Dairy alternative brand Miyoko’s Creamery has secured $52 million in Series C funding, as it looks to expand both distribution and product innovation.

The California-based company plans to use the capital to further disrupt the traditional dairy market with its cheese and butter alternatives made from fermented plant milks.

The Series C round was led by PowerPlant Partners – which invested $40 million – with participation from CPT Capital and previous investors Cult Capital, Obvious Ventures and Stray Dog.

Miyoko’s dairy-free portfolio is currently distributed in 30,000 stores nationwide, as well as in Canada, South Africa, Hong Kong and Singapore. With a strong position in the US natural grocery channel, the company plans to focus further distribution expansion on the conventional grocery, club and foodservice channels.

Last year, Miyoko’s released two vegan mozzarella-style cheeses for the foodservice sector.

With the funding, Miyoko’s plans to innovate new vegan butter and cheese lines and is launching a Liquid Vegan Pizza Mozzarella later this year. The business is also releasing reformulated versions of its vegan cheddar and pepper jack cheeses.

“The company’s rapid growth in just a few short years would not be possible without our unique approach to product innovation,” said Miyoko Schinner, founder and CEO of Miyoko’s Creamery.

He continued: “We are never satisfied and are always looking for ways to improve the taste, nutrition and performance of the products we craft. As the category creator and true lover of cheese, we work tirelessly to innovate for the future of the category and the planet.”

Dan Gluck, managing partner at PowerPlant Partners, said: “Miyoko’s Creamery is very well positioned to capitalise on the massive market shift happening in dairy right now as consumers demand and prefer plant-based products.”

Julianne Hummelberg, vice president at PowerPlant Partners, added: “Clearly, plant-based cheese and butter are disrupting traditional dairy and the top one to two brands will capture the majority of the value being created by this market transformation. We believe Miyoko’s Creamery is one of those brands and couldn’t be more excited to help them execute on this opportunity.”

#dairyfreecheese #PowerPlantPartners #US #Dairyalternatives #MiyokosCreamery