, and nutrition as conventional dairy without the environmental, food safety, or welfare concerns. But that’s just the start. By working with food and dairy companies to bring a new category of animal-free products to market, we’re building a next generation supply chain to provide more nutritious, scalable options globally.”– Perfect Day CEO and Co-founder, Ryan Pandya
About Perfect Day
Founded in 2014 by CEO and co-founder, Ryan Pandya, and co-founder, Perumal Gandhi — Perfect Day is on a mission to revolutionize how dairy products are made to create a kinder, greener world. Instead of relying on cows, the Bay Area startup utilizes fermentation in microflora to create proprietary ‘flora-made’ dairy protein. Perfect Day’s ingenious animal-free protein can be used across a range of products — from ice cream and milk to cheese and butter — to deliver the same taste and texture of dairy with none of the environmental, animal welfare or food safety concerns. Foods made with Perfect Day protein can be labeled as vegan and lactose-free and are coming soon to a fridge near you as the company expands its network of food and dairy manufacturing partners. For more information, visit perfectdayfoods.com or follow along on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.
