Solar Foods secures investments from Fazer

Solar Foods, a company that creates a unique single-cell protein called Solein, has raised €18.5m in the Series A financing round led by Finnish food company Fazer Group, which invested €15m ($17.7m) in the company.

The food-tech financing round is said to be the largest in Finland to date.

Other investors who were part of the funding round include Bridford Investments, Agronomics, Lifeline Ventures and CPT Capital.

Funding will be used by Solar Foods to further develop its novel protein for broader consumer use, as well as to construct a demo-scale production plant.

Fazer Group president and CEO Christoph Vitzthum said: “Our strong heritage offers us the roots necessary to take on bold innovations.

“We know that we need to transform the global food system to be able to respond to the growing food demand in the future.

“By strategic partnerships and investments into food tech, we can and will be part of creating a more sustainable future. The investment into Solar Foods and our strategic partnership with them will take us forward on this journey.”

The company claims that its Solein is a carbon-neutral protein that can be produced independently from the soil, thereby avoiding the effects of negative land use, as well as weather and climate.

Solar Foods co-founder and CEO Dr Pasi Vainikka said: “We are thrilled of our new partners and their vast experience now at Solar Foods’ disposal. This development now enables us to successfully proceed with our planned production facility.”

Last September, Fazer Group entered a strategic partnership with Solar Foods to research and develop latter’s protein ingredient Solein.