US’s Omeat rebrands as Evergreen Connect, raises US$6M for blended beef launch

USA – US cultivated meat company Omeat has changed its name to Evergreen Connect and secured US$6M in new financing as it prepares to introduce blended beef products in the United States and Singapore.

The Los Angeles-based company said the open funding round included participation from S2G Investments, BOLD Capital Partners, Good Startup, and several other backers, bringing its cumulative funding to US$46M.

According to the company, the new capital will support regulatory work and early commercialisation as Evergreen Connect collaborates with meat distributors in both markets to supply blended beef mince that combines cultivated beef with conventional meat.

Chief executive James Miller said the company intends to act as a supplier of fresh beef inputs to existing meat producers, focusing on predictable quality and pricing rather than direct to consumer branding.

The rebrand follows a turbulent period for the company, which was founded in 2021 by tissue engineer Ali Khademhosseini and initially drew attention for developing an alternative to fetal bovine serum using plasma collected from cows on its own farm.

After launching a cell culture media supplement called Plenty, the company underwent a major restructuring in 2024 that included cutting about 80% of its workforce and a leadership change, with Khademhosseini stepping aside and Miller appointed as chief executive.

Former employees had previously raised concerns about internal culture and technical scale up challenges, with reports that production was still being tested at the 200 litre level despite access to much larger bioreactors.

Market pressure and blended meat strategy

Evergreen Connect is positioning its cultivated beef as a way to navigate volatility in the beef sector, as US retail beef prices have continued to climb and cattle inventories have dropped to their lowest point in decades.

Data cited by the company show that US beef prices reached US$6.68 per pound in December 2025, while surveys indicate that a growing share of consumers are reducing or eliminating beef purchases due to rising costs.

The company plans to focus on blended meat products rather than fully cultivated offerings, an approach already used by several cultivated meat firms that have reached the market, including Wildtype, Mission Barns, and Good Meat.

By working through established meat distributors and processors, Evergreen Connect says it can fit into existing supply chains and avoid positioning itself in opposition to livestock producers.

Investor Kevin Lo of S2G Investments said Evergreen stood out during a year when funding for cultivated meat remained limited, pointing to its emphasis on regulatory preparation and partnerships as key factors.

Part of the new funding will be used to complete regulatory reviews in the US and Singapore, a process led in part by chief scientific and technology officer Eric Schulze, a former US Food and Drug Administration official.

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