AVCJ

Japanese food tech start-up secures Series A round

  • LinkedIn  
  • Google plus  
  • Save this article  

Japan’s Base Food, a company that produces packaged meals that are said to be nutritionally complete, has raised JPY400 million ($3.7 million) in Series A funding from a group including Global Brain.

Global Brain participated via its sixth fund, which was launched in 2016 with a target of JPY20 billion. Rakuten Ventures, XTech Ventures, and a number of unspecified angel investors also contributed. The fresh capital will be used for product development and an overseas expansion, according to a release. 

Base Food aims to innovate staple foods by creating packaged dinners that provide customers with a balanced diet in a single meal, including 31 different nutrients in one product. The company was founded in 2016 by Shun Hashimoto, a former employee at local mobile gaming giant DeNA, and launched its core product, Base Pasta, last year. It added Base Bread to its portfolio in March.

Investment activity in food innovation has surged in recent months on the back of several trends related to food safety concerns, environmentalism, and increased health consciousness. Earlier this week, VisVires New Protein, a Singapore VC dedicated to the segment, confirmed a $150 million target for its second fund. This coincided with a spate of separate deals, including a $300 million round for Impossible Foods.

  • LinkedIn  
  • Google plus  
  • Save this article  

More on North Asia

Latest News

Asian GPs slow implementation of ESG policies - survey
Asian GPs slow implementation of ESG policies - survey

Asia-based private equity firms are assigning more dedicated resources to environment, social, and governance (ESG) programmes, but policy changes have slowed in the past 12 months, in part due to concerns raised internally and by LPs, according to a...

  • GPs