By Lynda Kiernan
Plant-based seafood brand Good Catch and its parent company Gathered Foods have closed on a Series B oversubscribed at more than $32 million. This round brings the company’s total funding to-date to more than $50 million.
The round was led by long-time investor Stray Dog Capital and Rocana Ventures, and has brought in two high-profile strategic investors – Greenleaf Foods, and 301INC, the venture capital arm of General Mills.
“When we met the Good Catch team, we were immediately captivated with their mission to develop more sustainable plant-based seafood products that taste as delicious as traditional seafood,” said John Haugen, managing director, 301 INC. “Good Catch stands out as a strong, expandable brand with passionate leadership, and we’re excited to partner to grow.”
Additional investors participating in this funding were Almanac Investments, CPT Capital, and New Crop Capital.
Co-founded in 2017 by brothers Chad and Derek Sarno, along with Chris Kerr, Eric Schnell, and Marci Zaroff, Good Catch offers high protein, nutrient-rich, plant-based seafood products made from a proprietary mix of six beans – pea, soy, chickpea, lentil, fava, and navy beans, along with seaweed and algae extracts to create an authentic seafood flavor.
Each product is dairy-free, gluten-free, non-GMO, and contains sea algae oil, providing essential omega-3 fatty acids, and has the same texture, flavor, and nutritional value of conventional seafood without causing negative effects on the environment.
“Good Catch is pioneering a new, promising sector of the fast-growing plant-based protein category and we’re thrilled to support their continued growth and progress as they deliver consumers great-tasting plant-based seafood products that support their brand mission—and ours, as well,” said Dan Curtin, president and CEO of Greenleaf Foods, SPC.
Growth in global demand for seafood has increased at 3.2 percent per year since 1960, outpacing the 1 percent annual growth in global population, according to Philippe de Lapérouse, co-head and managing director with HighQuest Consulting.
Over the same time period, per capita consumption of seafood has more than doubled from 10 kilograms per person to more than 20 kilograms per person today, driven by demand from Asian markets where seafood has historically been a cornerstone of the regional diet, and by consumers in developed markets who are looking to include healthier protein in their diets. Now, nearly 90 percent of the world’s marine fish stocks are fully exploited, overexploited, or depleted.
This unsustainable dynamic, however, is creating a scenario that will see global fisheries collapse before 2050, according to Good Catch.
“On the heels of widespread adoption of plant-based meat and increasing consumer concern about the environmental impacts of food production, the market is ripe for Good Catch’s next-generation plant-based seafood,” said Caroline Bushnell from the Good Food Institute.
“Plant-based seafood provides a host of environmental benefits, including alleviating pressures on rapidly depleting fisheries, providing relief to fragile ocean ecosystems, reducing the impact of fishing nets on the ocean plastic problem, and reducing production-related GHG emissions.”
Already available in more than 4,500 retail locations across the U.S, Good Catch plans to use the capital from this round to support the company’s significant expansion in distribution across North America, Europe, and Asia. It also will fund the opening of the company’s state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, and new product and food service channel launches in 2020.
“Consumer demand of trailblazing plant-based alternatives is nearly insatiable, and this trend is led by taste and availability,” said Chris Kerr, CEO and co-founder of Gathered Foods. “This next phase for Good Catch is laser focused on meeting consumer desires with culinary applications across all channels. This round of investment emphasizes the food industry’s recognition of our strategy, our reception by consumers, and anticipation for more innovation to come.”
– Lynda Kiernan is Editor with GAI Media and daily contributor to the GAI News and Agtech Intel platforms. If you would like to submit a contribution for consideration, please contact Ms. Kiernan at lkiernan@globalaginvesting.