Joywell Foods bolsters sweet protein R&D with Piva investment

14 Aug 2020 --- Growing demand and consequent innovation for natural protein sweeteners are evidenced by a new investment in Joywell Foods. Coming from venture capital firm Piva, the Series A financing enables the food-tech start-up to continue the buildout of its sweet fruit protein technology platform while enabling its use as an ingredient in finished goods. This comes at a time when emerging research continues to link sugar consumption with numerous comorbidities. CEO Karen Huh tells NutritionInsight that the company will not be disclosing details about the financing.

“Piva’s investment is part of our Series A syndicate. Given its interest in the food technology space, we were not surprised by its participation once we were able to pass the initial due diligence phase. While not every venture capital firm invests in our space, we’ve experienced solid engagement with those who are passionate about food technology and our mission to reduce sugar consumption,” Huh details.

Previously, Joywell Foods received funding via a US$6.9 million Series A financing round led by Evolv Ventures, a venture fund backed by Kraft Heinz. Combined with a previous seed round, this latest raise brings Joywell Foods’s total funding to US$13.2 million. The company also counts Khosla Ventures, SOSV and Alumni Ventures Group as its investors. 

“Our focus is centered on R&D and technology while building potential partnerships and products for consumer rollout. We are actively talking to a number of CPG companies about the use of sweet fruit proteins in both existing and new products. We’re looking forward to sharing more about our product concepts featuring sweet fruit proteins in the coming months,” she announces.

Lowing sugar: Major industry trend
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a reduced intake of free sugars throughout the life course. In both adults and children, the WHO advises reducing the consumption of free sugars to less than 10 percent of total energy intake. In this space, sugar reduction is a growing trend driven by health-conscious consumers as well as government-driven regulation forcing manufacturers and brands to cut sugar content across food and beverage categories. 

Sugar reduction is a growing trend driven by health-conscious consumers as well as government-driven regulation (Credits: Joywell Foods).Despite expecting a wealth of reduced-sugar options, consumers will not compromise on taste and Joywell Foods is “extremely conscious” of that. “Right now, consuming low sugar products requires consumers to compromise on taste, health, or both. We are asking shoppers to make concessions when they consume these products,” Huh previously shared with FoodIngredientsFirst. 

“With our sweet proteins, we are able to create products that are truly ‘suffer-free.’ They are not only low in sugar, but they taste naturally sweet without the negative effects of artificial sweeteners,” she highlights.

Investing in food technologies
With consumers increasingly intrigued by ingredient provenance, farm-to-fork company transparency, as well as planetary and human health implications, food technologies are stepping up to the plate. 

“Food technologies are an essential part of the food industry to keep up with consumers seeking simplicity while shopping and consuming. These technologies change really fast due to the global change in lifestyles that are getting more active,” José Luis Pinedo Rivera, Product Manager for Food Industry at Ingredia, previously told FoodIngredientsFirst. 

“The [technologies encompass] ways to optimize the process of making the finished products to new consumer experiences that will respond to their needs,” he detailed. Experts at Olam and Barry Callebaut also shared their perspectives on the F&B sector’s current pace of innovation.

In the nutrition sector specifically, Arcadia Biosciences will be bringing its GoodWheat portfolio of specialty wheat ingredients to China and Israel. The latter is home to more than 50 agriculture and food technology start-ups. In 2018, annual investment in Israel’s food tech sector rose to US$100 million, according to a report by Start Up Nation Central. 

Meanwhile, Singapore-based TurtleTree Labs completed a fresh round of funding from global investors, raising US$3.2 million in June. The biotechnology company can create cell-based real milk from any mammal without the need for animals. 

By Anni Schleicher