2.6 million dollars for Sallea

Next-generation cultured meat: Sallea's innovative scaffolding brings textured, sustainable meat and fish to the plate

Zurich, Switzerland, October 16, 2024 - Swiss deep-tech startup Sallea, which specializes in the production of cultured meat and fish, has closed a USD 2.6 million funding round. The round was led by Founderful, with participation from Kost Capital. The funds will be used to advance the development of edible cell culture scaffolds that enable the production of premium textured products such as steaks and fillets.

Cellular agriculture

Sallea was launched in November 2023 by an all-female founding team. The company has developed a technology that enables the production of 3D scaffolds on which meat and fish cells can be grown in bioreactors. These scaffolds improve the texture and nutritional composition of the cultured products, making it possible to produce premium quality textured cultured meat for the first time.

Financing to scale up production

The seed capital of USD 2.6 million complements the USD 1.8 million in non-dilutive funding already secured. According to CEO and co-founder Simona Fehlmann, the funding will expand the company's production capacity and accelerate partnership development and product development. The goal is to reduce the cost of cultured meat while increasing the structural complexity of the products to create marketable premium products.

Sallea is opening the door to a sustainable and animal-friendly future by taking cultured meat production to the next level.

Antonia Albert, Principal at Founderful

The future of cellular agriculture

The global market for cultured meat is growing by over 50% annually and could reach a value of 370 billion US dollars by 2030. Sallea's technology is attracting growing interest in the industry as the market evolves from integrated value chains to an ecosystem where specialized components such as cell media and scaffolds are sourced externally. Sallea's novel scaffolds enable manufacturers to develop marketable cultured products faster and more efficiently.