- BlueNalu — a leading innovative food company producing a variety of seafood products directly from fish cells — announced the closing of $60 million in debt financing
BlueNalu — a leading innovative food company producing a variety of seafood products directly from fish cells — announced the closing of $60 million in debt financing from new and existing investors. And this marks the largest financing to date in the cell-based seafood industry worldwide. This round of funding is intended to enable BlueNalu to achieve several significant milestones over the coming year, including opening a nearly 40,000 square foot pilot production facility, completing FDA regulatory review for its first products, and initiating marketplace testing in a variety of food service establishments throughout the United States.
BlueNalu plans to introduce a wide variety of cell-based seafood products from its pilot production facility in San Diego. And the company anticipates starting with the launch of mahi-mahi later this year, followed by the launch of a premium bluefin tuna after.
BlueNalu is currently establishing joint venture partnerships within key markets where it will operate. And these partnerships are expected to enable them to navigate regulatory pathways, lower the cost of goods, introduce new species and new product forms, and inform their global market strategy. And previously, BlueNalu announced 5 global strategic investment partners: Nutreco, based in the Netherlands; Pulmuone, based in South Korea; Sumitomo, based in Japan; and Griffith Foods and Rich Products Corporation, based in the U.S.
Rage Capital led the $60 million convertible note financing and other significant participants include Agronomics, Lewis & Clark AgriFood, McWin, and Siddhi Capital. And strategic investors in this funding include Radicle Growth, by way of the Radicle Protein Challenge by Syngenta; Rich Products Corporation; and Thai Union. A partial list of other investors also includes: AiiM Partners, Clear Current Capital, CPT Capital, Flat World Partners, KBW Ventures, Losa Group, OurCrowd, Silicon Valley Community Foundation, and Stray Dog Ventures.
BlueNalu currently has a three-member Board of Directors: Lou Cooperhouse, Chris Kerr of Unovis/New Crop Capital, and Chuck Laue of Stray Dog Capital – and previously had six Observers to its Board. And as part of this funding, BlueNalu added four new Observers to its Board of Directors: Steven Finn of Siddhi Capital, Jim Mellon of Agronomics, Larry Page of Lewis & Clark AgriFood, and Alex Ruimy of Rage Capital.
KEY QUOTES:
“The team at BlueNalu is driven to produce cell-based seafood products that are healthy for consumers, humane for animals, sustainable for our planet, and provide increased food security to each nation in which we go to market. This recent financing will allow us to continue advancing our mission and the next phase of our commercialization plans, while we continue to develop strategic partnerships that we expect will provide us with global market reach during the coming years.”
— Lou Cooperhouse, BlueNalu’s President and CEO
“The global market for seafood is highly vulnerable today and is valued at an estimated $200 billion. With strong investor support, our innovative and visionary management team demonstrates a clear value proposition, technology, IP, and a comprehensive regulatory strategy, all of which provide a solid foundation as we move closer to our in-market launch.”
— Amir Feder, BlueNalu’s CFO
