[Article updated 11 March 2021]
Singapore is quickly becoming a bustling hub for the foodtech industry, with many foodtech startups launching across the island.
One of the newer players is Next Gen, a startup that specialises in developing and producing plant-based food. It launched in October last year with a founder capitalisation of US$2.2 million (SGD$3 million).
On February 25, Next Gen announced that it has raised US$10 million in seed funding.
Investors included Temasek, K3 Ventures, EDB New Ventures (an investment arm of the Singapore Economic Development Board), NX-Food, FEBE Ventures and Blue Horizon.
According to the startup, the funding round is the largest ever for a plant-based food tech company, based on data from Pitch Book.
“The exceptional response from our investors — raising more than our initial US$7 million target — is a strong validation of our team, our technology, our business model, our fantastic product, and our expansion strategy,” said Timo Recker, co-founder of Next Gen.
The funding will be used to expand into additional Asian cities and invest in continued research and development of new plant-based products.
The startup also announced that it will be launching its plant based chicken brand TiNDLE on March 18 across 11 restaurant brands.
Chicken Made From Plants
Distributed by Classic Fine Foods, TiNDLE will be rolled out in select restaurants including Three Buns Quayside, The Prive Group, 28 HongKong Street, Bayswater Kitchen and The Goodburger, among others.
The first TiNDLE product is TiNDLE Thy. It is said to deliver “the unmistakable taste and versatility of chicken thigh,” and chefs can easily use it to prepare dishes in multiple culinary applications.
TiNDLE Thy is high in protein and fibre, low in carbs, as well as GMO and cholesterol-free.
It is made with nine ingredients, including the company’s trademarked “magic ingredient” Lipi, a blend of “plant-based fats and flavour” and sunflower oil.
It also meets the nutritional guidelines for the Healthier Choice Symbol administered by Singapore’s Health Promotion Board due to its lower sodium and lower saturated fat content as compared to regular plant-based meat alternatives.
Restaurant chain Prive will roll out Tindle katsu curry, which has a breaded Tindle cutlet in Japanese curry, while The Market Grill in Telok Ayer Street will serve a Tindle chicken strudel.
“Not only does TiNDLE Thy deliver to the quality, versatility, and cookability chefs demand for chicken made from plants, it also delivers the full taste experience consumers seek,” said Jean Madden, Chief Marketing Officer of Next Gen.
“This unique combination, along with Next Gen’s brand development and marketing capabilities, aligns TiNDLE to meet the global opportunity for plant-based chicken.”
Featured Image Credit: Next Gen
