The alternative protein sector saw notable investment activity in the first half of 2025, with 54 deals totaling $443.45 million. These investments spanned multiple technologies and product categories, reflecting a broad interest across the industry. The two main technology categories, plant-based and fermentation, attracted the largest share of funding, with cultivated protein remaining a smaller segment.
Investment breakdown by quarter and technology
Investment in alternative proteins showed variation across the two quarters of 2025. In the first quarter, $258.49 million was invested across 31 deals. In contrast, the second quarter saw a decrease to $184.96 million in 23 deals. Despite the quarterly drop, the overall investment total for the first half of the year reached $443.45 million.
Investment by technology also revealed trends in sector interest. Plant-based products received the largest share of funding, with $213.81 million allocated across 28 deals. Fermentation technologies, which are being used for the production of protein and dairy alternatives, secured $198.7 million from 19 deals. Cultivated protein, though an emerging technology, attracted $30.9 million spread over 7 deals.
Product categories and investment distribution
Investment distribution by product category showed a clear preference for meat substitutes, which garnered the most funding. A total of $211.57 million was invested in plant-based meat alternatives. Dairy substitutes followed with $65.9 million, while the input sector, which includes raw materials and components for alternative protein production, received $79.82 million. Smaller investments were made in other categories, such as seafood, egg substitutes, and pet food, which combined totaled $22.84 million.
Largest investments in 1H 2025
Several investments stood out in terms of size. Beyond Meat, a major player in the plant-based meat space, received $100 million in debt financing. Other significant investments included Liberation Labs (now Liberation Bioindustries), which raised $50.5 million for precision fermentation focused on inputs, and Formo, which secured $35.86 million in venture debt for its precision fermentation dairy production in Germany.
Other key investments included:
- Vivici: $34.12 million in Series A funding for fermentation in ingredients and dairy (Netherlands)
- Heura: $22.22 million in debt financing for plant-based meat (Spain)
- Aleph Farms: $22 million raised through a SAFE agreement for cultivated meat (Israel)
- Project Eaden: $15.66 million in Series A funding for plant-based meat (Germany)
- CarboCode: $15.37 million in Series C funding for fermentation-based dairy alternatives (Portugal)
- Rival Foods: $11.51 million in Series B funding for plant-based meat (Netherlands)
- Foodiq: $11.25 million in undisclosed funding for plant-based inputs (Finland)
The first half of 2025 demonstrated stable investment activity in the alternative protein sector. While plant-based products continue to attract the largest share of funding, there is growing interest in fermentation technologies, especially in the dairy and ingredient sectors. Cultivated meat remains a relatively small but notable part of the overall investment picture.
These insights were compiled by Nicholas Dahl. Explore further alternative protein investment data on the Alternative Proteins Global Substack.