August 12, 2024

By Gerelyn Terzo, Global AgInvesting Media

Plonts, an Oakland, California-based startup that develops plant-based cheeses, has launched its maiden product on the heels of a $12 million seed round. Led by climate-tech VC firm Lowercarbon Capital, the round also extended to other participants, including Peter Rahal’s Litani Ventures, Accelr8, Pillar and Ponderosa Ventures as well as multiple angel investors.

After spending some time in what the company has described as stealth mode, Plonts also debuted a pilot plant in Oakland, California, where it produces aged plant-based cheddar. The product was created to help fight climate change and is making its debut this month at restaurants in the New York and San Francisco areas.

Founded in 2019 by Nathaniel Chu and Josh Moser, Plonts harnesses the historic biotechnology-based process of fermentation, a process dating back thousands of years and similarly used in dairy products, to transform plants into cheese, with soy milk instead of cow’s milk serving as the key differentiator. A blend of cultures and enzymes produce tangy cheese flavors throughout the aging process, resulting in what the company described as “bold cheddar that slices, shreds and melts.”

Plonts Co-Founder Chu completed his Ph.D. at MIT where he studied the human gut microbiome. His vision was to apply his passion for microbes to producing fermented foods originating from sustainable, nutritious and affordable plants. The origins of the company harken back to a pizza restaurant, where Chu started experimenting with plant-based cheeses. For his part, fellow co-founder Moser has experience in both operational and investor capacities with a focus on early-stage climate and sustainable startups.

According to the latest Bloomberg Intelligence data, the plant-based foods segment could comprise as much as 7.7 percent of the worldwide protein industry by 2030, at which time it is predicted to be worth more than $162 billion compared with less than $30 billion in 2020. Growth is being fueled by innovations from companies like Beyond Meat, Impossible Foods and Oatly, which similar to Plonts are partnering with restaurants to get the word out. Meanwhile, in the next decade, animal and dairy protein demand is expected to reach a value of $1.2 trillion worldwide, a need that plant-based products could help to meet amid a growing population.

Cattle have gained a reputation as the planet’s leading agricultural source of greenhouse gasses, with a single cow belching approximately 220 pounds of methane each year amid microbes that cause the fermentation of feed in a cow’s rumen, according to the University of California, Davis. That activity also takes a toll on the cows, commanding roughly 10 percent of the animal’s energy.

Plonts is doing its part to create a new category of plant-based cheeses to combat climate change and deforestation, of which meat and dairy-based greenhouse gas emissions contribute. The company’s future roadmap includes the launch of additional products and an expansion into new markets.

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