Shandi, a Food-tech Firm in Singapore, Secures Investment to Create Plant-Based Chicken

The new capital, totaling more than USD 700,000, will be used to establish a manufacturing facility in Singapore to commercialize and grow Shandi's proprietary plant-based chicken products and expand food sector relationships.

FREMONT, CA: Shandi, a plant-based food-tech startup, has closed its second seed round, led by Singapore-based Tolaram, one of Africa's largest packaged food firms. Other investors in this round include Australia-based food-tech accelerator SparkLabs Cultiv8 and Simmarpal Singh, former CEO-India for Louis Dreyfus and famous angel investor.

The new capital, totaling more than USD 700,000, will be used to establish a manufacturing facility in Singapore to commercialize and grow Shandi's proprietary plant-based chicken products and expand food sector relationships. While Shandi has successfully manufactured chicken analogs in various formats such as bits, shreds, strips, and drumsticks, a portion of the proceeds will be used to fund more product innovation and development on new textures formats other meat analogs.

"We're thrilled to bring on board a variety of strategic investors, from a large food corporation to a sector-specific venture capital firm as well as an angel investor. This represents a strong validation of our technology and product, and we look forward to working with our investors to move to the next phase and bring our products to market. With its strong logistics and supply chain, forward-looking regulatory framework and supportive government initiatives, Singapore is well positioned to host our first commercial plant and we're delighted to be setting up here," said Dr. Reena Sharma, Founder, and CEO at Shandi.

Tolaram's first investment inside the alternative protein sector comes with this round of funding. Tolaram is a Singapore-based company having interests in consumer goods, finance, and infrastructure. It has 23 manufacturing plants in Africa and uses its extensive distribution network to reach half a billion people.

Said Deepak Singhal, MD of Consumer Products at Tolaram: "We continue to see strong growth in the alternative protein category, especially when more affordable options become available for emerging markets. We believe that Shandi could be a game-changer as they have created a chicken substitute that not only tastes and behaves like the animal meat but is also priced at par with it. We are excited to help them go-to-market and grow, utilizing our resources, network, and experience in building consumer brands from the ground up."