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A $6.5 million seed round will fund continued research & development at Sydney-based plant-based meat manufacturer Fable Food Co as the company plans its push overseas.
The seed round was led by Blackbird Ventures and comes just one and a half years after the company first brought its meaty pulled mushrooms product to market.
Other participants in the raise include Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm AgFunder, sustainability and plant-based focused funds Aera VC and Better Bite Ventures, alongside Singapore-based Ban Choon Marketing and ex-Sequoia Capital Partner Warren Hogarth.
"We're thrilled to have partners dedicated to creating a more sustainable future, and who believe in our mission to help people reduce their meat consumption and ultimately end industrial animal agriculture," said Fable CEO and co-founder Fox, who was also the co-founder of failed custom shoe brand Shoes of Prey.
"Thanks to the backing and support of Blackbird Ventures, AgFunder and all of our investors, we will be able to bring our delicious, clean, and responsibly crafted meaty mushroom products to more people around the world."
The raise is the latest boon for Fable, which recently found its mushroom-based products on the menus of celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal's Michelin Star restaurants.
It has been a fast journey for the startup, which inked deals with supermarket giants Woolworths (ASX: WOW) and Coles within its first year of launching.
Since then, Fable's foods have featured in the meal delivery services of Marley Spoon and Dinnerly. In addition, it recently launched a range of ready meals to help make plant-based eating more accessible and mainstream.
"We're continually developing delicious meaty mushroom products to make it as easy as possible for people to eat less meat," Fox said.
"We want to inspire people to make more healthy and sustainable food choices, and we believe that people shouldn't have to compromise on taste or quality to do so."
With the Australian market doing well, Fable will expand its production capabilities at home and abroad in order to crack into more international markets.
Fable has already launched into Singapore and the United Kingdom, and will be entering the United States market by the end of this year.
To support this move, the startup has appointed former SafetyCulture executive Dan Joyce to the role of chief growth officer.
In the role, Joyce will head up sales and marketing globally and help expand the business in the UK, US and Asia
"We're looking forward to expanding in Australia and overseas, and we're stoked to have Dan Joyce join us as our chief growth officer," Fox said.
"He did an incredible job helping build SafetyCulture and we're thrilled to have his expertise as we continue to bring more delicious meaty food made from mushrooms to diners all around the world."
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