Vegan dairy cheese start-up Change Foods just closed an oversubscribed Seed round of $2.1 million. The one-year-old company has now raised $3.1 million USD in funding.

A myriad of investors backed the plant-based food brand. Investors include Better Bite Ventures, Canaccord Genuity, Clear Current Capital, Plug and Play Ventures, and the lead of Google AI Jeff Dean, among others.

GERBER-RAUTH, which also bought into Change Foods, is a private investment company. It focuses on projects related to food and beverage, including animal-derived dairy. A spokesperson for GERBER-RAUTH said: “We realize that the dairy ecosystem cannot and will not thrive if it remains static.”

They added that Change Foods will be among the ‘key players to revolutionize’ the dairy industry.

Vegan Cheese

The funding will be used to further develop Change Foods’ first product, dubbed animal-free cheese. The plant-based dairy option will be launched in the U.S. in 2023.

“People love cheese,” said CMO Irina Gerry in a statement sent to PBN. “Cheese is usually the last product holding consumers back from adopting a fully plant-based lifestyle, yet, cheese is second only to red meat (beef and lamb) in its carbon footprint.”

Change Foods Founder and CEO David Bucca added: “This is why we set out to make cheese without compromise. “

Change Foods uses microbial technology to create real dairy proteins, fats and flavors through precision fermentation. The company uses traditional cheesemaking techniques to produce a product that stretches and melts like dairy cheese.

Change Foods assembled its team online during the pandemic without ever having met. Bucca described the process as ‘surreal’. He added: “We are a part of a well-connected global community, able to attract investors, partners and suppliers from every corner of the world.”

“This connectivity and a shared mission give us tremendous power to drive change at scale.”