Saudi royalty and savvy investor Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed has decided to go green. His KBW Ventures has invested in Eclipse Foods, a plant-based dairy alternative producer in Oakland, California. The plant-based company raised $40 million in a Series B funding round led by Sozo Ventures with participation from other funds, including Forerunner Ventures, Initialized Capital, and Gaingels.
The new funding will fuel the growth of the business in retail and food service, accelerate R&D on Eclipse's proprietary plant-based dairy platform, build the team, and drive the brand's awareness. Year on year, Eclipse has grown its retail presence by 2100%, with Whole Foods Market, Albertsons, Vons, GoPuff and many other retailers stocking its pints.
Its also expanding its range of partnerships, with Eclipse most recently announcing its partnership with Smashburger, launching non-dairy milkshakes and the first plant-based menu item for the restaurant. Eclipse has scaled faster and more efficiently than competitors in the space thanks to its plant-based dairy platform, which uses a blend of non-GMO plants, including cassava, corn, and potato, to create virtually any plant-based dairy product.
Why it matters
This isn't KBW's first rodeo in regards to the green/sustainability sector. It has invested in several food-tech companies. Its portfolio comprises plant-based alternative and cultivated cellular product companies, including plant-based chicken product manufacturer Rebellyous Foods, US fast-food company Veggie Grill and vegan jerky company Moku Foods. Earlier this year, they also participated in a pre-seed funding round of TurtleTree Labs, a Singapore company using biotechnology to create milk from cells.
