Adamo Foods has secured a $620,000 investment to develop its steak alternative in what the company claims is a first in Europe.

The new funding comes from three different organisations. The first was UK government research and innovation department, Innovate UK, which secured Adamo Foods a smart grant. The second was Beeches Group, an agricultural investment fund backed by the owners of Noble Foods.

The company received further funding after being selected as the winner of the Shake Climate Change 2022 cohort – an annual competition led by Rothamsted research, which aims to support innovation in sustainable food production.

Pierre Dupuis, founder and CEO, said: “It’s a hugely exciting time in the alt-protein space, with meat alternatives more popular than ever. But we see a huge gap in the market for realistic and healthy alternatives to whole cuts. Whole cuts represent 85% of the $1trn meat market but are virtually absent in meat alternatives. We’re aiming to change that.”

Adamo Foods will use a proprietary fermentation process to create clean-label whole-cut steaks based on a single, natural superfood called fungal mycelium.

The mycelium strain is packed with fibre, provides a source of protein with all nine essential amino acids and is inherently fibrous, delivering a unique muscle-like structure.

Dupuis added: “We’re working on an exciting new technology to take these products to the next level, and are hugely grateful to our new investors for recognising its potential. The funding takes us one step further on our mission to remove animals from our broken food system.”

The company plans to pilot launch its first product in a limited number of UK locations in 2023.

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