Cell-based milk producer TurtleTree Labs secures pre-seed funding

Singapore-based company TurtleTree Labs, which produces milk from cells, has completed its pre-seed funding round.

The funding round was led by Lever VC with K2 Global and KBW Ventures. Lever VC is a venture capital fund that focuses on alternative protein investments.

Lever VC founder and managing partner Nick Cooney said: “What TurtleTree Labs is doing is fascinating, and their technology could be a serious disruptor in the global dairy industry.

“They are the first company in the world producing real, whole milk from cell cultivation, which opens the door for safer, healthier and customised dairy products that can be produced with far fewer natural resources.”

TurtleTree is said to be the first company in the world that produces real milk from animal cells, with no animal needed.

It claims that its technology not only offers the full functionality of the dairy milk but also has the potential to disrupt the existing baby formula industry.

The capital raised in the funding round will be used by the company to hire more scientists and further expand its team for rapid acceleration.

KBW Ventures founder and CEO Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud said: “KBW Ventures’ interest in TurtleTree stems from both the team vision and the company’s strategic approach to the future of food using stem cell technology.

“Having spent time with the founding team in Singapore, we have a lot of confidence in TurtleTree’s progress as a biotech company and in the direction, they are taking from a business perspective.”