Brazilian biotech startup Cellva Ingredients has raised BRL 6.5 million (~USD 1.3 million) in its first funding round led by Seed4Science from Fundepar, with participation from ProVeg Incubator, Rumbo Ventures, and the EA Angels network in Rio Grande do Sul. The firm aims to raise BRL 10 million (~USD 2 million) by the close of this funding round, slated for March 2024.

The company will use the funding to expand into a new laboratory and for additional hires to support its production capacity and scale its cellular agriculture solutions.

Cellva Ingredients specializes in producing cultivated animal fats with a significantly faster turnaround time than traditional methods. The company unveiled its prototype in mid-2023 and plans to launch its first product by Q1 2025, pending regulatory approval.

Analyst QuickTake: Cell-cultured fat is a segment tackled only by a handful of players. Companies like Cultimate Foods , Mission Barns , and Cubiq Foods have unveiled prototypes/products that use cultivated fats but have yet to launch a commercial product.