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England footballer player Dele Alli has invested in Next Gen Foods, makers of vegan chicken brand TiNDLE.
It’s part of a staggering $30 million in its initial seed investment round.
As a result, the Singapore-founded company is eyeing expansion into the US.
Multi-million dollar investment
Alli currently plays for the England squad and Tottenham Hotspurs.
Among the other investors are Global Fund GGV Capital, Bits x Bites, Yeo Hiap Seng, and Chris Yeh. It’s first investment into vegan chicken for Global Fund GGV.
Following a $10m round in February, the company extended to secure a further $20m.
Moreover, Next Gen Foods claims this to be the largest ever funding for a plant-based start-up.
Now the brand is bringing TiNDLE chicken to the US, and will hire more than 50 employees to scale research and development, marketing, and finance.
Vegan chicken brand
CEO Andre Menezes said: “The United States is the world’s biggest market for plant-based foods. We are already putting our foundations in place to be in-market within the next 12 months as we accelerate our goal of becoming the world’s number one plant-based chicken.
“The outstanding response from both existing and new investors shows their confidence in our innovative technology, highly scalable business model, differentiated taste experiences and the ability of our team to make TiNDLE a market leader in the US.”
Each 100g pack of TiNDLE vegan chicken is packed with 17 grams of protein. Additionally, it’s made from textured soy and wheat protein.
Dele Alli
Alli isn’t the only footballer to invest in plant-based innovation.
Vegan footballer Chris Smalling helped vegan meat brand THIS hike to a £3.5m last year and has also supported a ‘clean’ energy drinks company, Virtue Drinks.
Tottenham star Alli set up his own investment firm, Future Homes Investments Ltd five years ago. Additionally, he’s a global ambassador of the gaming franchise Excel Esports.
