Mosa Meat raises US$17.7M amid challenges for cultivated meat industry
The investment will support regulatory approvals and early commercial sales for the company.
NETHERLANDS – Maastricht-based Mosa Meat announced it has obtained US$17.7 million in fresh financing, bringing the total raised over the past two years to US$68.4 million.
The company said the new funding will allow it to pursue regulatory approvals in the UK, the EU, Switzerland, and Singapore, while preparing for its first substantial revenue streams.
Mosa Meat, which says it created the first cultivated beef burger concept in 2013, was founded in 2016 by scientist Mark Post and food technician Peter Verstrate.
The firm has also been included in the UK Food Standards Agency’s two-year Sandbox programme, which tests the safety of cell-cultivated meat products for human consumption.
Globally, regulatory progress for lab-grown meat has only advanced in Singapore, Israel, and the United States, while some US states are moving to restrict or ban sales of cellular agriculture products.
The funding announcement comes as other European cell-cultivated protein companies face financial difficulties, with Meatable ceasing operations this week after failing to secure additional capital.
Israel-based Believer Meats had also stopped trading earlier in December, reflecting the fragile investment climate for alternative meat ventures.
Mosa Meat said its recent investment round included contributions from existing backers Invest-NL and Liof, Germany’s PHW Group, and Jitse Groen, founder of Just Eat, alongside prior investors such as Lowercarbon Capital, M Ventures, Bell Food, Nutreco, Mitsubishi, Collateral Good Ventures, and Leonardo DiCaprio.
The company claims it has reduced production costs to levels comparable to conventional restaurant meat menus, down from the original proof-of-concept burger priced at US$250,000.
CEO Maarten Bosch stated the firm has moved from experimental stages to producing an affordable product without changing the original scientific goals.
Invest-NL investment principal Victor Meijer said supporting Mosa Meat requires long-term commitment, noting that the company has made measurable progress toward commercialisation and retained confidence from existing shareholders.
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